In Essex, there are five organisations who are jointly responsible by law for the partnership arrangements for keeping children safe. These are:
- Essex County Council
- Essex Police
- Three Integrated Care Boards covering the county of Essex
These organisations are known as the Statutory Partners and they work under the title of the Essex Safeguarding Children Board (ESCB). The Statutory Partners have identified relevant agencies which are legally required to cooperate with local safeguarding arrangements, including Education, Essex Council for Voluntary Youth Services (ECVYS), District, City & Borough Councils, Office of Police, Fire & Crime Commissioner, National Probation Service, Community Rehabilitation Company. As part of the Board's strategic oversight of safeguarding arrangements across all organisations in Essex, relevant agencies are required to submit an audit to the ESCB every two years. This exercise was undertaken last year by all settings, and will be repeated in the 2025-26 academic year.
We are aware that many settings choose to complete the audit annually, and so there is an updated version for the 2023 to 2024 academic year. There is no need for settings to return this, it is for use as an internal self-evaluation tool / checklist.
Please note: the audit spreadsheet is not fully accessible, however there are elements that cannot be amended so it is as accessible as possible.
