Death of, or Serious Injury to, a Child

A local authority in England must notify the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel if it knows or suspects that a child has been abused or neglected, and:

1. The child dies or is seriously harmed in the local authority's area; or
2. While normally resident in the local authority's area, the child dies or is seriously harmed outside England.

Working Together to Safeguard Children requires the local authority to report any serious incident to the national Child Safeguarding Practice Review within 5 working days of becoming aware that the incident has occurred.

This chapter outlines the steps that should be taken in the event of the suspicious death of/serious harm to a child living in the community or the death of/serious harm to any child in care (Looked After). These steps are in addition to any actions carried out in relation to the need to hold a Child Safeguarding Practice Review and the work of the Child Death Overview Panel.