The Western Bay Safeguarding Boards cover Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and Bridgend. There is a board for children and one for adults.
The Western Bay Safeguarding Children Board (WBSCB) began operating on 1st April 2013. The Board’s Chairman is Nick Jarman, Director of Social Services, Health and Housing for Neath Port Talbot Council.
Safeguarding Children Boards are the key statutory mechanism for agreeing how the relevant organisations in each area will cooperate to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, and for ensuring the effectiveness of what they do.
The WBSCB published its first annual report to the Welsh Government in July 2014 and was the first SCB in Wales to do so. It has a number of strategic priorities which are set out in its business plan. These include neglect, babies who become looked after, Child Sexual Exploitation, domestic abuse and legal highs (new psychoactive substances). Both the Annual Report and Business plan can be viewed on the WBSB website www.wbsb.co.uk.
The Western Bay Safeguarding Adults Board (WBSAB) works to keep adults safe and ensure that adults at risk of harm are safeguarded against all types of abuse. Abuse can take many forms, including sexual, physical, verbal, financial, forced marriage and honour based violence.
The WBSAB has completed its first Adult Practice Review and this is due to be published shortly.
One of the WBSAB’s strategic priorities is domestic abuse in older people and the Board recently received presentations on this from the Older People’s Commissioner Wales. Other strategic priorities for the Board are implementing part 7 of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 which covers Safeguarding and work around the Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. The Board is also working with the wider Western Bay Programme to help implement the recommendations from the Older People’s Commissioner for Wales’s review of care homes.
The WBSAB is one of the first Adult Boards in Wales to have a dedicated Business Co-ordinator in place.
Both the Children and Adults Boards are supported by a single dedicated business unit. Lead by Strategic Business Manager Lisa Hedley-Collins, the team of four also has a dedicated co-ordinator for each board and a business administrator. Natalie Davies has recently taken up the post of Business Co-ordinator for the Adults Board, the Business Administrator is Daniel Edy and recruitment is currently underway for the Business Co-ordinator for the Children Board.
The Business Unit can be contacted by email wbsb@npt.gov.uk or telephone: 01639 763 021
