Children’s Hearings Scotland
Telephone:
0131 244 4888
Contact email:
Website:
Address:
3rd Floor, Thistle House, 91 Haymarket Terrace, Edinburgh EH12 5HE
Who the service is aimed at:
Children and young people who have been referred to Children’s Hearing System only.
Support provided:
Children’s Hearings Scotland (CHS) recruits, trains and supports around 2,500 volunteers across Scotland. Our volunteer roles are Panel Members and Regional Area Support Team members. Panel Members make legal decisions with, and for, children and young people in children’s hearings, and Regional support team members provide support and guidance to those Panel Members locally. You may have heard of us being referred to as the Children’s Panel too.
Children’s Hearings Scotland is one of a number of dedicated organisations that work as part of the children’s hearings system. This care and justice system is unique to Scotland and exists to protect the safety and wellbeing of infants, children and young people nationally.
The system is made up of lots of partners who each have a different role. Our role is to ensure children’s hearings take place by having three skilled and trained Panel Members on every hearing. We provide legal and practice advice to Panel Members but they are independent decision makers. Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA) are another main organisation which works within the children’s hearings system. They receive referrals when people are worried about children and then arrange the children’s hearings.
Age range:
All ages of children and young people
Area covered:
All Dumfries and Galloway
Can an individual access the service directly, or do they need to be referred to it by another service – like a school, social worker, health practitioner for example?
Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA) accept referrals for CYP and then arranges the Children’s hearings. The majority of referrals to the Children’s Reporter come from our partner agencies, such as the police, social work and education.
However, anyone can make a referral to the Reporter – parents, family members, carers or any concerned member of the public can contact the Children’s Reporter if they have concerns about a child or young person and their circumstances.
How to make a referral:
If you believe a child or young person is at risk (either because of their behaviour or the behaviour of the adults/carers looking after the child/young person) you can contact your local Reporter’s office direct to discuss your concerns. In an emergency situation you should contact the police and / or social work immediately.
The Reporter then must make an initial investigation before deciding what action, if any, is necessary in the child or young person’s interests. The Reporter must consider whether the evidence is sufficient to support the statement of grounds and then decide whether compulsory measures of supervision may be required.
The Reporter has a statutory discretion in deciding the next step, and following their investigation, the Reporter can make one of a number of decisions, including referring a child or young person to a Hearing.
Where there is no requirement for compulsory measures of supervision, children and young people can be dealt with by a variety of options, including: restorative justice, voluntary measures and tailored programmes to tackle their behaviour.
These are all available options depending on the individual child or young person, their needs and circumstances. Children and young people can be referred to services like this either on a compulsory basis following a Children’s Hearing, or on a voluntary basis (without proceeding to a Hearing) with the support of their family/guardians and usually social work services.
Top tips for making a ‘good’ referral (if applicable):
What needs to be in place before a referral is accepted (for example a Child’s Plan)?
Is there a charge/fee for this service?
No
If there is a charge/fee, is there funding available for this?
N/A
