Serious Case Reviews and Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews

The formal term is now Child Safeguarding Practice Review (CSPR). National review learning should function as a live audit lens for every school — not background reading. The current evidence is direct: attendance, elective home education, domestic abuse, racism and professional curiosity are all live risk themes.

Official Documents

• 01The formal term is now Child Safeguarding Practice Review (CSPR), not Serious Case Review. Many practitioners still use the old label — both terms should appear on training materials and websites.
• 02Serious incident notifications must be made within 5 working days of the local authority becoming aware. Rapid reviews must go to the Panel within 15 working days. Local CSPRs must be completed within 6 months.
• 03In 2023–24 there were 330 rapid reviews. Under-1s were the largest age group. 16–17 year olds became the second largest — a significant finding for secondary and sixth-form safeguarding.
• 04Black children and children with a mixed or multiple ethnic background remain over-represented in rapid reviews.
• 05Of school-age children in rapid reviews, approximately two thirds were in mainstream school at the time of the incident. 41% of those had regular absences or low attendance.
• 0648% of school-age children overall were recorded as missing from education through absence, exclusion or long-term health conditions at the time of the incident.
• 07The Panel found that children in elective home education appeared less visible to safeguarding agencies, and that the loss of school could remove a protective factor.
• 08The most common recurring practice failures: poor coordination between services, lack of professional curiosity, weak risk assessment, children's voices not heard, and poor escalation of concerns.
• 09Neglect remained a key factor. Domestic abuse was present in nearly half of rapid review incidents.
• 10The 2025 race and racism review found that race and racism are too often not properly analysed in reviews or practice. Updated Panel guidance requires rapid reviews and local CSPRs to actively consider racism and structural inequalities.