In this section

Employers

Children's hearings have been making decisions about the welfare of children at risk since they were first established in 1971.

But they couldn't do it without you and other employers like you.

The system really depends on a flexible partnership between children's panel members and those who employ them.

What are my obligations?

Find out what your obligations are if one of your employees wants to be a member of the Children's Panel.

What can I do to help?

While many employers support Panel members' activities on full pay, some don't.

If paid time off is not available, panel members can claim travel and some other expenses as well as an allowance for loss of earnings - although this is unlikely to fully compensate the employee for actual loss of earnings.

It may sometimes be a bit inconvenient but skills and experience developed by panel members can be applied in the workplace.

How another company has approached it

IBM has been supporting the children's panel for over 20 years, providing their employees with the flexibility needed to train and contribute as panel members, and reaping benefits in return.