Since Jan 2024 children subject to Care Orders and Children Protection Plans due to FII
Case reference FOI2024/00456
Published 3 April 2024
Request
This request concerns characteristics that may be described as any of the following: Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII); Munchausen's syndrome by proxy; parental 'over-medicalisation' of their child; or 'perplexing presentations' with regards to the child's health. In the following questions, these descriptions will be referred to as "the described characteristics". Where questions ask for numerical figures regarding the described characteristics, all four descriptions should be counted collectively (rather than split four ways).
1. Of the child protection plans that started in January 2024, did any involve concerns over the described characteristics?
2. If the answer to question 1 is 'yes', how many involved concerns over the described characteristics?
3. Of the care orders (excluding interim care orders) that the council was granted in January 2024, did any involve concerns over the described characteristics?
4. If the answer to question 3 is 'yes', how many involved concerns over the described characteristics?
5. Please provide the council's current policy on Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII), including definitions, warning signs, care/escalation pathways, and thresholds for intervention.
Response
This request concerns characteristics that may be described as any of the following: Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII); Munchausen's syndrome by proxy; parental 'over-medicalisation' of their child; or 'perplexing presentations' with regards to the child's health. In the following questions, these descriptions will be referred to as "the described characteristics". Where questions ask for numerical figures regarding the described characteristics, all four descriptions should be counted collectively (rather than split four ways).
1. Of the child protection plans that started in January 2024, did any involve concerns over the described characteristics?
No.
2. If the answer to question 1 is 'yes', how many involved concerns over the described characteristics?
N/A
3. Of the care orders (excluding interim care orders) that the council was granted in January 2024, did any involve concerns over the described characteristics?
No.
4. If the answer to question 3 is 'yes', how many involved concerns over the described characteristics?
N/A
5. Please provide the council's current policy on Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII), including definitions, warning signs, care/escalation pathways, and thresholds for intervention.
The current multi-agency policy on Fabricated and Induced Illness (FII) is available on the Regional Child Protection Procedures (West Midlands) website and can be viewed via the following link:
This includes definitions, warning signs ("Indicators"), care/escalation pathways and thresholds for intervention ("Action to Take").
The multi-agency Fabricated and Induced Illness (FII) policy was last reviewed in January 2022, and it references the "Perplexing Presentations (PP) / Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII) in Children" guidance from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (March 2021).
As such we consider this information to be exempt under Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it is reasonably accessible to you via other means. Please take this letter as a refusal notice under S17 of the Act.
Documents
This is Herefordshire Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
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