Child safeguarding policies following the Child Safeguarding Review Panel in September 2022
Case reference FOI2025/02225
Received 10 November 2025
Published 26 November 2025
Request
In September 2022 the Child Safeguarding Review Panel issued guidance asking that “all safeguarding partners review their current policies on bruising in non-mobile infants to check for consistency with the evidence base and national guidelines.”
Can you respond to the following freedom of information request:
1. Was their a review of your safeguarding policies after this guidance was published, when was it, and what did it conclude?
2. Provide any papers that give information on the outcome of this review.
3. Does your policy require a s47 investigation or strategy discussion in all cases?
4. What changes were put in place to provide consistency with the evidence base and national guidelines.
5. Were there changes to your definition of when a child is not independently mobile and how is that now defined – in particular are children who can roll defined as not independently mobile and are children classified as not independently mobile on the basis of age?
Response
In September 2022 the Child Safeguarding Review Panel issued guidance asking that “all safeguarding partners review their current policies on bruising in non-mobile infants to check for consistency with the evidence base and national guidelines.”
Can you respond to the following freedom of information request:
1. Was their a review of your safeguarding policies after this guidance was published, when was it, and what did it conclude?
Answer: The Service Area have advised the “Injuries in Babies and Children under 2 years of age” policy was the relevant policy at the time of the National Panel report in 2022. This was a regional West Midlands procedure and it was reviewed in 2023 by the West Midlands Regional Procedures Group to ensure that it reflected the learning from the National Panel report. Minor amendments were made (please see the response to Question 4).
This policy has since been replaced in 2024 by the “Bruising in Babies and Children” West Midlands procedure due to the West Midlands Procedures moving to a new provider. The new policy also reflects the guidance from the National Panel report.
2. Provide any papers that give information on the outcome of this review.
Answer: West Midlands regional “Bruising in Babies and Children” policy is publically available on the Herefordshire Safeguarding Children Partnership website and can be viewed via the following link:
https://westmids-herefordshire.trixonline.co.uk/chapter/bruising-in-babies-and-children
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.
3. Does your policy require a s47 investigation or strategy discussion in all cases?
Answer: No.
4. What changes were put in place to provide consistency with the evidence base and national guidelines.
Answer: The Service Area have advised the policy was reviewed in 2023 to:
- move the definition of not independently mobile children, mobile children, and bruising/specific marks to the start of the policy
- clarify that a paediatrician should review any suspicions of inflicted injury in babies
- add the learning from the National Panel recommendations, notably the following text:
“Bruising in non-Mobile Infants (Child Safeguarding Review Panel)” (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1106085/14.155_DFE_Child_safeguarding_Bruising_PB1_v3_Final_PDFA.pdf) recommends that in all cases of bruising in children who are not independently mobile there is:
o A review by a health professional who has the appropriate expertise to assess the nature and presentation of the bruise, any associated injuries, and to appraise the circumstances of the presentation including the developmental stage of the child, whether there is any evidence of a medical condition that could have caused or contributed to the bruising, or a plausible explanation for the bruising;
o A multi-agency discussion to consider any other information on the child and family and any known risks, and to jointly decide whether any further assessment, investigation or action is needed to support the family or protect the child. This multi-agency discussion should always include the health professional who reviewed the child.
5. Were there changes to your definition of when a child is not independently mobile and how is that now defined – in particular are children who can roll defined as not independently mobile and are children classified as not independently mobile on the basis of age?
Answer: The Service Area have advised no, as this was already defined. The current definition from the Bruising in Babies Policy is: “A non-mobile baby, or one that has no independent mobility, for the purposes of this guidance is a baby or young child who is unable to move independently through crawling, bottom shuffling, pulling to stand, cruising or walking independently.” There is no age classification as part of the definition.
Documents
This is Herefordshire Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
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