Appendix 1 - Adult Protection Committee Annual Report 2024-25
Perth and Kinross Council · 14 January 2026
Back to Perth and Kinross Council — 14 January 2026 and its agenda
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1 APC Annual Report 2024 - 2025
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2 2 Contents Page No. 1. Foreword by the Chair of the Adult Protection Committee 4 - Introduction to the Adult Protection Committee 5 report for 24/25 2. Summary of how we safeguard adults at risk of harm 7 - Adult Support & Protection Leadership and Governance 12 3. Analysis of Harm – what our data tells us - Our response to adult concerns and referrals received 14 including IRDs - Our ASP inquiries and investigations 18 - Multi-agency ASP case conferences to manage complexity 20 - Where we have used a protection order to safeguard 21 - Our Large-Scale Investigations 21 4. ASP Activity and service Improvements between 2024 and 2025 - Our self-evaluation and audit work in 24/25 24 - Our participation on workstream 4 and in joint inspection activity 26 - Joint adult and child protection community engagement work 28 - Public Protection development session 2025 28 - Our response to financial harm 29 - Our role in the national ASP improvement programme 30 - Developing a panel to manage complex risk 30 - Using data to target resources 31 5. Training, Learning and Development - Our training programme for 24/25 32 - ASP matters, a peer learning support network 33 - The APC supporting contemporary research to support improvement 34
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3 3 Page No. 6. Communication, Public Awareness Raising and our relationship with others - Our ASP campaigning 34 - What we did to celebrate National ASP Day 20 Feb 35 - Our relationship with other agencies 36 7. Looking forward 37 8. Summary 39 APPENDIX A – Commonly used Acronyms 39 APPENDIX B – Infographic summary (text) 40
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4 4 1. Introduction 1.1 Foreword by the Chair of the Adult Protection Committee I am pleased to present the Perth and Kinross Adult Protection Committee (APC) annual report for 2024 to 2025. Although we as a committee have a statutory requirement to produce a biennial report, for many years the APC has produced an annual report on alternative years to ensure that the APC, along with the Child Protection Committee provides a robust annual evaluation of the work to support vulnerable children and adults in Perth and Kinross. This APC annual report for this year gives an analysis to the number of ASP referrals received and the number of ASP episodes that were used to safeguard. Our commitment to targeted self-evaluation and audit work using national guidance and uptodate research in this last year provides increased confidence in understanding our areas from improvement, and how these improvements will be achieved. The annual report highlights that the APC has faced another busy year with continued high demand and with increasing complexity. However, we know that working together is the only way to deliver effective adult protection services and progress has been made in this, working collaboratively with colleagues, other APCs on the ASP National Improvement Programme and strengthening our own public protection approach. The progress made this year should not only offer assurance that our ASP work in Perth and Kinross is very effective but acts as a basis for the priorities for next year to be delivered. Bill Atkinson, Independent Chair of the Perth and Kinross Adult Protection Committee For noting – As planned, Bill retired from the post of independent chair of both adult and child protection committees in June 2025. Graham Binnie has been appointed as chair to both adult and child committees. Graham will also take a strategic leadership role in shaping our public protection approach.
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5 5 1.2 Introduction to the APC Annual Report for the reporting period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. The Adult Support and Protection Act (Scotland) 2007 (hereby referred to as the ASP Act) aims to protect adults who are unable to safeguard their own interests and are at risk of harm because they are affected by disability, mental disorder, illness or physical or mental infirmity. The ASP Act places certain duties on councils and other organisations to investigate and, where necessary, act to reduce the harm or risk of harm. One of these duties is the provision of a biennial report. Section 46 of the ASP Act requires the Convenors of Adult Protection Committees (APC) to produce a biennial report analysing, reviewing, and commenting on APC functions and activities in the reporting 12-month period. The APC has a strong commitment to self-evaluation, quality assurance and improvement work across the partnership in Perth and Kinross at all levels. The APC, Elected Members and members of the Integrated Joint Board (IJB) all receive regular reports on performance and the impact of multi-agency partnership working with vulnerable adults who need support and protection. As part of this enhanced scrutiny and assurance, the APC produces an annual performance report rather than the statutory requirement to provide a biennial report. This Perth and Kinross APC annual report summarises the work of the APC from 1 April 2024 through to 31 March 2025. It reflects upon a continued cycle of self- evaluation and audit, highlighting strengths and identifies areas for improvement as well as how the APC is connected to ASP work in Tayside and with APC areas nationally. Our past APC annual and biennial reports are shared publicly at: Adult Support and Protection Committee - Perth and Kinross Council (pkc.gov.uk)
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6 6 The format of this report uses the Scottish Government’s template for APC biennial reporting covering 6 key areas: - Statutory Requirements - Analysis of Harm - Activity and Service Improvements - Training, Learning and Development - Engagement, Involvement and Communication - Looking Forward
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7 7 ASP Summary 2024 - 25. 1 1 A textual version of this summary is provided in Appendix A for those who require assistive technology
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8 8 2. Local and national context to Adult Support and Protection Perth and Kinross Population Context Perth and Kinross covers an area of 5,286 square kilometres and is the fifth largest area by land mass in Scotland. As of 2022, it had a population of 151,130[1]; which has grown 14.3% since 1998, compared to 7.9% for the whole of Scotland. The number of people resident in Perth and Kinross who are over 65 years old accounts for 24.8% of the population, compared to 20.1% for the whole of Scotland. The age group 75 and over has increased by 55.8% since 1998, whilst its younger age cohort (25-44 years) decreased by 6.3%. this data also tells us that people in Perth & Kinross are more likely to live longer that the rest of Scotland (81 years compared to 78.8 years nationally). This data is shared as these population changes present considerable challenges in the delivery of sustainable and effective Health and Social Care Services. Our ageing population also has relevance to our ASP work. In Perth and Kinross, there are seven Local Action Partnerships: • Eastern Perthshire Action Partnership (Council Wards 1, 2 and 3) • Highland Action Partnership (Council Ward 4) • Strathtay Action Partnership (Council Ward 5) • Strathearn and Strathallan Action Partnership (Council Wards 6 and 7) • Kinross-shire Action Partnership (Council Ward 8) • Almond and Earn Action Partnership (Council Ward 9) • Perth City Action Partnership (Council Wards 10, 11 and 12) [1] 2023 population estimates: Public Health management Information
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9 9 These localities each have a local action partnership made up of Elected Members, communities, and public services. Through the local action partnerships, the community planning partnership identifies their particular needs and challenges. As we move forward, our Public Protection arrangements (including adult support and protection) will align with the different locality action plans as well as the Perth and Kinross Community Plan 2022-2032. ASP Vision and Purpose It is our vision that people have the right to live as independently as possible in a safe environment, free from harm, to have their wishes and feelings considered and to have the minimal amount of intervention into their personal lives. Within this 12-month reporting period, we continue to actively promote our ASP vision. We do this in several ways including how it is used in our public raising awareness campaigning and using the vision in our ASP assessment framework to measure against how safer adults feel following an ASP episode. Our ASP work in a national context Adult Support and Protection in Perth and Kinross is connected to the National ASP Strategic Forum: https://www.gov.scot/groups/adult-support-and-protection-national-strategic- forum The National Strategic ASP Forum provides a strategic and cross sectoral view of what is needed to improve the delivery of Adult Support and Protection across Scotland. The forum assists Scottish Government and delivery partners in identifying the workstreams required to improve the assurance and operation of Adult Support and Protection and its interface with existing and developing legislative and policy areas.
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10 10 The Scottish Government also supports the role of the National Adult Protection Coordinator. This role involves making connections to build stronger local networks and to improve the co-ordination, development, and dissemination of best practice, as well as promoting joint working between Adult Protection Committees. The National Improvement Plan has identified 6 main ASP areas: • Assurance and Inspection • Governance and Leadership • Data and outcomes • Policy • Practice Improvement • Prevention The Perth and Kinross Adult Protection Committee Improvement Plan for 2024 to 2026 is aligned to and driven by with these 6 key strategic areas. The Perth and Kinross APC also contributes to the national ASP agenda. The Perth and Kinross APC Independent Chair, the Associate Nurse Director for the NHS Tayside Public Protection team, the Detective Inspector, Tayside Division Risk and Concern Hub and the Perth and Kinross ASP coordinator are all engaged in several Tayside and National ASP strategic longstanding and short life working groups. The work stemming from these groups influences and informs the Perth and Kinross APC Improvement Plan. Summary of how we safeguard adults at risk of harm. The following is an overview of the pressures, developments, complexities, and challenges in delivering the range of statutory Adult Support and Protection (ASP) activity within this reporting 12-month period and governance arrangements that continues to oversee it.
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11 11 Safeguarding adults at risk of harm is an organisational priority in Perth and Kinross. Only a qualified council officer is authorised to undertake certain functions of the Adult Support and Protection (Scot) Act 2007. A council officer is a qualified social worker who has completed both post graduate social work experience and undertaken the council officer training programme. The graph demonstrates how we have grown our number of council officers in this last 5 years, from 40 full and part- time council officers in Jan 2021 to 61 full and part time council officers in Jan 2024. This is a figure that has been sustain throughout 2024/25. A further six social workers are in the process of undertaking the council officer training programme in 2025. This demonstrates a commitment to fulfilling statutory responsibilities as defined in the ASP Act. It reflects our ability to recruit, retain, support and encourage social workers to develop. It also demonstrates our commitment to understanding current and future workforce planning. The number of available council officers in Perth and Kinross is able to meet the current ASP demand to inquire and investigate where harm may exist. Our data also shows a consistently high number of adult protection concerns received throughout this reporting 12-month period. We can also demonstrate how our use of the ASP Act has changed in recent years and how this trend reflects an increase in complexity, a more multi-agency, coordinated and outcome focussed approach to safeguarding as well as a better understanding how the ASP Act can and should be used to keep adults safe from harm. More about this will be discussed later in this report. Adult Support and Protection is a multi-agency approach to safeguarding harm, and throughout this report, reference will be made to how we have strengthened these partnerships. 0 20 40 60 80 Jan 21' Jan 22' Jan 23' Jan 24' Jan 25' Council Officer Numbers
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12 12 Adult Support and Protection leadership and governance A continued focus has also been given to strengthening our public protection agenda throughout 2024/25. How we did this will be discussed later in this report. There is collective leadership of public protection in Perth and Kinross, and this ensures that there is a focus on public protection, and it is prioritised. The Perth and Kinross Chief Officers’ Group (COG) meets quarterly and offers support, scrutiny and challenge to the APC alongside other public protection partnerships. The infographic highlights that the COG does not work in isolation but is directly connected to the work of the Public Protection Coordinators Group. The independent APC chair reports to the COG detailing the work of the APC and key issues and risks by exception. The dynamic public protection risk register is maintained and considered by the COG at each meeting. This allows the opportunity to understand changes in strategic and operational risk and a swift ability to commit resources where required. The APC continues to have wide representation from a diverse range of agencies which reflects the broader public protection agenda and the views of the public. In this last year, particular attention has been given to: - Strengthening our approach to audit and self-evaluation. - Making sure that we encourage and support adults and their unpaid carers to engage in the ASP episode and listening to the voice of lived experience. - Using learning and contemporary research to support our improvement work including to how trauma can lead to an inability to safeguard.
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13 13 To ensure governance and strategic scrutiny, the APC continues to report each year to the Integrated Joint Board (IJB). The APCs annual performance reports and the Scottish Government APC biennial reports, the adult protection contribution to the Perth and Kinross Council Annual Performance Report and Chief Social Work Officer report have all been presented to the IJB and the equivalent Boards in Police and NHS Tayside. Within these contributions, focus remained on progress relating to the various ASP activity and any subsequent ASP related improvement plans. The APC Annual report is shared with Elected Members and the IJB each year. Tayside ASP Lead Officers, Police Scotland, and NHS Tayside continue to meet to coordinate work that provides consistency for regional partners and identifies common areas of ASP work. Work ongoing includes: • A Tayside approach to conducting and sharing learning from learning reviews. • Delivering joined up and coordinated ASP learning and training opportunities • Review of Tayside guidance relating to: o Chronologies o Professional Curiosity o Information sharing o Escalation including those considered a high risk of harm o Our trauma informed approach to safeguarding including supporting those who experience hoarding In summary, we can evidence that in 2024/25: - Our ASP work is more multi-agency in nature. - Services continue to manage complex, ethically challenging and demanding ASP work, understating when someone may be experiencing coercive control, undue pressure and choice becomes an inability to safeguard.
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14 14 - We have continued to develop our multi-agency early intervention and prevention approach to safeguarding. This is consistent with the principles and the spirt of the ASP Act. - We can evidence an ongoing cycle of evaluation, quality assurance and improvement throughout this 12-month period. This includes our participation in ‘workstream 4’, a supported self-evaluation exercise led by the joint inspection team to support the APC improve on self-evaluation activity. 3. Analysis of harm – what the data tells us The following gives an overview and some analysis of the ASP activity for the period 24/25. Vulnerable Person Reports and Adult Protection concern referrals 2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25 Police Vulnerable Person Report 1515 1755 2254 2262 2255 Adult Protection Concerns 269 589 783 752 831 OOHS – Adult Protection 35 32 44 56 61 Total 1819 2376 3081 3070 3147 A Vulnerable Person Report (VPR) is a report submitted to social work by Police Scotland where Police have come into contact with an adult and have concerns about the adult’s ability to safeguard himself/herself. An adult protection concern is the term given to any other adult protection (AP) concern submitted by anyone else, including health, family, unpaid carer, self, Scottish Fire and Rescue, Scottish Ambulance Service or another support agency etc. VPRs and AP concerns are screened in the same way. The information contained in the referral received is used alongside other information held to determine if the adult requires support, and if so, from whom and whether the ASP Act or any other adult legislation is required to safeguard.
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15 15 The data shows that our rate of referrals for 24/25 is comparable to the numbers of all ASP referrals received for 23/24. The Adult Protection Committee takes the view that where concerns exist, it is better to share these so that services can intervene and safeguard where required. This is reflected in how we share adult protection raising awareness campaigns through the Perth & Kinross Council using digital advertising boards and social media channels. Therefore, reporting harm is actively encouraged. Although we see a levelling in the total number of AP referrals, it must be noted that the national ASP data that is made available, data for 24/25 demonstrates that Perth & Kinross receives more VPRs per head of population and third highest in Scotland for the total number of all AP referrals received. Referrals from NHS 24 have increased from 177 in 23/24 to 210 in 2024/25. Referrals from NHS primary care services have increased from 81 to 164 in 23/24 to 24/25 and referrals submitted by our Scottish Ambulance colleagues have increased from 24 in 23/24 to 46 in 24/25. This demonstrates the value of the NHS Tayside adult protection team where health services are supported and encouraged to recognise when an adult might be at risk of harm and to report it. Data also tells us that the number of referrals received by friends, family and by those who consider themselves to be at risk of harm has increased. This also reflects the impact of the increase in our public awareness raising campaigns throughout 2024/25. Raising public awareness of the ASP agenda remains a key APC priority.
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16 16 The importance of responding early to any adult protection concern. Responding early to any VPR/AP concern received is crucial. The earlier that services can respond to harm, the earlier services are able to intervene. Throughout 24/25, 98.4% of all of these concerns were screened by a social work team leader or assistant team leader within 24-hours of these being received. This is consistent with previous years. The ASP coordinator also audits the AP concerns and VPRs that are not screened within 24-hours (50 out of 3147). Whilst the majority of these that were not screened within 24-hours were screened within 48-hours, the audit found that no adult was left at any undue harm as a consequence of this delay. Some of the findings from this audit work has led to improvement work. Inter-agency referral discussions Interagency Referral Discussions (IRD) were introduced into Perth and Kinross ASP practice in 2021/22. These have been well documented in previous APC biennial and annual reports. However, the way that they are delivered in Perth & Kinross is seen by the care inspectorate as an example where services can provide an early multi- agency response to harm. The following table gives some overview into how IRDs have been used since their introduction into adult protection work in Perth and Kinross. One of the strengths to our use of IRDs is that these are routinely audited. The IRD audit in 2022/23 highlighted their importance in relation to multi-agency safeguarding. It also highlighted some learning, including, at times, their overuse. A cornerstone of the ASP Act is that an adult and their unpaid carer is given the opportunity to remain central to 0 50 100 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25 IRDS
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17 17 any ASP journey. IRDs are intended to simply facilitate the multi-agency sharing of information to determine how to safeguard an adult at risk of harm. The audit found that on occasion, IRDs unintentionally descended into a professional only, wider multi-agency, multi-disciplinary team case conference to consider many aspects of the adult’s health and social work/social care. Consequently, the adult and his/her unpaid carer were excluded from being a part of this ASP episode. Therefore, a slowing of IRDs in 2023/24 was expected and in line with the findings from our audit. This also supports our improvement work in supporting and encouraging adults and unpaid carers to remain actively engaged in their ASP episode. The multi-agency IRD audit group continued throughout 2024/25, this time with social work team leaders rather than lead officers. This itself also demonstrates an improvement in how we support practitioners to engage in ASP self-evaluation and improvement work. We will use the learning from the self-evaluation exercise Workstream 4 (see page 26) to inform our IRD audit in 25/26 to compare and contrast the impact and the outcome for those where an IRD was used and where it wasn’t.
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18 18 Our ASP inquiries and investigations in 24/25 We carry out an ASP inquiry where we need to inquire if harm exists. Where we know harm exists, we investigate what this is, who the harm is from and what needs to be done to mitigate the risk. Data shows that we see a significant reduction in our use of an ASP inquiry. Several reasons support this. Our use of IRDs and the information shared within this can obviate the need to conduct an ASP inquiry to determine if risk exist. ASP investigations are more detailed and tend to be used where risk and harm are more complex. An ASP investigation brings certain powers not afforded to those who undertake an ASP inquiry. Therefore, our shift to using an ASP investigation also suggests that we are getting better at understanding the extent to which the ASP Act can be used to safeguard. An example of this is the growth in our use of banning orders (section 19 onwards of the ASP Act) to prevent perpetrators of harm have contact with the adult at risk. Furthermore, ASP investigations can be co-worked between council officer and another ASP trained practitioner (referred to as a second worker). In this 12-month 2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25 Inquiry 180 212 166 114 79 Investigation 69 106 140 148 196 Total 249 318 306 262 275 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 Total Number of Inquiries and Investigations
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19 19 reporting period, we also see an increase in health colleagues who are trained to be a second worker in ASP investigation work. This arrangement has great benefit when undertaking an investigation. For example, if the investigation centres around the adults deteriorating mental health, then a 2nd worker from the community mental health team can enhance his investigation. If the adult experiences frailty, falls or concerns around skin integrity, then district nurses, our OT colleagues or those from the NHS Tayside skin integrity team can co- work this. Therefore, we can now demonstrate that our ASP investigations are now more likely to be a multi-agency, joined up and coordinated response to safeguarding. It also embraces the principles and the benefits of getting the right support from the right people at the right time. Our ASP investigations – who has been supported? In this reporting 12-month period, an ASP investigation was more likely to be used to safeguard an adult from physical harm (24%) and for financial harm (22%). 17% of our ASP investigations were used to safeguard an adult at risk from neglect and 12 % were used where emotional harm was evident. Self-harm (9%), self-neglect (8%), domestic abuse (5%) and sexual harm (3%) account for the rest of the ASP investigations conducted in 24/25. Where an ASP investigation was used, it tended to be someone with a diagnosis of learning disability (26%), those who are frail (22%) and those with a diagnosis of dementia accounted for 18% of our ASP investigations. 16% of our ASP investigations where used where mental ill-health was the dominant risk, those with a physical disability accounted for 14% of investigations and those where substance misuse was seen at the main category of harm accounted for 4% of our investigative work in Perth & Kinross. The older adult over the age of 65 tended to dominate our ASP work although ASP data for 24/25 does show an increase in ASP activity for those aged between 40 and 64. This reflects a shift in thinking about how trauma can lead to an inability to safeguard, including using the ASP Act for those where there is coercive control, undue pressure, those who may experience addiction or hoarding behaviours. As
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20 20 stated previously, this can be that ethically challenging area of work where the right to choice and what is considered an inability to safeguard is not easily defined. Females account for 57% of all of the ASP investigations in 2024-25. This data is relatively comparable to how an ASP investigation was used in previous reporting years, albeit there is a continued incremental growth in ASP investigations being used for those experiencing financial harm and those who experience mental ill health. As mentioned in previous APC reports, the population of Perth and Kinross is older when compared to Scotland overall. Therefore, one might expect to see the ASP Act being used more for the older adult. Although our current data reporting does not allow us to report on ASP data from each of the three Perth and Kinross localities, anecdotal ASP intervention does highlight the challenges faced by the HSCP in delivering quality and consistent health and social care services in some of the more rural localities. The use of multi-agency ASP case conferences to manage complexity Where we see the use of an ASP investigation to manage complexity, we also see this complexity extending into how we use an ASP case conference to safeguard an adult who is at risk of harm. ASP case conferences are multi-agency in nature and co-ordinate complex protection plans. An ASP initial case conference creates a multi-agency protection plan. ASP review case conferences monitor, review and update the protection plan over time. In this reporting year, 89 initial and review case conferences were used to provide this multi-agency and integrated response to risk. This is comparable with the number of ASP case conferences used in 23/24, but a significant increase to how ASP conferences were used in previous years. ASP review case conferences are often used for those adults who have more than one diagnosis and are at risk from different and often multiple categories of harm. Our ASP case conference data demonstrates how the ASP Act is being used to coordinate a prolonged multi-agency response to managing increased complexity.
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21 21 Protection Orders In this reporting 12-month period, 5 protection orders were granted: - A banning order was granted to protect a mother from emotional and physical harm from her daughter. - A banning order was granted for a female who was seen as a risk of domestic abuse from her partner. - Three separate banning orders were granted to prevent three adults being financially harmed. Data shows our use of a banning order is more likely for safeguarding those adults with a dual diagnosis of learning disability and poor mental health, with some alcohol and/or drug use and who are in relationships with a partner who are considered to be a risk to her emotionally, financially, physically and/or sexually. This analysis also suggests that the growth in the use of banning orders suggests practitioners are growing more confident and competent about using a formal protection order to safeguard. Large Scale Investigations The ASP Act makes no reference to Large Scale Investigations (LSIs), but these have become increasingly prevalent across Scotland since the implementation of the Act. An LSI may be required where there is reason to believe that adults who are service users of a care home, supported accommodation, an NHS hospital or other facility, or who receive services in their own home, may be at risk of harm due to another service user, a member of staff, some failing or deficit in the management regime, or in the environment of the establishment or service. Adopting the principles of contextual safeguarding, an LSI may also be indicated by the need to address structures or systems that lead to possible harm for all those under such structures. In such circumstances, this means that there is a belief that a particular service may be placing some or all of its residents or service users at risk of harm.
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22 22 Although caution needs to be taken when comparing ASP data with other APC areas, national LSI data does point to Perth and Kinross being more likely to use an LSI to safeguard. In 2023, our thematic review of our use of LSIs was completed that led to improvements in how LSIs were conducted with an increased focus on early intervention and preventative work primary supported by our care home operation group and enhanced care home teams. In this reporting year, 8 new LSIs were opened in Perth & Kinross. This is relatively comparable with our LSI data for 23/24 and 22/23. National data still points to Perth & Kinross more likely to use an LSI than any other APC area. However, despite the demographics demonstrating our older adult population in Perth & Kinross and Perth & Kinross hosting more care homes than other areas, we can be assured that our LSIs are much more coordinated, collaborative and integrated with our colleagues from the care inspectorate with a continued focus on early intervention and prevention. The interface with the Care Home Operational Group (CHOG) and our advocacy partners in our LSI work The Care Home Operational Group meets weekly and brings a collaborative approach to supporting care homes and the adult’s resident within them. The multi-agency team is comprised of different health disciplines and specialisms, social work, HSCP policy and commissioning, third sector representation and input from the care inspectorate. All have a joined-up focus on supporting the care home sector and report on any protection issues that arise. This team brings a particular adult protection focus ensuring that adult protection remains central and pivotal to the support to care homes. The council officer and NHS Tayside adult protection advisor aligned to Care Home Operational Group lead on adult protection work ensuring continuity and expertise within the care home sector. In this reporting year, we can begin to see evidence in how this partnership working is more able to provide the care home sector with better informed and targeted support. It is this approach to providing the care homes with a consistent multi-
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23 23 agency support that is obviating the need to use a formal LSI to safeguard and mitigate harm. The ASP lead and the P&K Independent Sector lead for Scottish Care are part of a national workforce in revising national LSI guidance. Julie Hutton, Chief Executive of Independent Advocacy Perth & Kinross (IAPK) states: “IAPK supported 8 large-scale inquiries this year, gathering insights from over 40 individuals and 100 staff and relatives in care homes. IAPK engaged with social workers to improve the presentation of feedback in case conferences”. Wider Large Scale Investigation strategic governance arrangements Data on LSIs and its analysis is collected quarterly presented to the HSCP Care and Professional Governance Forum and the NHS Tayside Public Protection Executive Group. These governance groups have oversight of the adult protection work in the care home sector and give scrutiny and ownership to emerging patterns of risk In summary, this data tells us that: - There is a continued high number of adult protection concerns received throughout this 12-month reporting period across all client categories. - 98.4% of all adult protection concerns received within this reporting period have been screened within 24-hours. High priority is given to all adult concern referrals in line with local guidance. Our audit work into the screening and triaging of adult concern referrals continues to give some scrutiny and assurance to the APC that front line services respond to harm and to risk appropriately and proportionately. This key performance indicator is scrutinised by the HSCP Integrated Management Team. - There is an increase in adult protection concerns being submitted by colleagues from health, giving some suggestion that the work of the NHS Tayside adult and
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24 24 public protection team is successfully supporting colleagues in all health sectors to recognise and report harm. - Our audits tell us that adults at risk received appropriate and proportionate multiagency support, both statutory and informal. - We are able to demonstrate that our ASP work is more joined up, multidisciplinary and coordinated as a consequence of our improvement work. This extends to how we approach our Large-Scale Investigations. - Our use of an ASP investigation and our ASP case conferencing is evidence of our multi-agency approach to safeguarding, particularly where complexity exists. 4. ASP Activity in 2024/25. Our self-evaluation and audit work to support improvement The APC is committed to a cycle of case file audits across a number of key Adult Support & Protection areas. The following is a summary of our self-evaluation and audit work in this reporting 12-month period. 1. ‘Impact, outcomes and experiences’ - A multi-agency audit 24/25 This multi-agency audit examined the Social Work, Police and Health records of eight of the more complex and challenging ASP episodes conducted in Perth & Kinross. This audit took a more person centred, outcome focused qualitative approach than previous multi-agency audits. A review of previous audit methodology found that opportunities were missed for the auditor to take a deeper dive into the impact and the outcome for the adult where the ASP Act was used to safeguard. The questionnaires from previous multi-agency audits were also considered to be weighted towards reviewing social work practice rather than a multi-agency response to safeguarding. Again, this was seen as a missed opportunity. Therefore, the questionnaire that underpins this 2024/25 multi-agency audit was refreshed. The ASP Coordinator, the NHST Public Protection Chief Nurse and the Detective Inspector, Tayside Division Risk and Concern Hub with Police Scotland created what was considered a more multi-agency, person centred, and outcome focussed questionnaire. The updated audit questionnaire was also informed by
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25 25 findings from past audits and by the recently published Care Inspectorate Quality Improvement Framework (Quality framework for ASP September 2024.pdf). 2. IRD audit 24/25 As mentioned earlier in this report, one of the strengths of our IRDs is that they are regularly audited. The audit of our IRDs in 24/25 highlighted areas of strength and areas for further improvement. We will use the learning from workstream 4 (see page 26) and apply this learning to our audit of IRDs in 25/26. 3. ‘When an ASP conference is being held about my situation…put yourself in my shoes” - A review of adults who attend their own ASP Case Conference Using national ASP good practice guidance published in 2024, this audit explored how we support adults and their unpaid carers in their ASP episode and what improvements could be made to make their engagement more meaningful. A brief summary of the findings from our audit work: The positives found within our audit work far outweighs any missed opportunities or areas for improvement. We believe that our ASP work is more multi-agency in our approach (greater use of health colleagues as 2nd worker) and in our processes, where multi-agency rather than single agency chronologies are used to assess risk and where we can evidence that there is now a greater use of medical examinations to understand the extent of the harm. We can demonstrate that our use of advocacy in ASP work has improved. Our IRDs are more targeted, coordinated and the information shared in these has allowed us to move quicker to investigating harm rather that inquiring if harm exists. We are also able to evidence wider service redesign from our audit work to better support an early intervention and preventative approach to safeguarding harm and give greater prominence to role of unpaid carer and advocacy support in supporting an adult at risk of harm. However, our audit work also found areas for improvement as we strive for excellence. The improvements inform the APC Improvement plan for 2024 to 2026.
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26 26 Using the findings from our audit work to refresh the ASP assessment framework MOSAIC is the recently commissioned social work recording system. It replaced our AIS system in February 2025. The ASP assessment sits within MOSAIC. As part of this transition over to the new system, the ASP assessment framework was refreshed to include the learning from our self-evaluation and audit work as well as learning from national guidance, including aligning our ASP language to that of the updated codes of practice. The refreshed ASP MOSAIC assessment gives more focus to: - Multi-agency rather than single agency chronologies, - to user involvement, - to unpaid carers, - the opportunity for social work and health to carry out a joint ASP investigation, - for our ASP response to be trauma aware and; - to be more analytical about our response to those who do not engage. Our participation in Workstream 4 – a supported self-evaluation exercise In 2024, the APC was one of eleven APCs across Scotland to be selected to participate in national improvement work with the Care Inspectorate, Health Improvement Scotland and His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland, supported by the Scottish Government and IRISS. Workstream 4 is supporting APC areas to replicate joint inspection activity using the Care Inspectorate Quality Improvement framework, staff surveys, facilitating focus groups, designing audit methodology, case file inspection and analysis frameworks to better validate and triangulate the APC’s self-evaluation and audit work. Workstream 4 is a national test of change exercise that will be evaluated by colleagues from IRISS2. 2 Iriss: Better lives for people, workers and communities
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27 27 We will use the learning from workstream 4 to inform our audit work in 2025/26. The ASP lead invited to be an associate assessor in a joint inspection of adult services. Since April 2017, the Care Inspectorate and Healthcare Improvement Scotland have had joint statutory responsibility to inspect and support improvement in the strategic planning and commissioning of integrated approaches. They do this by conducting a rolling programme of themed inspections, looking at how integration of services positively supports people’s experiences and outcomes. The last inspection of integrated services in Perth & Kinross was 2019. With the approval of the HSCP Head of Service, the ASP lead for Perth & Kinross was invited to join the joint inspection team in an inspection of integrated adult services in another HSCP area using the inspection question to determine: “How effectively is the partnership working together, strategically and operationally, to deliver seamless services that achieve good health and wellbeing outcomes for adults?” The learning from this experience will also inform our own self-evaluation and audit work and give some insight into the inspection activity and methodology when our integrated adult services are inspected as part of this joint inspection programme. Delivering a joint adult and child protection community engagement week – Letham, Perth. In partnership with the Letham Community Hub, the APC and the CPC carried out a series of community engagement conversations and events in Letham, Perth around ‘what does protection mean to you’. Colleagues from the Letham Hub facilitated an adult and child protection survey where those who use the Letham Hub were invited to share what was important to them in terms of either adult and/or child protection. Several awareness raising sessions were held where those who wanted
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28 28 to know more about adult protection and children protection could attend. More targeted sessions were facilitated alongside existing groups at the hub. For example, a joint APC/Trading Standards financial harm awareness raising session was held for the older adult session in one of Letham Hub’s existing ‘butty and blether’ session. This APC/CPC community engagement work is aligned to and informed by the existing ‘Love Letham’ community plan. Our engagement will also be evaluated in the 25/26 reporting year and shared as a coordinated response to getting the right support, from the right people to those who live in Letham. This learning from these community engagement sessions will also be evaluated to see how it can be replicated and extended to other urban and rural communities across Perth & Kinross. Primary aged school pupils in the two Letham primary schools were invited to take part in a ‘what does protection mean to me’ poster competition. This poster was submitted by one of the primary 6 pupils. It was seen as a fantastic, insightful example citing many uptodate and relevant aspects where adults and children may be at risk of harm, including sharing of personal and password information (financial harm and identity theft) and not sharing photos (sextortion). Public Protection Development Session – February 2025. As stated earlier in this report, the APC is an active participant in our public protection approach here in Perth and Kinross.
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29 29 Examples of ASP and public protection cross cutting themes: - The ASP Act being used to support those where domestic abuse exists - Using the ASP Act to safeguard those considered at risk of suicide. - Using the ASP Act to support those who experience addiction. - In 2024, we can demonstrate a well-coordinated joint ASP/CP/VAW/health and Police response to forced marriage. - The APC and CPC has always retained strong partnership working with many cross-cutting themes including delivering a trauma informed approach, transition work and shared learning reviews. - A coordinated public protection approach to financial harm and SCAMs - A public protection approach to learning and development - Establishing a public protection citizen-led safeguarding board On 4 February 2025, the APC contributed to a Perth & Kinross Public Protection development session. This session allowed our public protection partners, lead officers and members of the Perth & Kinross COG to explore where areas where we can strengthen our coordinated approach by removing any potential for ‘siloed’ policies, service boundaries, funding streams and reporting requirements by focusing on shared safeguarding and protecting outcomes from a group of policy agendas. The development session helped identify key priority areas for public protection work in Perth & Kinross. This improvement work will continue to be led by the public protection coordinators group. Continuing to strengthen our public protection approach remains a key priority for the APC throughout 25/26. In 24/25, we continued to focus our activity on addressing financial harm The prevalence of online banking and artificial intelligence has led to a significant increase in a range of what is considered financial harm. This would appear to be a global issue and not one intrinsic to Perth and Kinross. The APC hosted another webinar in 2024/25 where colleagues from Abertay University presented their findings from their own research around romance fraud and how they are developing
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30 30 software to help safeguard those who might be vulnerable to online financial harm/scams. Led by the ASP coordinator, a Perth and Kinross SCAMS short life working group was created in 2024 to coordinate the public messaging about known scams. Membership of this incudes social work, health, Police, community safety, trading standards and colleagues from the Perth and Kinross communications team. The APC remains involved in national ASP improvement Throughout 2024-25, various members of the APC have been actively involved in different national ASP and ASP related workstreams including: - National ASP learning and development workstream - Better use of chronologies in ASP work to inform risk assessments - Self-evaluation - Service user engagement and involvement - Developing a national ASP data set - Supporting the revision of national LSI guidance The Perth and Kinross ASP independent chair and lead officers also remain actively involved in the national ASP independent chair and lead officer group. The NHST Public Protection Associate Nurse Director is also chair of the National Scottish Health Leadership Group for Adult Protection and is a member of the National ASP Strategic Forum. The complex risk panel - an innovative test of change with the ASP lead, Psychology Services and the HSCP The L22 learning review titled ‘response to EUPD’ was published by the Perth & Kinross APC in 2023. It found that whilst front line practice was underpinned by resilience, missed opportunities existed to formally escalate increasing risk to strategic leaders. The complex risk panel is designed to provide an escalation mechanism for agencies across HSCP managing the most risky and challenging behaviour displayed by people with ‘personality disorder’ and associated comorbidities. At present, there is no established forum in Tayside which takes a systematic and evidence-based approach to
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31 31 the management to this work, where teams can obtain multi-agency, senior leadership support for complex risk decision-making. The complex risk panel provides a planned, proactive organisational approach to ensure person-centred, ethical, and high-quality risk management. The complex risk panel will run throughout 25/26 and will be evaluated thereafter to determine impact and outcomes. Using data and evaluation work to provide a more targeted early intervention and preventative approach to supporting and protecting. The Access Team is the first point of contact for most adult protection concerns. It is based upon a multi-agency early intervention and prevention model of support and service delivery. The VPR audit titled “No Protection Without Support” in 2022/23 and a follow up VPR audit in 2023/24 sets out areas of strength and areas for improvement in triaging adult protection concerns. Both audits measured our screening of adult protection concerns against the ‘Care Inspectorate Quality Indicator Framework’ and found that overall, we have a valid and well-understood system for prompt, accurate screening of all adult protection concerns intimated to our partnership. The three- point criteria is almost always applied, but the audit found that there is room for making this more consistent. The audit also refers to how the analysis of our adult protection data helps inform a redesign of the Access Team with greater focus on early intervention and prevention, a better response to crisis and using the ASP Act to safeguard. Understanding the changing data trends has led to the implementation of two separate fast-track triage systems into specialist community resources for those adult concern reports and referrals received where there are 1. mental health and/or 2. drug and alcohol concerns.
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32 32 This triage and fast tracking embrace the benefits and principles of early intervention and prevention and is based on a ‘no referral, no waiting list’ premise and to determine the right supports, at the right time and from the right people. 5. ASP Training, Learning and Development We are committed to developing a competent, confident, and skilful workforce. Our staff are highly motivated and committed to their own continuous professional development. We are empowering and supporting our staff with a wide range of evidenced-based multi-agency learning and development opportunities, which are evaluated and having a positive impact on practice. The content of these learning and development opportunities takes account of changing legislative, policy and practice developments. Throughout 2024/25, we have: 1. Delivered another council officer programme. It is this intensive training that once completed, allows a qualified social worker with the necessary experience and qualification to carry out the formal role of leading in ASP work. 2. Worked alongside our learning and development colleagues in Dundee and Angus to deliver ASP defensible decision training. This supports practitioners be both dependable and defensible in their recording of ASP work. 3. Collaborated with our learning and development colleagues in Dundee and with our health colleagues to deliver three ASP 2nd worker training sessions. ASP 2nd worker training is aimed at a range of professionals who will carry out the second worker role in investigations and/or LSIs. Increasing our numbers of trained ASP 2nd workers from a wide range of disciplines allows us to deliver a more multi-agency and at times a specialist approach to investigating harm. 4. Developed an ASP learning programme for early years practitioners and another for the care home and care at home sector.
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33 33 APC supporting ASP/AWI matters: ASP/AWI matters is a practitioner led peer support network for those who practice in and/or are involved in adult protection work. Supported by our colleagues from HSCP learning and development, it is an open forum for practitioners to discuss practice and use the experience from within the peer group to share and learn from each other. The practitioner lead for ASP Matters sits on the APC sub-group and provides a link from ASP matters into ASP practice. The number of practitioners who take part in the ASP matters peer group has grown in recent years to 91 practitioners. The meetings take place monthly and are not exclusive to council officers but has a common theme around how we best support and protect adults and how we do this using a human rights approach to how we intervene in the lives of people and in our application of adult legislation. The forum offers a safe, learning space for those who have a vested interest in adult protection work and has led to larger learning events. The P&K Community of Practice learning events have been designed in collaboration with Dundee University and third sector partners based on knowledge requests from frontline practitioners such as those that attend the ASP matters. The Community of Practice aims to help improve practice and inform service delivery through: • Developing new links with other agencies and strengthening existing links though learning • Enhancing the evidence base to how we protect adults at risk from harm • Undertaking collective research • Promoting coproduction leadership • Enhancing knowledge, skills and values base • Sharing and making best use of joint resources • Peer Support and enhancing wellbeing
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34 34 The APC valuing the benefits of contemporary research to support improvement work. The APC values the use of contemporary research to support audit, self-evaluation and improvement. In this reporting year, the ASP lead has supported a final year social work student to conduct research as part of her dissertation work. Her research has relevance for the APC. It is titled: “A documentary analysis of unpaid carer involvement in Adult Support and Protection in One Local Authority in Scotland” The author of this research shared her findings at the APC in June 2025 and has gone on to share her findings with those who work within the Perth & Kinross Carers Strategy. Her work will help to inform us how we support unpaid carers throughout the ASP process. 6. Communication and Public Awareness We continue to review and develop the Perth and Kinross APC webpage which provides public information about adult protection in Perth and Kinross, including our use of ASP as a means to safeguard harm, how to recognise harm and where to report it. Annual reports, learning reviews and APC minutes are shared publicly on this site. (Perth and Kinross Council - Adult support and protection (pkc.gov.uk). In 2024, the following ASP leaflet was created by the ASP national improvement working group and was adapted to make it more relevant here in Perth & Kinross. These are intended to be shared with the adult and his or her unpaid carer. A copy of this information is also available electronically: Adult Support and Protection - Information for you - Perth & Kinross Council
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35 35 Mary Willis is a Perth and Kinross Council Communications Officer who is aligned to the work of the APC. She states: “The Perth and Kinross Council Communications team provides communications support to the APC including the following activities: • Support for both national and local campaigns that either directly relate to adult support & protection or are allied to this area of care and support: o National ASP Day o Advice on financial harm o Scammers and cold callers o Sextortion • Organisation and issue of news releases, photocalls (where appropriate), social media activity (e.g. Facebook, X/Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn) linked to these campaigns • Responding to media enquiries about ASP-related issues Our response to National ASP Day on 20 February 2025. February 20 each year marks the start of an annual Scottish Government campaign to raise awareness about adult support and adult protection. Local landmarks and Perth and Kinross Council social media sites are used to promote the themes of national adult protection day. On 20 February 2025, the lights on Smeaton’s Bridge were blue and white to reflect the APC logo colours.
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36 36 Social media was once again used to raise awareness in recognising an adult at risk of harm and how to report this. It was also used to highlight the risks associated with sextortion. The APC uses the week leading up to Feb 20 as an opportunity to deliver ASP and ASP related conferences and training opportunities. In this reporting year, P&K led a Tayside learning opportunity with colleagues from the cyber security department from Abertay University who spoke about the universal challenges and complexities in safeguarding adults from financial harm in an increasingly developing digital and virtual world. The APC also hosted another Tayside conference with colleagues from the DWP safeguarding team on how the DWP can support where there is evidence of financial harm. The APC has a monthly recurring and rolling raising awareness programme using PKC social media sites alternating between awareness raising campaigns and campaigns focussing on sextortion and financial harm. The importance of sustaining close safeguarding relationships with wider organisations Protecting adults is everyone’s business. Therefore, the APC acknowledges the value of a wide APC membership including a representative from University of the Highlands and Islands (Perth College campus). The campus has students with a range of physical and learning disabilities and those with whom have disclosed a mental health support need. Retaining this close working relationship has been key to ensuring that those who are considered vulnerable, at risk or in need of support from
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37 37 wider agencies are able to access this. This has included taking a joined-up approach with UHI more recently where evidence suggested that some students from Perth College were vulnerable to cuckooing3. The APC/CPC and UHI plan a series of coordinated safeguarding events throughout 2025/26. The 3rd sector also plays a growing and integral part of the APC and APC subgroups. Scottish Care is represented in the APC and colleagues from Hourglass, PKAVS and Turning Point Scotland sit as part of the APC subgroup membership. Colleagues from Turning Point Scotland co-lead the self-neglect and hoarding improvement work. The ASP coordinator holds safeguarding development session with PKAVS and with those who support unpaid carers. 7. Looking Forward This report has identified key areas for our programme of work over this next year. The findings from our local and national improvement work identifies areas which, if consistently embedded into ASP work, will elevate us from having effective policies and processes into what should be considered very effective. The older adult continues to dominate our ASP activity, and the APC and APC subgroups continue to be connected with the different older adult strategies that exist in Perth and Kinross. Hourglass4 is a national charity dedicated to supporting the order adult at risk of harm, and they sit within the Perth and Kinross APC subgroup to support and help improve our practice in terms of how we seek to safeguard the older adult. We will give a continued focus on strengthening our public protection arrangements and continue to focus on cross cutting themes such as violence against women, 3 Taking the name from cuckoos who take over the nests of other birds, cuckooing is a practice where people take over a person’s home and use the property to facilitate exploitation, including dealing, storing or using drugs and using the property for sex work. 4 https://wearehourglass.scot/scotland
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38 38 financial harm, understanding the adult protection impact on those where drug and alcohol features, mental health, and suicide prevention. Supporting adults and their unpaid carers to better engage in the ASP episode in a more meaningful way is also seen as a key area for improvement as is finding ways upon which we can consistently gather feedback from adults and their unpaid carers where the ASP Act has been used to safeguard. Using this feedback to inform our work is also a key area for improvement. This report has highlighted the need for a robust, reliable quantitative and qualitative data set from across all partner agencies to inform planning, manage workload efficiently, target resources on key issues, inform improvements to practice, and to demonstrate outcomes. As we continue to move towards implementing a new social work recording system, it is intended that this new system and the data produced from it will help better understand impact, outcomes and experiences of those here ASP has been used to safeguard. We acknowledge the importance of chronologies to help identify patterns of behaviour. Our audit into some of our own ASP work identified that work needs to be done in this reporting year to ensure that our chronologies are multi-agency, are available, up to date, focus on key life events and the implications on risk. Furthermore, we need to use medical examinations to inform our risk assessments, risk management plans, and combined chronologies are consistently shared among all our adult protection partners to ensure a coordinated and joined up approach to safeguarding. We also look to strengthen our audit and self-evaluation work by applying and embedding the learning from workstream 4 and our participation in the integrated inspection programme.
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39 39 8. Summary This annual report seeks to give analysis to the adult protection activity and its impact between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. It highlights where we are able to demonstrate several key areas where multi-agency adult protection activity within Perth and Kinross is strong. This report also identifies areas in which we seek to improve. The improvements identified within this report are framed within the APC Improvement Plan for 2024/26. Iain Wilkie Adult Protection Coordinator Appendix A Most commonly used acronyms AP (concern) Adult Protection Concern APC Adult Protection Committee ASP Adult Support and Protection CHOG Care Home Operational Group COG Chief Officers Group CSWO Chief Social Work Officer HSCP Health and Social Care Partnership IAPK Independent Advocacy Perth and Kinross IJB Integrated Joint Board IRD Inter-agency Referral Discussion LSI Large Scare Investigation NHST AP NHS Tayside Adult Protection VPR (Police) Vulnerable Persons Report VAW Violence against Women (and girls)
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40 40 Appendix B A textual summary of the ASP Summary Infographic Page 8 of this report is an infographic summary of the ASP activity in Perth and Kinross from 1 April 2024 through to 31 March 2025 In order to make this APC annual Report more accessible to more people online, this appendix is a written summary of this infographic page. The first infographic tells us that in this reporting year, Perth and Kinross has received a total of 3147 Adult Protection referrals. This is comparable to the number of ASP referrals received in 2023/24. The second infographic tells us that out of all the ASP investigations conducted in this reporting period. 24% were conducted for physical harm, 17% were used for neglect and 22% of investigations were used for financial harm. Emotional harm accounted for 12% of investigations, 3% were used for sexual harm and domestic abuse accounted for 5% of all ASP investigations. The third infographic relates to who is receiving support. The data tells us that 22% of all ASP investigations conducted were used with someone who was frail, 18% were used with someone with dementia and 26% were used with someone with a diagnosis of learning disability. Mental ill-health accounted for 16% of all ASP investigations and 4% were used with someone who experienced addiction. The fourth infographic tells us about the impact of the adult at risk. It tells us that between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2024, 98% of all adult protection concerns received were screened within 24-hour hours of being received. Our data tells us the within this reporting period, 57% of all ASP activity was used for females and we saw a 21% increase in our use of ASP for those aged between 40-64. The full APC Biennial report gives more analysis to this. The next infographic tells us what age group is most at risk. 31% of all ASP activity relates to those aged 81 and over. 30% relates to those who are aged between 65 and 80.
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41 41 The seventh infographic gives us a very short summary of what the APC did between 2024 2 and 2025. It tells us that we made progress with the APC improvement plan, we strengthened relationships across all public protection partners, and we used the findings from our audit work to make changes how we deliver ASP. The next infographic tells us that in this reporting 12-month period, we secured five formal protection orders. More is discussed about this in the main report. The last infographic tells us what our priorities are going forward. We see the need to improve our engagement in the ASP episode with adults, families and carers. We want to develop our multi-agency approach to using the ASP Act and give a greater focus on safeguarding those at risk from financial harm and understanding how trauma can lead to an inability to safeguard.