ESAB Board meeting

Terms of reference 

Ealing Safeguarding Adults Board (ESAB) is a multi-agency strategic partnership, which ensures and oversees the effectiveness of arrangements made by individual agencies to safeguard adults who have care and support needs or are experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, abuse or neglect.

ESAB was originally established under the Department of Health Guidance ‘No Secrets (2000)’ and now is on a statutory footing under the Care Act 2014.

ESAB vision

We will all work together to enable people in the borough to live a life free from fear, harm and abuse.

For the vision to become a reality, safeguarding must become ‘everybody’s business’ and the following six safeguarding principles agreed by the Government within the guidance to the Care Act 2014 need to be adopted by all organisations as a foundation to achieving good outcomes for adults living in the borough.

  1. Empowerment
    People being supported and encouraged to make their own decisions and informed consent.
  2. Prevention
    It is better to take action before harm occurs.
  3. Proportionality
    The least intrusive response appropriate to the risk presented.
  4. Protection
    Support and representation for those in greatest need.
  5. Partnership
    Local solutions through services working with their communities. Communities have a part to play in preventing, detecting and reporting neglect and abuse.
  6. Accountability
    Accountability and transparency in safeguarding practice.

Aims of the Board

  • to work together to oversee, monitor and co-ordinate systems and services in their duties of prevention of harm and protection of adults with care and support needs
  • to develop multi-agency safeguarding adults policies and procedures and monitor their implementation.
  • to provide multi-agency training in safeguarding adults and be assured that staff in organisations access high quality training relevant to their role
  • to oversee the continued development of services, empower and support people in Ealing to make their own choices and ensure that any interventions are proportionate and the lease intrusive response to the risk presented
  • to identify and highlight good practice and ensure that learning is disseminated
  • to raise awareness of safeguarding to the general public to promote a safer community
  • to be accountable and transparent to professionals and the public by making the function and work of the Board accessible to all
  • to respectfully challenge each other to provide assurance around performance with regards to safeguarding adults with care and support needs

Objectives of the Board

To help and protect adults in its area who have needs for care and support from experiencing abuse and neglect.

  • the board will seek to achieve this objective by coordinating and ensuring the effectiveness of what each of its members does
  • to agree, develop and implement a three-year Strategic Business Plan, which will be reviewed annually, and evaluate the outcomes of the plan in relation to the wellbeing and safety of adults at risk in the borough
  • to ensure there is a simple and effective system in place to report all safeguarding concerns
  • to ensure there is a multi-agency system to respond to safeguarding concerns and to undertake enquiries into allegations of abuse and neglect
  • multi-agency policies and procedures should be reviewed and updated yearly as a minimum and whenever relevant to reflect national guidance and policy as well as the views and experiences of adults who have a need for care and support, their families and professionals in the borough
  • to work with other partnership groups and Boards across Ealing collaboratively to improve the health and wellbeing of our citizens including but not solely Ealing Safeguarding Children’s Partnership, The Health and Wellbeing Board, the Safer Communities Board
  • to support organisations to inform and train staff members to confidently carry out their responsibilities under the policies and procedures and to develop and promote a comprehensive multi-agency training programme
  • to establish ways to analyse safeguarding data to increase the Board’s understanding of what is working well and where improvements are needed
  • to publish an Annual Report outlining the activities of the Board over the previous year. This report will be approved by Board members and will be presented to the Scrutiny Committee, Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council, Health and Wellbeing Board and the governance structures of the health community
  • take overarching responsibility for Safeguarding Adults Reviews (SARs) and ensure that any learning is disseminated and implemented by all relevant agencies
  • to develop preventative strategies that aim to reduce abuse and neglect in the borough
  • to seek assurances from partners that they are fulfilling their safeguarding responsibilities
  • to identify mechanisms for monitoring and reviewing the impact of policy and training

ESAB Sub-groups

The ESAB will discharge these functions through its subgroups , which have been aligned to mirror the arrangements for children. The groups are :

  • Learning and Development 
  • Safeguarding Adult Review (SAR)
  • Safeguarding Effectiveness 

Each subgroup has a Terms of Reference that is reviewed on a regular basis annually to ensure that the objectives of the Board and its Business plan are being fulfilled.

ESAB membership

The Board membership is comprised of the following representatives:

  • ESAB Independent chair
  • ESAB Business Manager

Statutory partners

  • Ealing council
    • Adult Social Care
    • Community Safety
    • Public Health
    • Rough Sleeping and Homelessness
  • ICB
  • Police

Other partnership agencies

  • Advocacy Project
  • CCG
  • Department of Work and Pensions
  • Healthwatch
  • London Fire Brigade
  • London North West NHS Trust
  • MIND
  • National Probation Services
  • West London NHS Trust

Advisors to the Board

  • Media and Communication – Ealing Council 
  • Legal Advisor – Ealing Council

ESAB Support Arrangements

ESAB Business Manager 

Responsibilities and accountability

Each individual member of ESAB is expected to contribute towards the effective running of the Board.

ESAB members must be of sufficient seniority within their organisation to hold their organisation to account and make strategic ESAB decisions on behalf of their organisation. Wherever possible, the Chair will aim to reach decisions by consensus.

Issues requiring a decision by the Chair between meetings will be made by the Chair and ratified at the next Board, unless it is felt that an extraordinary meeting is required.

Any individuals attending the Board in an advisory role rather than as a Board member will not have voting rights.

Any conflicts of interest must be declared by ESAB members so that they can be recorded, and steps can be taken to ensure that the individual concerned is not involved with the matter in question.

The Board will be quorate when the three statutory partners are represented (Local Authority, Police and ICBs) and one other relevant agency.

Attendance at ESAB and Sub-Group meetings will be monitored and reported in the ESAB Annual Report.

Meeting frequency

The ESAB will meet quarterly unless extenuating circumstances call for an extraordinary meeting to be held.

Review arrangements

The Terms of Reference exist as a living document and will be revised as appropriate in line with changes (structural and legislative) after discussions with Board members.