At the start of August, North Yorkshire council’s children’s services was heralded ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted – and became the first to achieve this accolade in every measure of its inspection. Its director of children’s services, Stuart Carlton, shares with Community Care how the council has progressed – highlighting the importance of practice quality beyond performance, … Continue reading Practice quality, not audit: a council’s journey to ‘outstanding’
ADCS President Stuart Gallimore writes about the many pressures LAs face ahead of Safeguarding Pressures Phase 6 research due to be published next month. 'We simply can’t go on as we are, the findings from this research must be heard and acted upon before it’s too late'. Read at source: Evidencing safeguarding pressures
This latest report by the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory 'Born into care: Newborns in care proceedings in England', summary report October 2018 is a must read for all IROs. The report was funded by the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory and written by a team of academics, using data provided by CAFCASS, the children and family … Continue reading Born into care
A sponsored feature from Norfolk County Council in this recently published Community Care release raises some interesting ideas. Edward Wong, head of localities at Norfolk County Council, says: “Placement profiles can be too focused on presenting risks.” Norfolk is one of several councils that are working with the social care consultancy iMPOWER to develop Valuing … Continue reading How one council is making children-in-care profiles focus on needs not risks
Solihull’s Children in Care are looking for an Independent Reviewing Officer: Recruiter Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council Location Chelmsley Wood Salary £40,858 - £50,575 Posted 01 Oct 2018 Closes 04 Nov 2018 Job Ref SOL000002315 Sector Health & Social Care / Work Job Type Social work: Children - Qualified Contract Type Full time permanent Working Pattern Standard Full-Time Site Internal/Redeployment, Internal, Redeployment, wmjobs.co.uk … Continue reading Job opportunity: Solihull’s Children in Care are looking for an Independent Reviewing Officer
Emma Ing, Her Majesty’s inspector and Ofsted’s regional director for the East Midlands, asks: what is safeguarding? Earlier this month, Ofsted inspectors, school leaders and local authority representatives gathered at the Leicester Racecourse and Conference Centre to discuss 'what is safeguarding?'. They heard first-hand from local and national safeguarding experts about a range of problems, from … Continue reading Safeguarding is about culture, not box-ticking | Ofsted blog
The Local Government Association on Monday called on the Treasury to carry out a full assessment of “growing funding gaps” across the sector. A report by the National Audit Office in March said there 49% reduction in government funding for councils between 2010-11 and 2017-18. https://twitter.com/jomillerdonny/status/1047379558813585408 https://twitter.com/jomillerdonny/status/1047355481004621824 Read full piece at source: Treasury minister accused of … Continue reading LGA calls on the Treasury to carry out a full assessment of “growing funding gaps”
British police and intelligence agencies are using children as spies in covert operations against terrorists, gangs and drug dealers. A committee of the House of Lords revealed the practice in a report heard by the House of Lords Scrutiny Committee in July 2018. The report raised alarm over plans to give law enforcement bodies more freedom … Continue reading Child spies: use of juveniles as covert human intelligence sources
The All Party Parliamentary Group for Children’s (APPGC) first Inquiry report into the state of children’s social care in England, No Good Options (March 2017), shone a light on a struggling system. The Inquiry also found that approaches to policy and practice varied across the country, with children, young people and families receiving different levels … Continue reading The state of children’s social care in England
Law Society publishes LASPO review subsmission Public access to the justice system has never been so restricted, the Law Society has warned as it filed its submission to government, highlighting the "devastating consequences" of cuts to publicly funded legal advice. In its response to the Ministry of Justice's review of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and … Continue reading Access to justice increasingly only for the few, Law Society warns ministers
