l services with safeguarding responsibility will convene a Local Safeguarding Children Partnership (LSCP) to ensure they work together well. As well as the LA itself, membership will include: - A designated lead officer, probably hosted by the LA - Local health services (which may include multiple local trusts/hospitals) - Local police services - Local education partners - Key local voluntary/third sector partners The LSCP will meet regularly and collectively own the local area’s safeguarding duty. This can be inspected by Ofsted as part of their JTAI (Joint Targeted Area Inspection) framework. (In some local areas, the LA’s role is performed by an external trust. This is typically following government intervention due to poor prior performance. This can result in a range of approaches to performance oversight and communication with the LA and wider partnership.) In some LAs the partnership is very active and will place a high demand on LA data teams for support and insight. In others the LA will take more ownership of this role, selecting what to provide to the partnership alongside its partners. The LA may have a range of commissioned services, or links with the third sector, which may require oversight via a contractually agreed approach. The LA will also have a relationship with national partners such as Ofsted (the sector’s independent regulator, responsible for inspections and supporting improvement plans) and the DfE (the sector’s legislator, who may also seek direct involvement in LA operations in some circumstances). 8 Source: West Sussex County Council’s online safeguarding information. Search for the phrase “Safeguarding windscreen” online for more local examples, or ask a colleague for your LA’s version What local authorities do Local authorities (LAs) inter