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Worried about a child

If you are worried about a child in Medway we have information, help, support and advice. 

Making a referral to Medway Council's children's social care

If you are a member of the public with concerns that a child or young person living in Medway is suffering from harm please phone 01634 334 466.

Medway's First Response service

Members of the public and professionals can use our referral and contact form to report any safeguarding concerns about a child or young person.

Once the form has been submitted, it will be reviewed and assessed and action will be taken.

Report a child safeguarding concern

Report an adult safeguarding concern

You can also phone 01634 334 466 or our 24 hour emergency number 03000 419 191.

If you have concerns about a child you can also phone:

  • NSPCC on 0808 800 5000
  • Child Line on 0800 1111
  • Medway Police on 0162 2690 690

Useful contact details

Information for professionals who are worried about a child.

Thresholds for children's services

Making a referral to the MSCP

The safety of children in Medway is our priority and everybody’s responsibility. It is important that professionals and organisations protecting children reflect on the quality of their services and learn from their own practice and that of others.

Good practice should be shared so that there is a growing understanding of what works well. Equally, when things go wrong there needs to be an objective analysis of what happened and why, so important lessons can be learnt and services can be improved to reduce the risk of future harm to children.

To ensure that children are safeguarded properly by agencies working effectively together the MSCP supports a “Safeguarding Children Reporting and Learning System” and “case review referral”.

There are several types of review which can be chosen to refer a case to, these include:

  • Serious Case Review
  • Lessons Learned Review
  • Case File Audit
  • Good/Practice Review
  • Single Agency
  • Individual Management Review

View details of the types of safeguarding case reviews and referral form.

NSPCC's New Whistleblowing Helpline

The Advice Line provides support to employees who want to raise concerns over how child protection issues are being handled in their own organisations. The NSPCC Whistleblowing Advice Line can be reached on 0800 028 0285, calls are free and you can remain anonymous if you want.

The Home Office commissioned the NSPCC to manage the advice line after a firm commitment to do so was made by the Government in its Tackling CSE report in March 2015. The advice line is there to provide alternative support to employees and not to replace any current practices or responsibilities or organisations working with children.

The NSPCC advisors would encourage professionals to raise any concerns about a child to their own employer in the first instance. The advice line also offers an alternative route if whistleblowing internally is difficult or professionals have concerns around how matters are being handled.

Get more about whistleblowing and the advice line from NSPCC.