Abstract This ethnographic study examined the sense-making processes of ten Safeguarders in Scotland’s Children’s Hearings System. Safeguarders are appointed to represent and safeguard children’s best interests in care and justice proceedings, similar to Guardians ad Litem in other UK jurisdictions. The research addressed the question: How do Safeguarders carry out their role to provide analytical and objective reporting in the best interests of the child? Data were generated through 24 semi-structured interviews across three time points and analysed thematically. Findings reveal that the Safeguarder role extends significantly beyond independent reporting to include relationship-building, systems navigation, and evidence critique. Key themes include: managing systemic delays while facilitating progress; challenging professional assumptions and bias; blending intuitive and analytical judgement; and maintaining child-focused decision-making amid competing interests. The study illuminates tensions between independence and engagement, objectivity and advocacy. Despite system-wide delays, Safeguarders leverage their unique position to address barriers and broker trust between stakeholders. The findings contribute to understanding how ‘best interests’ roles operate in practice. The implications are similar guardian roles across jurisdictions are considered.
Helm et al. (Fri,) studied this question.