U20 LO 2 Safeguarding People

​Safeguarding People

Safeguarding means protecting people from
harm, abuse, or neglect, including physical,
emotional, sexual, and financial harm.

The emergency services especially the police
play a critical role, working in partnership with
local authorities and other agencies. 

By Paul Bird

Identifying and Responding to Vulnerabilty

• Frontline officers have a duty to recognize signs of abuse or neglect in both children and adults at risk.

• Partnership Working: Police are statutory partners on local safeguarding boards (for adults and children) and work within multi-agency safeguarding hubs (MASH) to share information and coordinate responses with social services and health provided

Emergency Powers: In cases of immediate danger, officers can use emergency powers to enter premises to save life or limb or prevent serious harm. This includes:

• Police Protection Powers (under Section 46 of the Children Act 1989) to remove a child to a safe place for up to 72 hours if they are believed to be at risk of significant harm

• Preventing Removal from Hospital: Police can also use PPP to prevent a parent from removing a child from a hospital

  if doing so would lead to significant harm.