Communications Group

  Communications group business plan (PDF, 65kb)

The Children's Trust Communications Group has merged with the Communications Group of the Staffordshire Safeguarding Children's Board.   For more information contact the Chair.

Communications Group: Terms of Reference

Aims

To develop a communications strategy for the Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Board and the Children's Trust Board which disseminates the work of both boards to member agencies, the voluntary and independent sectors and the community.

To develop communications to inform our target audience about issues around the Every Child Matters agenda (with particular reference to staying safe).

Objectives
 
The group will:
 
• Communicate to people and bodies in the area of the authority the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people, raising their awareness of how this can best be done and encouraging them to do so.
 
• Devise a robust communications strategy for disseminating the work of the Boards to constituent agencies, and evaluate the effectiveness of this strategy.
 
• Devise a robust communications strategy for disseminating the work of the Boards to the public, and evaluate the effectiveness of this strategy.
 
• Devise a strategy for consulting with children and young people and for ensuring their opinions are accounted for in the planning and delivery of services.
 
• Receive work delegated from the main Board and in turn make recommendations for the Board's endorsement.
 
• Have the capacity to commission short life task to finish groups in undertaking specific aspects of the communications strategy.
 
 
Membership
 
• Members will comprise of named representatives of constituent agencies of the main Boards, including education, children's social care, health providers, the police, probation, district councils, social care and health, the voluntary sector, YOIs, the YOS and Connexions.
 
• Membership will extend to other organisations by the agreement of the Board.
 
• Membership should be able to influence communication activities within the agencies concerned.
 
• A chairperson will be chosen by the Boards.  A co-chair will be selected by the group.
 
• Members must nominate a colleague to represent their service if unable to attend a meeting.  In these circumstances, members are responsible for ensuring their colleagues are fully briefed.
 
• The frequency of meetings is to be bi-monthly.

Accountability and Reporting
 
The group is accountable via the chair/co-chair to the main Boards.

The group will report via minutes to each board and through the performance management mechanisms of each board.

A representative of the group will also sit on the Children's Trust Executive and the Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Board.

Remit and legal framework
 
The group is a formally constituted arm of Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Board and Staffordshire Children's Trust.
 
It is responsible for communicating issues regarding the safeguarding of children and young people to people and bodies in the area of the authority.  Paragraph 3.30 of Working Together to Safeguard Children (2006) applies.
 
 
Principles
 
The group will:
 
• Retain a child focus, recognising that each child and young person is unique, and having due regard to the diversity of race, language, culture, religion and gender.
• Remain alert to the vulnerability of certain populations of children and young people according to age, disability, family context and to those who are disadvantaged by poverty and social exclusion.
• Conduct its business with a commitment to supporting children and young people to reach the five Every Child Matters Outcomes.
• Be alert to the need to produce communications in a range of formats and languages.

Last Modified: 17/09/2008 09:39:22
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