Revised arrangements for child death processes

As part of new safeguarding arrangements, Child Death Review (CDR) processes are also required to transform. In October 2018 the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Education released new Child Death Review Statutory and Operational Guidance.

It builds on statutory requirements set out in Working Together to Safeguard Children and clarifies how professionals and organisations across all sectors involved in a child death should contribute to the child death review process.

Oversight for CDR processes will move from the Department of Education to the Department for Health and Social Care recognising that most child deaths are due to medical factors rather than safeguarding. The new guidance aims to

• Improve the experience of bereaved families
• Ensure that information from the child death review process is systematically captured in every case to enable learning and to prevent future deaths

One requirement of the new guidance is the CDR processes must review at least 60 deaths per year. Within North Central London (NCL) there are currently an average of 80 deaths (<18 year olds) per year. Based on the last three years’ data the average number of deaths across the five boroughs is 80 (Barnet, 20, Camden 11, Enfield 20, Haringey 20 and Islington 13).

CDR partners in North Central London have agreed that a single NCL CDR process is established across Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington.