Feasibility and acceptability of the “Never Events” method in the context of multi-agency child protection: findings from an exploratory study

ABSTRACT

This report outlines an exploratory study that investigated whether the “Never Events” system – first used in healthcare contexts to identify and investigate preventable incidents that cause serious harm or death as a result of human error – could be adapted in the context of UK multi-agency child protection. Using a sequential design, two online surveys were carried out that explored practitioners’ (n = 46) views about the feasibility of adopting the Never Events model and what, if any, incidents or events could be investigated plausibly using such a model. Practitioners were drawn from a purposive sample. An inter-disciplinary panel of senior practitioners - drawn from nursing, public health, social work and child mental health services- discussed the surveys’ findings and the list of proposed child protection Never Events. The findings indicate that the complex, judgment-based nature of child protection contributes to difficulties creating shared understandings about what constitutes harm and the extent to which multi-agency systems can share decision-making and responsibility for the way they identify and support families. Thinking through and discussing the relative strengths and limitations of the Never Events model may nevertheless be a valuable exercise in interprofessional training and the design of highly localized review and reporting systems.

KEYWORDS:

• Child protection
• Never Events
• Interprofessional learning
• Concepts of risk

Acknowledgments

We would like to warmly thank all participants for their valuable contributions to this study and to delegates who attended the British Association for the Study and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect’s 2018 conference for their constructive feedback in response to our presentation of the study’s initial findings. We also thank Ruth Weston, Maria Fotopoulou and Helen Cheyne for their contributions early in the study.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Louise Isham

Louise Isham is a Research Fellow at the University of Birmingham and a registered social worker. Her research focuses on family and gendered violence.

Jane Scott

Jane Scott is an independent researcher previously based at the Universities of Stirling, Dundee and Loughborough. Her research interests focus on children's social care, particularly children and families living in challenging circumstances and how services can support and respond to families more effectively.

Julie Taylor

Julie Taylor is a Professor at the University of Birmingham and the Birmingham Women and Children's Hospital NHS Trust. Her research programme is focused at the interface of health and social care on children living with multiple adversities.