“Child Protection services within the borough are secure and well-managed”. (APA Inspection 2007).
“We have always found the duty team to be knowledgeable and helpful with a quick and appropriate response to referrals”.  (Local Secondary School)

We are the first point of contact for members of the public and professionals who are concerned about a child’s welfare.

We deal with children aged 0-17 years old who live in Waltham Forest or who are found in the borough and in urgent need of help.

We work closely with the police and almost half of all the child welfare notifications come direct from the police.  Most of these concern children living in families where domestic violence is taking place.

We also work closely with schools, health professionals, housing and a range of other local agencies.  We are often asked by the courts to provide reports on children involved in family proceedings in order to make decisions about where they should live and contact arrangements.

We have a duty to safeguard children who are separated from their own families. This includes children who are privately fostered, unaccompanied minors from overseas and local children whose parents are unable or unwilling to look after them.

We have a statutory duty under the Children Act 1989 to investigate known or suspected child abuse and powers to intervene in order to protect children.

We are committed to supporting families to look after their own children and can arrange short-term support and/or referral on to other support services, where required.   If it is not safe for a child to remain at home, we will try firstly to place them with another family member or close friend and if this is not possible, then with foster carers.

We undertake initial and more in-depth assessments on referrals that meet criteria determined by statutory and local guidance.   If we cannot help, we can refer on to other agencies.

We have statutory timescales for responding to referrals and carrying out assessments which are as follows:

  • Same day decision on all referrals
  • Initial assessment within 7 working days
  • Section 47 Inquiry (Child Protection) within 15 working days
  • Core assessment within 35 working days

The main service is delivered by three teams based at 8 Buxton Road E17.

There is also a team at Whipps Cross hospital and their main area of work is with babies (born and unborn) where there are serious welfare concerns.  For example, babies whose mothers are abusing drugs and/or alcohol, who have serious mental health condition or who have had previous children removed due to abuse or neglect. The team also receive referrals from A&E and the children’s wards in the hospital.  

The Emergency Duty Team respond to urgent referrals of children and vulnerable adults during evening and weekend times.  This includes children taken into police protection, adult mental health assessments and members of the public in urgent need of help.

Download "Having a Child in Need of Assessment" (1MB PDF file)


This document is produced in PDF format. To view it you may need to download a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader.

The Referral & Assessment Service is a very busy and demanding place to work.  The service is organised into smaller teams to ensure that priority cases are allocated and that staff are supported in their day to day duties.

Safeguarding children is everyone’s responsibility and we are keen to promote the work of our service within the local community.

Who we are and how to contact us:

The Referral and Assessment Service comprises of

Referral and Assessment Service
8 Buxton Road
Walthamstow E17 7EJ
Tel 0208 496 2339
Fax No 0208 496 2313

Referral and Assessment Service – Whipps Cross Hospital
Social Work Department
Whipps Cross Hospital
Whipps Cross Rd.
Leytonstone E11 1NR
Tel 0208 539 5522 Ext:5804

Social work emergencies outside office hours at weekends and on public holidays

For urgent enquiries regarding vulnerable adults and children during the evening, weekend or on public holidays, call Waltham Forest Direct on 020 8496 3000, an out of hours emergency duty social worker will be contacted who will call you back.