The Origins of the National Capabilities Framework for Safeguarding Adults
The idea of creating a national framework for safeguarding adults emerged in 2010, when Learn to Care, a national organisation for workforce development in social care, commissioned us to conduct research on the quality and standards of safeguarding practice across England and Wales.
We undertook a comprehensive review of the existing evidence and practice on safeguarding adults, including CQC inspection reports, serious case reviews, academic research, focus groups and interviews with professionals and managers, and feedback from service users and carers. We identified the key areas of practice that were failing or lacking in safeguarding adults services, such as assessment, intervention, partnership working, communication, recording, supervision, and training.
We also drew on the work already done by East Sussex County Council, Brighton and Hove City Council and Lambeth Safeguarding Adults Partnership, who had developed their own local frameworks for safeguarding adults. Based on our findings and their models, we developed the National Capabilities Framework for Safeguarding Adults, which outlines the knowledge, skills and values that practitioners need to demonstrate in order to deliver effective safeguarding practice.