ContactPoint: Shielding Fact Sheet
What is shielding?
Some people may have some of their details hidden on ContactPoint to prevent their
location being visible on the system – this is called shielding. Shielding is for people whose
circumstances may mean that they are at increased risk of significant harm, or for other
reasons specified in statutory guidance (see below - ‘When to shield’).
A shielded record will show only the child’s name, date of birth, gender and unique ID
number. Shielding is not unique to ContactPoint; it is already in place in a number of
systems.
When to shield
Shielding requests for ContactPoint must be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Guidance
provided to local authorities sets out the limited circumstances in which shielding would be
appropriate. Essentially these are when there are strong reasons to believe that not
shielding a record would be likely to:
• place a child at increased risk of significant harm;
• place an adult at increased risk of significant harm;
• prejudice the prevention or detection of a serious crime; or
• in the case of adoption, put a child’s placement at risk.
By increased risk of significant harm we mean that:
• one or more individual(s) are likely to cause significant harm to the child and/or their
parent/carer;
and therefore
• the child and/or their parent/carer are being, or will be, protected at a location that is not
known to the individual(s) posing the threat.
The Children Act 1989 introduced the concept of significant harm as the threshold that
justifies compulsory intervention in family life in the best interests of children.
Examples of when it might be appropriate to shield a record include where:
• a child is placed for adoption where there is little or no contact with birth parent(s) or
other family members;
• a child and/or their parent/carer are fleeing abuse or domestic violence; and/or
• a child and/or their parent/carer or family member are subject to police protection.
The need to shield a record may also arise in very limited circumstances that are not
covered by the categories above. For example, the records of siblings or other children who
live with or who are closely related to a child whose record has been shielded.
Shielding is one of a range of measures that should be considered where there are
concerns that an individual may be at risk of harm. Existing procedures relating to the
protection of those at risk should continue to be followed.
How a record is shielded
Practitioners – In most cases practitioners will ask for a shield to be applied to a child’s
record. They will do this on the basis of what they already know about the child’s
circumstances, or as a result of concerns raised by the child/young person and/or their
parent/carers. Practitioners who are ContactPoint users, and have access rights, can
request a shield directly on the system. Practitioners who are not ContactPoint users should
contact their local authority to request that a child’s record is shielded.
All local authorities have been working with relevant local organisations (for example
adoption teams and domestic violence units) to identify records that should be shielded.
Two qualified, vetted and trained people in every local authority have begun shielding
records on ContactPoint.
Public - Anyone who has reason to believe their/their child’s record should be shielded on
ContactPoint can contact their local authority directly. Local authorities will apply the criteria
set out in guidance to determine whether it is appropriate to shield the record.
Multiple shielding requests
A record can have a number of shielding requests applied to it at any one time. Therefore
when a practitioner identifies a record which they believe should be shielded, it is essential
that they register their own shielding request against it, even if it already has a shield
applied. This will help local authorities ensure that a record is only unshielded when there
are no outstanding reasons for shielding.
Local authority reviews
Local authority ContactPoint Management Teams should undertake an initial review within
seven days of the shield being requested, to determine whether or not the record should be
shielded. Reviews of the shielding decision should be undertaken every six months
thereafter. As part of their reviews, local authorities should take into account any views
expressed by the child/young person and, where appropriate, their parent/carers and any
relevant involved practitioners.
Removing a shield
A practitioner should remove their shielding request from a record when they judge that the
shield is no longer necessary. To ensure that shields are not removed inappropriately, the
record will remain shielded until the local authority reviews the record and makes a final
decision to remove the shield.
Access to shielded records
To ensure that ContactPoint does not inadvertently confirm or indicate an individual’s
location, no records will be returned if a search is made using information from any non-
visible field. A practitioner will only be able to find a child record by inputting information that
is visible on a shielded record.
Relevant people in local authority ContactPoint Management Teams will have access rights
to view hidden information on shielded records so they can, where there are child protection
concerns, ‘broker’ contact between users working with the same child.
ContactPoint users with child protection responsibilities, such as police officers or social
workers, may be granted an access right that enables them to override the shield and gain
access to the hidden information. Any attempt to override the shield will prompt a message
reminding the user that this will trigger an immediate investigation. Where they choose to
proceed, they will only be able view the hidden information until they log out of the record. If
they require access to the same information again, they will have to repeat the override
process. If another user searches for the child record, it would still appear shielded to them.
Background
The policy and processes for shielding has been developed in consultation with a variety of
organisations including Barnardo’s; The Children’s Society; Women’s Aid; British
Association of Adoption and Fostering; Metropolitan Police; Greater London Domestic
Violence Project; Children and Family Courts Advice and Support Service; Association of
Chief Police Officers; Haven Refuge and local authorities. Provision for shielding is made in
the Regulations (
The Children Act 2004 Information Database (England) Regulations 2007)
and further details are set out in the ContactPoint statutory guidance.
www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/contactpoint
ContactPoint shielding factsheet V2:
Published March 2009
