1. General Information

Care leavers 184. Local authorities have on-going responsibilities to the children who cease to be looked after and become care leavers. 51 That includes keeping in touch with them, preparing an assessment of their needs and appointing a personal adviser who develops a pathway plan with the young person. This plan describes how the local authority will support the care leaver to participate in education or training. Designated safeguarding leads should therefore have details of the local authority Personal Advisor appointed to guide and support the care leaver and should liaise with them as necessary regarding any issues of concern affecting the care leaver. Children with special educational needs and disabilities or physical health issues 185. Children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) or certain health conditions can face additional safeguarding challenges. Governing bodies and proprietors should ensure their child protection policy reflects the fact that additional barriers can exist when recognising abuse and neglect in this group of children. These can include: • assumptions that indicators of possible abuse such as behaviour, mood and injury relate to the child’s condition without further exploration; • these children being more prone to peer group isolation or bullying (including prejudice-based bullying) than other children; • the potential for children with SEND or certain medical conditions being disproportionally impacted by behaviours such as bullying, without outwardly showing any signs; and • communication barriers and difficulties in managing or reporting these challenges. 186. Governing bodies and proprietors, should, therefore ensure that their child protection policy reflects the above and to address these additional challenges, schools and colleges should consider extra pastoral support and attention for these children, along with ensuring any appropriate support for communication is in place. 187. Further information can be found in the Department’s: SEND Code of Practice 0 to 25 and Supporting Pupils at School with Medical Conditions.

51 A care leaver who is 16 or 17 (referred to in legislation as a ‘relevant child’ is defined in section 23A(2) of the Children Act 1989 as a child who is (a) not looked after (b) aged 16 or 17, and (c) was, before ceasing to be looked after by a local authority, looked after for a period of 13 weeks, or periods amounting in total to 13 weeks, beginning after s/he reached the age of 14 and ended after s/he reached the age of 16.

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