
The Care Act 2014 sets out a clear legal framework for how local authorities and other parts of the system should protect adults at risk of abuse or neglect.
The Care Act 2014 created a new legal framework for Adult Safeguarding. Section 44 of the Act requires Safeguarding Adults Boards (SAB) to undertake a Safeguarding Adult Review (SAR) in specific circumstances and places a duty on all Board members to contribute in undertaking the review, sharing information and applying the lessons learnt.
The law requires local SABs to arrange a SAR when an adult in its area dies or is harmed as a result of abuse or neglect, whether known or suspected, and there is concern that partner agencies could have worked more effectively to protect the person at risk.
The purpose of a SAR is not to hold any individual or organisation to account as there are other processes available for that purpose; they are about learning lessons for the future. SARs ensure that SABs get the full picture of what happened, so that all organisations involved can improve as a result.
Refer a case to the Safeguarding Adults Board
If you would like to make a referral, please use the form below and email it to: LSAB@iow.gov.uk
Once this has been received, the SAB Business Unit will issue a Referral Response Form to the agencies involved with the individual to complete and return.
This information will then be reviewed by the members of the SAR Sub-Group.
Find more details about the SAR process in our One Minute Guide to SARs

SARs: Further Information
For more SAR-related resources, visit our Resource Library’s Learning By Experience section:
- Local Learning Briefs
- Safeguarding Adults Review Reports
- Thematic Reviews
- Link to the National SAR Library
- Link to Prevention of Future Deaths reports
Professional Resources