Vulnerable Adults Pathway

The Vulnerable Adults Pathway delivers a partnership approach to the management and support of individuals facing multiple disadvantage.

The purpose of the Vulnerable Adults Pathway is to facilitate the sharing of information, identify solutions to reduce risk and co-ordinate activity across organisations, to address the needs of identified vulnerable adults.

The Vulnerable Adults Pathway also aims to support the lead organisation to hold the case safely, by offering peer support, sharing ideas, actions and problem solving.

Partnership Triage Meeting

The purpose of the Partnership Triage Meeting is to review referrals into the Vulnerable Adults Pathway, share information, consider risk and reach a multi-agency decision regarding the progression of cases into the pathway.

Community Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (C-MARAC)

The purpose of C-MARAC is to take a multi-agency approach to address the complex needs of identified vulnerable adults where isolated interventions from organisations have not reduced risk to an acceptable level.

The C-MARAC Coordinator and Chair is the SYP Safer Neighbourhood Vulnerability Sergeant.

The referring organisation will be allocated a 20-minute slot to attend C-MARAC to present information about the case.

Actions, leads and timeframes agreed in the meeting will be documented in an Action Plan and shared with all attendees.

C-MARAC supports vulnerable adults:

  • Who have mental capacity
  • Are experiencing ongoing or repeated victimisation
  • Are subject to or involved in anti-social behaviour and/or crime
  • Who are making unwise decisions
  • Who are at risk of harm, or their behaviour poses a risk to others
  • Whose behaviour requires addressing by early intervention or enforcement
  • With complex needs including mental ill-health, exploitation, problematic drug or alcohol use
  • Severe and recurrent self-neglect

In the following context:

  • Repeated or escalating incidents in frequency and/or severity
  • The impact of the adult's behaviour is high and spans multiple organisations

Vulnerable Adult Risk Management (VARM)

Referrals to VARM are agreed via the Partnership Triage Meeting or C-MARAC. Therefore, the adult will meet the threshold criteria for C-MARAC.

Escalation to VARMM occurs when:

  • Level of Complexity and or risk requires more in depth problem-solving
  • The vulnerable adult is at risk of serious harm or death
  • More specialist support is required
  • C-MARAC involvement and/or previous interventions have not met the desired outcomes

The VARM Coordinator and Chair is the RMBC Vulnerable Adults Professional Lead.

Vulnerable Adults Panel (VAP)

The VAP provides strategic oversight of the Vulnerable Adults Pathway, including the CMARAC and VARM platforms.

Referral to the VAP occurs when:

  • Commissioning or resource decisions are needed.
  • There are unresolved system-wide issues blocking progress to mitigate risk.
  • There is an unresolved dispute between organisations, relating to a specific vulnerable adult.
  • Approval to exit VARM is jointly recommended by all members, in instances when all agency support has been fully explored and implemented, but the level of risk remains.

Risk Responsibility

Case management and responsibility to take appropriate action rests with individual agencies; it is not transferred to the Vulnerable Adults Pathway. The role of the pathway is to facilitate, monitor and evaluate effective information sharing and support planning for vulnerable adults at risk of harm.

Referrals

A referral into the Vulnerable Adults Pathway is initiated by the organisation that identifies that current attempts to support the vulnerable adult are not working.

Fully completed referrals are to be submitted to: vulnerability.referrals@rotherham.gov.uk

 

Vulnerable Adults Pathway Resources