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Comprehensive multi-agency performance measurement processes should be designed to fully and accurately identify, record, link and analyse information relating to concerns for children and child abuse. This allows good and poor performance and practice, and gaps in service provision to be identified. It also provides a structure for ownership and accountability. The ways in which good practice and performance are recognised and shared, and the mechanisms used to improve poor performance all fall within the performance management framework.
Performance
Performance in connection with child abuse investigations by specialists and other police staff should be an integral part of the overall performance management regime. Managers should be identified to take responsibility for performance of investigations into child abuse, which should be monitored and reviewed at force and divisional levels. To enable performance to be monitored, forces need to be able to distinguish between crimes committed against children and offences committed against adults.
For further information see:
- HM Government (2015) Working Together to Safeguard Children
- Welsh Assembly Government (n.d.) Safeguarding Children: Working Together Under the Children Act 2004
Joint performance indicators
The local safeguarding children board should develop joint performance indicators which focus on outcomes rather than quantitative information. A performance regime should be developed in forces to address internal activity, outputs and outcomes from the police perspective. This should have both quantitative and qualitative indicators which focus on outcomes for children.
The ultimate measure of strategic performance should always be the quality of service that a child is receiving in terms of increased safety as a result of police and/or multi-agency intervention (otherwise known as safeguarding interventions).