My name is Riley – A serious case review

Webinar Summary: The Power of a Chronology – Understanding the Child Behind the Case

In this powerful webinar, The Power of a Chronology, Marie Born (former Ofsted Inspector and Strategic Lead) explored how shared, multi-agency chronologies can transform safeguarding practice by helping professionals truly understand a child’s lived experience.

Using the Serious Case Review of “Riley” as a case study, the session highlighted how fragmented information, poor communication between agencies, and a lack of shared understanding can contribute to missed opportunities to intervene earlier and more effectively.

Riley’s Story: Why Chronology Matters

Riley was 17 when he was seriously injured following a road traffic incident linked to exploitation and criminal activity. At the time, he was known to multiple services, including Children’s Social Care, supported accommodation providers, and the MACE hub. Despite this, professionals did not always have a joined-up picture of his history, vulnerabilities, and needs.

The webinar demonstrated how reviewing Riley’s experiences over time — rather than as isolated incidents — revealed patterns of risk, unmet needs, and missed safeguarding opportunities. This reinforced the importance of viewing children as whole individuals with evolving life stories, not just current presenting problems.

Key Learning Points from the Review

Marie shared several important findings from the Serious Case Review, including the need to:

• Improve information sharing across agencies
• Develop consistent use of combined chronologies in multi-agency meetings
• Recognise how learning needs and disabilities can increase vulnerability to exploitation
• Strengthen approaches to engaging adolescents, particularly in hospital and crisis settings
• Ensure “Was Not Brought” policies are applied robustly

At the heart of the session was a clear message: behaviour often communicates unmet need. Understanding a child’s history helps professionals respond with empathy, context, and the right support at the right time.

Practical Steps for Professionals

The webinar provided actionable steps that organisations and practitioners can implement immediately, including:

• Creating shared multi-agency chronologies to improve collaboration
• Ensuring assessments consider all vulnerabilities early
• Recording communication strategies clearly across services
• Using communication passports for children with additional needs
• Encouraging teams to reflect on how early childhood experiences shape behaviour in adolescence

Reflecting on Practice

Attendees were encouraged to think differently about the young people they support by asking simple but powerful questions:

• Do we understand their early childhood experiences?
• How might past trauma influence their engagement today?
• Are we truly listening to what their behaviour is telling us?
• What small change can we take back into practice?

The Bigger Picture

Although Riley was never formally looked after, the webinar highlighted that with earlier, more coordinated intervention, his life chances may have been different. The case clearly demonstrated how bringing together “the pieces of the jigsaw” allows professionals to see the real child behind the paperwork.

Final Thoughts

This session was a strong reminder that safeguarding is not just about processes — it is about people. When agencies work together, share information effectively, and use chronologies to understand lived experience, outcomes for children and young people can improve significantly.

Slides and the full webinar recording were shared with attendees following the session.