Our Purpose, Vision, and Priorities

• Gaining assurance that local safeguarding arrangements are in place as defined by the Care Act 2014 and accompanying statutory guidance.
• Ensuring that the principles of Making Safeguarding Personal are central to safeguarding and practice is person centred and outcome focused.
• Working collaboratively with our partner agencies to prevent abuse and neglect where possible.
• Ensuring individuals and agencies provide timely and proportionate responses when abuse or neglect has occurred.
• Striving for continuous improvement in safeguarding practice and supporting partner agencies to embed learning from local and national Safeguarding Adults Reviews, other learning reviews and multi-agency audits.

The vision of the BHSAB is that people are able to live together in safety, in a city that does not tolerate abuse, neglect and exploitation and that works in partnership to actively prevent abuse occurring and ensuring that when it does happen everyone knows how to report it and that it is effectively responded to.

Our mission statement is that we, as the BHSAB, will work effectively, supporting and constructively challenging ourselves and each other to identify where we can make best use of our time and efforts in achieving improved outcomes in adult safeguarding that benefit those who use services and those who care for them.

The BHSAB has identified four strategic priorities that build on the previous priorities of the Board, and with four objectives in each priority area.

Accountability and Leadership

Aim: For the SAB to continue to provide strategic leadership in embedding the principles of safeguarding and contributing to the prevention of abuse, neglect, and exploitation.

Objectives –

• Ensure there are effective and broad governance arrangements in place so that all Board members understand their roles and responsibilities under the Care Act 2014.
• Continue to develop, and review, relevant policies, procedures, and processes to support consistent and current safeguarding practice.
• Develop and strengthen arrangements with other Boards and Partnerships to share information and effectively respond to safeguarding themes, issues and emerging trends.
• Ensure clear and transparent annual budget plans are in place for all SAB activities to enable the work of the Board to be undertaken.

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Performance and Quality

Aim: Assurance that quality assurance mechanisms and an increasing use of safeguarding data contribute to a multi-agency focus on performance alongside both local and national learning from SAB activities being embedded to facilitate effective organisational change.

Objectives –

• Ensure learning from SAB activities such as SARs, other reviews, and multi-agency quality assurance audits is effectively communicated and embedded into practice to facilitate organisational change.
• Ensure there are effective quality assurance mechanisms in place to hold partners to account for safeguarding practice.
• Ensure effective arrangements are in place for the commissioning and undertaking of SARs to ensure these are proportionate, focused and timely, following national guidance so as to shape learning and continuous improvement.
• Ensure the use of multi-agency safeguarding data to identify themes, issues and to respond to emerging trends which can then be used to influence future priorities and effect change where required.

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Promotion and Engagement

Aim: Adults, communities, professionals, and agencies, work together to shape the work of the SAB and to ensure safeguarding practice is responsive and person-centred.

Objectives –

• Continue to develop the membership and work of the SAB to ensure it includes appropriate representation from adults, communities, professionals, and agencies involved in safeguarding to enable effective organisational change.
• Ensure that communication and engagement strategies are easily accessible and consider the diversity of local communities and reflect changing demographics.
• Develop a culture where all professional and agencies identify and respond to safeguarding issues effectively, using a preventative approach and engaging the adult and/or their representative appropriately about how best to progress concerns and achieve their desired outcomes.
• Support in the development of multi-agency safeguarding arrangements in response to increasing complexity of need and multiple disadvantage; including transitions, exploitation, and trauma-informed approaches.

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Integration and Workforce Development

Aim: Ensure the workforce is equipped to support adults appropriately where abuse, neglect and exploitation has taken place.

Objectives –

• Continue to work with partner agencies to identify and develop a range of effective multi-agency learning resources in response to learning from SAB activities, and that promotes equality and diversity.
• Promote awareness of adult safeguarding, including the role and responsibilities of the SAB and SARs, offering professionals across organisations the opportunity to be involved in these activities.
• Explore the development of an updated pan-Sussex Learning and Development Strategy that provides a Sussex-wide approach to sharing training resources and learning from SAB activities.

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Our Three Areas of Focus for 2022-23 based on our Strategic Priorities.

Our three areas of focus are derived from our strategic priorities and reflect the views of our partner members. These areas of focus were identified through a BHSAB Development Day Event held with board partners in July 2022. The Event included reflecting on the last three years, the challenges for our statutory partners, as well as the learning that has taken place from SARs, multi-agency quality assurance processes, as well as other SAB activities.

1. Safeguarding those with multiple and intersectional needs.

2. Evidencing and embedding learning from SAB activities

3. Inclusion, Equalities, and Risk

You can find the Brighton and Hove Safeguarding Adults Board Constitution here  https://www.bhsab.org.uk/documents/constitution/ ‎