Brief Enquiry Training

Introduction

A Brief Enquiry, sometimes described as a short-form age assessment, may be undertaken where there is doubt about a young person’s claimed age but a full age assessment may not be necessary or proportionate.

Although shorter than a full age assessment, a Brief Enquiry must still be fair, evidence-based and legally compliant. Practitioners need to understand when this route is appropriate, how to conduct the enquiry in a child-centred way, and how to reach and record a clear, defensible decision.

This enhanced training session brings together social work and legal expertise in Brief Enquiries. It will be jointly delivered by an experienced social work trainer and solicitor, offering participants an integrated understanding of both the practical and legal requirements of the process.

The session is designed for social workers, personal advisers, team managers and local authority legal services. We are initially trialling this enhanced format to understand whether there is appetite for further combined practice and legal training.

What the training will cover?

This full-day interactive webinar brings together specialist legal expertise and social work practice to guide participants through the Brief Enquiry process from initial screening to the recording and communication of the outcome.

The legal framework

Led by Elizabeth Okinda Consult, the first half of the day will examine the legal framework governing Brief Enquiries, including the principles arising from Merton, BF (Eritrea), AM v Solihull and HAM v Brent.

Participants will explore:

• The legal basis and purpose of a Brief Enquiry
• How a Brief Enquiry differs from a full age assessment
• The threshold for undertaking a Brief Enquiry
• The procedural fairness and evidential standards that apply
• What makes a Brief Enquiry legally defensible
• The legal role of the Information Sharing Proforma
• What the Home Office needs to see when an outcome is shared

Applying the framework in practice

Led by Immigration Social Work Services Ltd, the second half of the day will translate the legal principles into confident, child-centred social work practice.

Participants will explore:

• How to plan and structure a Brief Enquiry
• Creating an appropriate environment for the young person
• Asking purposeful and proportionate questions
• Gathering and recording relevant information
• Distinguishing evidence, observation, interpretation and assumption
• Considering inconsistencies and alternative explanations
• Applying professional curiosity without approaching the enquiry from a position of disbelief
• Analysing and weighing the available evidence
• Reaching and communicating a balanced, reasoned decision
• Common practice pitfalls and how they can be avoided

The day will use practical examples, discussion and activities to help participants connect the legal requirements with the realities of day-to-day social work practice.

Learning Objectivce

By the end of the training, participants will be able to:

1. Understand the law — explain the legal principles governing Brief Enquiries and how a Brief Enquiry differs from a full age assessment.
2. Identify when the process is appropriate — recognise when a Brief Enquiry may be a lawful and proportionate response and when a full age assessment or another course of action is required.
3. Plan and conduct a fair enquiry — structure the process, create an appropriate environment and engage the young person in a child-centred and procedurally fair way.
4. Gather information effectively — use purposeful questioning and professional curiosity to obtain and record information relevant to the person’s age.
5. Analyse the evidence — distinguish observation from interpretation, consider contextual factors and alternative explanations, and give appropriate weight to the available information.
6. Reach and record a defensible decision — produce a clear account of the evidence considered, the analysis undertaken and the reasons for the conclusion reached.
7. Complete the Information Sharing Proforma correctly — understand its legal function and provide the information required when communicating the outcome to the Home Office.
8. Recognise and avoid common pitfalls — identify practice and procedural weaknesses that could undermine the fairness or defensibility of the enquiry.

What participants will receive

Participants will receive a comprehensive set of resources supporting the Brief Enquiry process from initial screening through to recording and sharing the outcome.

This will include:

• Age Screening Interview Record — for recording the initial screening and the decision about the appropriate process
• Assessors’ Notes: Brief Enquiry — a contemporaneous question-and-answer working record
• Brief Enquiry Working Record — a plain-language template to support the conduct and write-up of the enquiry
• Brief Enquiry Legal Review Criteria — to support legal review before the outcome is communicated
• Information Sharing Proforma — for sharing the outcome with the Home Office
• ISP Compliance Checklist — a pre-drafting check to ensure the proforma is completed correctly and can be properly relied upon
• Presentation materials and practical resources from the social work practice session

Participants will leave with an understanding of both the legal requirements and their practical application, together with tools that can be adapted for use within their own local authority.

Date: 01.10.2026

Time: 09:30 – 16:30

Cost: £150 per person (+VAT)