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You must be able to attend both days of the course:

• Wednesday 5 February 2025 (in London), 09:15 - 17:00 and
• Wednesday 26 February 2025 (online), 09:00 - 13:25 

Please note: This course is based on English and Welsh law. A Scottish law-based course is held separately. For more details and to register your interest, please go to .

The RCPCH has developed this popular and successful course in conjunction with medical and legal experts who bring vast amounts of experience from within the safeguarding sector.

You will look at types of abuse commonly observed in child protection cases as well as the associated multi-agency processes such as strategy discussions where the medical perspective is crucial to determining the best outcome for the child.

You will gain understanding of the structure, language and specifications of professional witness reports expected by different court systems that will help guide you to prepare and submit a report in advance of Day 2 of this course.

You will also be given the opportunity to testify in a mock trial scenario using your submitted report with dedicated legal experts providing guidance and feedback to help build your confidence.

I frequently am involved in safeguarding cases and strategy meetings. This course gave me an excellent preparation to face such challenges.

Course aim

To equip paediatricians involved in child protection cases with the skills to gather evidence as part of clinical practice and effectively present this within multi-agency collaborations, professional witness reports and court testimony.

The delivery, resources, faculty was absolutely excellent. Very knowledgeable but practical and the last day with the barrister was invaluable experience.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course you will be able to:

• Deal with common child protection concerns that arise in your clinical practice
• Present the medical perspective of a child protection assessment within multi-agency meetings
• Appear as a professional witness (having written a report to the court’s required specifications) with the skills and confidence required to provide the best possible outcomes for the child

I found the course really useful and gave the key highlights of what we need to consider to give a comprehensive opinion in a safeguarding case

Target audience  

• Paediatric specialty (ST5-7) trainees
• SAS/locally employed doctors
• Consultant paediatricians

Learned more about the peer review process and how to professionally challenge and I shall use this knowledge in my practice

Mandatory course requirements 

Please take these activities into consideration when planning study leave/funding arrangements for this course.

• Prior viewing of pre-recorded online lectures (of around 3 hours’ duration) via the College’ s RCPCH Learning platform
• Submission of professional witness report (based on a case allocated by the College on Day 1) which will be used in your mock trial session - this must be received by 9:00 on Monday 17 February (if not submitted by this deadline, you will not be able to participate in the mock trial session). Please ensure you schedule time to write your report between 6 February and 17 February.  

If I ever need to go to court, I'm sure I will be much more prepared now. Thank you!

Technical requirements for day 2

• Windows or Mac computer (laptop/desktop or tablet)
• Access to Zoom platform (please download before the day)
• An internet connection – broadband wired or wireless (3G or 4G/LTE). Minimum bandwidth is 600kbps (up/down) and recommended is 1.5 Mbps (up/down)
• Microphone and speaker - either using:
  • the built-in microphone/speaker
  • a headset connected to your laptop/desktop or tablet
• Webcam - either using:
  • the built-in webcam
  • separate webcam connected to your laptop/desktop or tablet

The range of candidates and faculty: I got to hear a huge range of different opinions and experiences, which contributed to my learning.