Bromley's annual safeguarding report has revealed a high level of need among children and families in the borough, alongside a decrease in the number of children being adopted from care.

The Bromley Safeguarding Children Partnership (BSCP) Annual Report 2024/25 was presented at the Children, Education and Families Information Briefing on Tuesday, providing a comprehensive overview of safeguarding efforts and outcomes in the borough between April 2024 and March 2025.

Cover of the Bromley Safeguarding Children Partnership Annual Report 2024/25 featuring two young children.
Cover of the Bromley Safeguarding Children Partnership Annual Report 2024/25 featuring two young children.

Key Findings

The report highlighted several key trends and challenges in safeguarding children in Bromley:

  • High Demand: The Children and Families Hub (C&F Hub) experienced a peak of 1314 monthly enquiries in January 2025, reaching a total of 13,651 for the year. The primary sources of these enquiries were the Police (28%), Schools (24%), and Health services (20%). To address this high demand, the BSCP has established a Children and Families Hub Strategic Group, comprising strategic leads across the partnership. This group aims to ensure partnership oversight, accountability, engagement, and support by:
    • Ensuring the formal Partnership agreement is delivered and regularly reviewed.
    • Advising on sufficient operational resources to ensure responsive activity.
    • Monitoring key performance indicators and developing impact analysis.
    • Responding to policy and legislative changes.

Pie chart showing the source of Children and Families Hub contacts in 2024-25, with Police and Other each accounting for 28%, Schools for 24%, and Health for 20%.
Pie chart showing the source of Children and Families Hub contacts in 2024-25, with Police and Other each accounting for 28%, Schools for 24%, and Health for 20.

  • Children in Need: On 31 March 2024, there were 2740 children in need in Bromley, a rate of 376.5 per 10,000 children, significantly higher than the national rate of 332 per 10,000.
  • Child Protection: 489 children were subject to Initial Child Protection Conferences (ICPC) during the year, with a rate of 67.2 per 10,000, exceeding the national rate of 60.2. Emotional abuse was the highest category of abuse for Child Protection Plans.
  • Children Looked After: There were 343 Children Looked After (CLA) at the end of March 2024, a rate of 47.1 per 10,000, significantly below the national average of 70 per 10,000.
  • Adoption Challenges: Only 9 children were adopted from care during the year, representing 6.8% of those ceasing to be looked after, below the national average of 9%. The average time between a child entering care and moving in with an adoptive family was 663 days, exceeding the national threshold of 426 days. The report indicates that the decreased performance in matching children with adoptive families is partly due to Covid-related court backlogs and the Bromley County Court being the busiest in London, which slows down the court process.

Factors Identified in Social Work Assessments

The five most common factors identified in Social Work Assessments (SWAs) were:

  • Mental Health (of parent/carer): 31%
  • Domestic Abuse (of parent/carer): 23%
  • Mental health (of child): 22%
  • Emotional Abuse (of child): 19%
  • Learning disability (of child): 16%

The report indicates that mental health (of parent/carer) was identified in 31% of Social Work Assessments, and mental health (of child) in 22%. To address these needs, the Community Support Centre (CSC) ensures that mental health services are engaged in S47 investigations and invited to strategy meetings and Initial Child Protection Conferences. The Integrated Single Point of Access (iSPA), a partnership between Bromley Y and Bromley CAMHS, offers a central point for mental health screening, triage, and signposting.

Partnership Effectiveness

The report also highlighted the effectiveness of the Bromley Safeguarding Children Partnership (BSCP) in coordinating safeguarding efforts. A Joint Targeted Area Inspection in January 2025 found the BSCP arrangements to be 'well established and effective'.

The report noted that the safeguarding partnership is held accountable by the Safeguarding Children's Partnership Executive (BSCPE), which includes the Police, the Local Authority, and the South East London Integrated Care Board (ICB). The BSCPE meets at least twice a year to:

  • Hold the Partnership to account for performance in ensuring vulnerable children and young people are safe.
  • Discuss priorities and commitment of resources amongst partners to promote safeguarding.
  • Identify any major concerns or areas for further investigation by the Partnership.
  • Agree funding arrangements and budgets for the BSCP.

Future Planning

Looking ahead, the report outlined several key areas of focus, including the implementation of the Families First Partnership programme and the opening of a new local children's home in early 2026. As part of the Families First Partnership (FFP) Programme, the partnership will pilot community-based multi-agency services (including CIN & Early Help) aligned with the Family Hub Model. This model is relational, trauma-informed, and responsive to the diverse needs of children and families. Services will be structured around the family journey rather than organisational boundaries. A pilot Family Hub will serve as a learning space, offering holistic interventions for complex needs such as parental mental health, domestic abuse, and substance misuse. Insights from the pilot will inform borough-wide scaling, with implementation planned by March 2026.