Community Paediatric Safeguarding Service
What is the Community Paediatric Safeguarding Service?
Every child has the right to feel safe and protected from harm. Safeguarding focuses on helping children who are already being harmed or are at risk of harm, including abuse or neglect.
The Community Paediatric Safeguarding Service provides advice and support to professionals working with children, from birth to 18 years old, who may be at risk of harm. We take part in discussions about safeguarding and help with medical assessments when necessary.
Contact numbers for referrals
If you believe a child is suffering or could be in danger of serious harm, or if you think a child needs help, you should contact the social care team from your area to make a referral. Both the public and professionals can make referrals.
- Bristol – First Response Team: Phone: 0117 9036444 (Office hours)
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North Somerset – Referral & Assessment Team: Phone: 01275 888808
(Monday – Thursday: 8:45am to 5pm, Friday: 8:45am to 4:30pm) -
South Gloucestershire – Access & Response Team: Phone: 01454 866000
(Monday – Thursday: 9am to 5pm, Friday: 9am to 4:30pm) -
Out of Hours Emergency Duty Team (Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire): Phone: 01454 615165
(Evenings, weekends, and holidays)
If a child is in immediate danger, please call the Police at 999.
Resources
Click on a link below to view a list of resources for the following subjects:
Keeping Bristol Safe Partnership website pregnancy and infants website.
Include Keeping Babies Safe leaflets.
Related services
The following services may be of interest:
Related Information Pages
The following information pages may be of interest:
Who is This Service For?
The Community Paediatric Safeguarding Service is only for professionals (such as social workers, healthcare workers, and others). Parents or carers should report concerns to the social care teams listed on this page.
What do we do?
Community paediatricians and Safeguarding nurses work with a range of professionals and agencies (like social care, police, schools, healthcare, and others) when there are concerns about a child’s safety.
Our team is available 24/7, led by consultant paediatricians, supported by a middle-grade doctor and safeguarding staff based at Eastgate House.
We provide advice to professionals like health visitors, midwives, GPs, and social workers. We also take part in meetings with different professionals where decisions are made about children who may be at risk of serious harm. For some children we undertake a medical assessment.
I am a professional...
Children’s safeguarding referral information can be found on the Remedy Referrals and Procedures page.
Procedures, information, guidance and referral forms for safeguarding practice can be found on the South West Child Protection Procedures website.
Information about the arrangement of Advice, Strategy Discussions and Child Protection Medical Examinations can be found on the flowchart for child protection referrals.
