Staying together and connected: getting it right for sisters and brothers: national practice guidance

12. Recording

12.1 The purpose of recording

Recording of information about the relationships between brothers and/or sisters includes information identifying who a child's brothers and sisters are (including those they have a 'sibling-like' relationship with); ongoing assessments of the needs of children in a sibling group and how these relationships are being supported; children's views about their needs and relationships; the views of other adults around them, including carers and professionals; and what these professionals and carers may need to support the wellbeing and uphold rights of that child.

Practitioners, carers and corporate parents record information about a child in the form of 'care records' that help tell the story of a child's life, their feelings, views and relationships. These records are fundamentally important to a person with care experience.^{[79] [80]}

Information about a child is also recorded to give clear and concise records about their current needs, to those who care for them. This information must be accessible to the different people and teams who work collaboratively to support a child, and the information must be up-to-date, whilst also reflecting the change in children's lives and their relationships.

Recording has a range of functions that can sometimes be practically and emotionally difficult to reconcile, but these different functions enable us to protect the wellbeing of a child and the relationships that matter to them, in the present and in the future.

12.2 The importance of recording to children and adults with care experience

In "The Promise'' the Independent Care Review reflected on the importance of recording data about children to support good decision-making, and the need to reflect the value of brothers' and/or sisters' relationships and their life stories in their records,^[81] but that sometimes recording can meet the needs of the 'care system' before it meets these needs.^[82] The importance to people with care experience having a sense of ownership over their records, and for records to be written clearly with the assumption that a person with care experience will read these later in their life, has implications for what and how information about brothers and sisters, and relationships between brothers and/or sisters, is recorded.

Accessing care records can be a significant point in the lives of people with care experience.^[83] Person-centred support when accessing records can enable people with care experience^[84] to recover from trauma,^[85] as well as to understand their early life and family, including discovering or knowing more about

their brothers or sisters.^[86] Good recording practices can play a part in supporting people who have brothers and/or sisters, keeping information about their experiences, views and feelings about their brothers and sisters safe so that these can be accessed or explored in life story work at a time that is right for that child or adult.

12.3 Redaction of information about brothers and/or sisters

Whilst every person has a right to access information about themselves, this right does not automatically extend to information about other people who are written about in their records. Therefore, information relating to other people, such as a person's brothers and sisters, can sometimes be redacted from care records. Redaction of information can be confusing and distressing to people with care experience,^[87]especially if it relates to their brothers and sisters. Guidance has been developed by the Scottish Children's Reporters Administration on how redaction of information in care records held by them, including about family members, can be reduced.^[88]

Supporting sisters' and/or brothers' relationships means that in addition to life story work with children with care experience about their brothers and sisters, practitioners should consider how they can 'future proof' the ways that they record information about the brothers and sisters of a child about which a record is made. This can include ensuring that information about who has parental responsibilities and rights for a child's brothers and sisters be recorded in their file. This will help practitioners obtain consent to disclose information about their siblings. This can minimise the possibility of redaction of information about their family and identity in the future.

12.4 What should be recorded?

Regulations 42 of the Looked after Children (Scotland) Regulations 2009 ("the 2009 Regulations'') and the associated guidance describe what should be included in the written case record for a child with care experience (referred to as a looked after child in the legislation). Guidance on the 2009 Regulations draws particular attention to the importance of recording links to information about a child's brothers and sisters and the significance of doing so, with particular attention to larger groups of brothers and/or sisters or those of different ages who may not have lived together. This reflects on the lifelong difficulties experienced by brothers and/or sisters who were not able to live together and who have never formed relationships or those who did not know about each other, for whom their care records may be the only way they will learn about each other's existence.^[89]

Evidence shows that currently, when a reason why a brother or sister cannot live together is recorded, too often this is brief and generalised, with insufficient recording about children's views of their relationships and how their views have informed decision-making.^{[90] [91]} It is crucial that changes to recording practices are made to support the rights of sisters and/or brothers.

12.5 Key elements of recording systems

Recording systems must be based on the needs of a child or children. To facilitate a collaborative, multi-agency approach to supporting brothers and sisters with care experience and uphold their rights, the following elements are needed in the recording systems and processes used:

• All recording systems should be designed within the overarching framework of Getting it right for every child. Recording in a child's file needs to reflect their current legal status, and who has responsibilities and rights in relation to where they should live and who they can spend time with.
• The design of all recording systems must support practice around supporting sisters and brothers. This includes capacity to produce and store genograms (a form of 'family tree') for each child, the inclusion of fields on all relevant forms and report templates that prompt and allow for the recording of information about brothers and sisters, the connection of information about groups of brothers and sisters in information systems, and enable access to this information by the child if this is sought.
• Recording should focus on the needs of an individual child, but systems should be capable of incorporating information about relationships and the needs of different brothers and sisters in a sibling group. If information is duplicated in records within a sibling group, this must be accurate and efforts should be made to 'future proof' to mitigate the redaction of third party information relevant to a person's identity.
• Recording about relationships between brothers and/or sisters should be clear and written in plain English, contribute to the narrative of that child's life story, including details of their day-to-day life with their brothers and sisters, such as moments of joy and activities between brothers and/or sisters, and not be limited to difficult circumstances or documentation of risk.
• Recording of a child's behaviour and support needs should take a trauma-informed and responsive approach.
• Recording systems must be capable of recording information from the point at which a child or family first receives support, such as at a Team Around the Child meeting, through to their support in adulthood such as in throughcare and aftercare.
• Recording systems must be capable of recording any significant change in children's lives and their relationships with brothers and sisters, whilst also giving up-to-date information clearly and concisely.
• If a child arrives in Scotland unaccompanied or separated from their parents or guardian, it is crucial to source and record information about their brothers and/or sisters (as well as any other family member), connecting with other agencies such as the Scottish Guardianship Service or family tracing services to do so. It must also be noted that, for some unaccompanied children and young people, they can form strong 'sibling-like' relationships with the children and young people they live with (in residential homes, for example). These relationships may be incredibly important to these children and young people as they are not in contact with their parents or other family members.
• At all relevant times, recording should include information on the steps taken to uphold the rights of children, outlined in Section 2. This must include specific information about what steps were taken, and will be taken, to avoid circumstances where these rights cannot be upheld, such as when it is not in the best interest of a child to live with their brothers and sisters.