CYP Partnership ContactPoint

ContactPoint will be the quick way to find out who else is working with the same child or young person, making it easier to deliver more coordinated support and be a tool to facilitate integrated working.

This basic online directory will be available nationally to authorised staff who need it to do their jobs. It is a key part of the Every Child Matters programme to improve outcomes for children.

Why do we need ContactPoint?

Currently practitioners in Nottinghamshire can spend a lot of their time trying to find out who else is working with the same child or young person, or unknowingly duplicate work that is already being carried out by another service.  

What information will be held on ContactPoint?

ContactPoint will only contain basic identifying information for all children & young people in England (aged 0-18) such as name, address, gender and date of birth. In addition there will be the name and contact details for parents or carers, school, GP practice and other services working with the child or young person.  

ContactPoint will not contain any case information such as case notes, assessments, medical data or exam results.

Who will have access?

Access to ContactPoint will be restricted to authorised users who need it as part of their work with children and young people. This includes those working throughout the Children & Young People’s partnership in education, health, social care, the Connexions service, housing, Police, youth justice and some voluntary organisations.  

All users will have to complete mandatory ContactPoint training, have an enhanced Criminal Records Bureau disclosure renewed every 3 years, and a personal security token to log into the system. Every access will be detailed in an audit trail, which will be reviewed regularly for unusual behaviour or inappropriate use of the system.

ContactPoint was within the scope of the security review carried out throughout central government following the high profile loss of data by organisations like Her Majesty Revenue & Customs. The independent report acknowledged that security appears to be ingrained within the project for the system building phase, as well as in the plans for deployment and live operation of ContactPoint.

How will ContactPoint be accessed and maintained?

Authorised users will be able to access ContactPoint through their own case management systems (Capita ONE in Education, Corelogic Framework-i in Social Care or Cognisoft Insight in Connexions), through a secure web link or through another authorised user.

Data about service involvements will also be fed to ContactPoint from our local case management systems, so staff will not need to enter the same information twice. However, it is very important that these involvements are kept up to date in our local systems to prevent out-of-date information going onto ContactPoint where it would be shared with other users.

Legal basis

Section 12 of the Children Act 2004, which came into force on 1 January 2006, provides the legal basis for establishing ContactPoint, as well as the legal framework for the regulations and guidance which govern its establishment and operation.

When will ContactPoint be available?

ContactPoint will be available in Nottinghamshire from early 2009 and rolled out in a phased approach across the Children & Young People’s Partnership throughout the year.

More information about the national project can be found at www.ecm.gov.uk/contactpoint.

For more information about the implementation of ContactPoint in Nottinghamshire, please contact Sean Kelly on tel: 0115 9773322 or email: sean.kelly@nottscc.gov.uk