After a child or
young person has a Common Assessment completed; they may be
identified as needing additional support from different
agencies. In this situation a Lead Professional will be
allocated to the child or young person. The main duties
of a lead professional are to:
-
Act as a single
point of contact for the child, young person or family;
-
Co-ordinate the
delivery of services agreed by practitioners involved;
-
ensure regular
reviews of services;
-
reduce
inconsistencies; and
-
reduce the
overlap in services provided.
Any practitioner
working with children and young people and their families in either
the community, statutory, private or third sector can act as the
Lead Professional.
Usually the lead
professional is chosen at the Team Around the Child (TAC) meeting.
But they can also be chosen via a ‘virtual’ TAC through
consultation with the family and professionals. The role of the
lead professional can change to meet the needs of the child or
young person. For example with the transition from primary to
secondary school or the ‘step-up’ to a specialist
service.