As part of Adult Safeguarding week, we’re looking at the key ideas that guide this practice. There are six principles that inform safeguarding and today we’re looking at Proportionality.
We spoke to Catherine Jones, one of our District Service Managers, about Proportionality and what it means. Thanks for your thoughts, Catherine!
Proportionality in safeguarding: A Key Principle
Proportionality is one of the six key principles of safeguarding, and it’s essential for ensuring that adults are safeguarded effectively. In my role, addressing safeguarding concerns requires us to evaluate all aspects of the situation in proportion to the risk involved. For instance, if a client pushes another client without causing physical harm, this would be handled very differently compared to a situation where someone is pushed down the stairs.
When investigating a safeguarding concern, It’s crucial to ensure that the investigation is proportionate. We must consider questions such as:
- Does the client need to be relocated?
- Should a staff member refrain from working?
- Do the police need to be involved? Or can the investigation proceed alongside normal daily activities?
The answers depend on the severity of the concern raised.
Any investigation should be the least intrusive to all involved while ensuring everyone’s safety. The outcomes must be the least restrictive for the client, again, while ensuring their safety. Our priority is always to keep people safe, and the measures we implement must reflect the level of risk at that time.
The theme for this year’s adult Safeguarding Week is ‘Work in Partnership’, and is about sharing best practices so we can learn. It’s the best way to create a safer, and happier world!
