Agenda item

(To receive a report which provides the Executive response and action plan arising from the recommendations of the Frontline Social Workers and Safeguarding Task and Finish Group)

Consideration was given to a report which provided the Committee with an opportunity to consider the Executive Response and action plan arising from the recommendations of the Frontline Social Workers and Safeguarding Task and Finish group.

The Executive Councillor for Adult Care and Health Services, Children's Services was in attendance to present the Executive Response and action plan to the Committee.  Members were reminded that the final report of the Task and Finish Group had been presented to the Executive at its meeting on 1 July 2014, where it was commented that this had been a good piece of work.  The Executive Councillor commented that she was really pleased with the report and review which had been done.  In terms of the recommendations, some had already been completed and some were still ongoing.  It was commented that the work which had been done provided a good reflection of what the frontline was like.

It was reported that the vast majority of recommendations had been accepted in full.  However, it was noted that there had been a couple of recommendations which were only partially accepted as they were in relation to things that the Council could only influence partners to act on, rather than requiring them to act on the recommendations.

Each recommendation was discussed and comments and issues raised in relation to each recommendation were as follows:

Recommendation 1

·         There was a need to strengthen the wording  in order to provide assurance that the recommendation would be acted upon and managed correctly;

·         A survey would be undertaken with parents to ensure that the information was being received;

·         There were no financial implications from this recommendation.  However, it was noted that an additional £400,000 of funding had been received to recruit more social workers;

·         The budget for 2015/16 would be considered at a future meeting of this Committee, but safeguarding children would continue to be a priority for the Authority;

Recommendation 2 & 3

·         A Member commented that they had attended some very good sessions on adoption and corporate parenting, and would like some more information in relation to neglect.  It was queried whether the training on neglect could be extended to Councillors;

·         Queries were raised regarding the amount of 'in service' training which was received and it was confirmed that social workers were required to undertake a specified number of days' training every year;

·         Concerns were raised in relation to teachers responsible for Looked After Children, as they had reported that they had found it difficult to contact social workers due to sickness absence.  It was noted that it was important to look at what people were reporting and test perception against reality.  Members were advised that the sickness rates in this area were much lower than in other areas of the Council;

·         There were approximately 400 Looked After Children registered with the Authority, and another 400 Looked After Children who had been placed in Lincolnshire from other authorities;

·         There was a comprehensive training programme for social workers, and there was an expectation that they would continue to access training and development;

·         Any issues from Headteachers that needed to be escalated should be sent to the Executive Director;

·         All frontline staff would receive training on neglect, and this would be monitored through the appraisals process and professional development.  It would be ensured that staff accessed training which was appropriate and timely to their role.  It was noted that the training would be available to all staff, but it would be prioritised for some areas.  It was agreed that the wording would be strengthened to make it more explicit that that this training would be part of the core training for frontline staff;

·         There was a need to look at both international and national best practice in relation to neglect;

·         It was requested that the neglect strategy be brought to a future meeting of this Committee for consideration;

Recommendation 4

·         It was queried whether the Closing the Gap conference was the best place for this to be considered, and whether it would reach the desired range of people.  Members were assured that this was not just about a one off conference, but that the format of Head Teachers briefings had changed and were also used as an opportunity to share best practice.  It was also noted that previous conferences had been very well attended;

Recommendation 5

·         There was a need to recognise the importance of writing to schools, and this would be followed up at Head Teacher briefings.  It was also noted that this would be included in the action plan;

·         It was requested whether members would be able to see a sample of the letter, as there was interest in how this would be delivered in schools;

·         It could be helpful to look at examples of good practice and try and work them into headteacher briefings;

Recommendation 6

·         Work was ongoing with partners in relation to capturing the voice of the child.  It was noted that the recommendation was about encouraging partners to continue to work on this;

·         It was felt that it was not explicit enough in the action that signs of safety briefings were about capturing the voice of the child, and it was commented that the authority was under-selling what it actually did;

·         There was a need to ensure that good practice was carried out throughout the system;

·         Members were advised that the wording of the action could be amended to make the methodology that supports capturing the voice of the child more explicit.  It was also noted that the authority had been awarded funding as part of an innovation bid to implement signs of safety, and so Lincolnshire would be part of a national programme;

Recommendation 7

·         The SAFE hub was located at Grantham as that’s where the police headquarters was located, and it was also quite a central location.  It was not located there in response to any problem profile;

·         Staff being co-located and working together had benefits in terms of best practice;

·         There was equal responsibility for funding, as the Grantham Hub was based in Police premises and the Lincoln hub was located in county council premises.  Neither organisation wanted finance to be a barrier to this;

·         Members hoped that the benefits would be replicated throughout the county;

Recommendation 8

·         No further comments to add;

Recommendation 9

·         It was queried whether it would be possible for the Terms of Reference of Support Panels to be circulated to the members of the Committee.  The Executive Director was happy to share this information, but it needed to be noted that the changes were about enhancing the purpose and function of support panels, rather than a fundamental change;

·         The majority of Task and Finish Group members attended at least one Support Panel;

Recommendation 10

·         It was commented that this was a robust action, but members would like to see some data on this action, such as how many staff had accessed the training;

·         There was a need to ensure training for all new staff at the Customer Service Centre (CSC).  It was reported that all Children's Services CSC Staff were specifically trained to answer calls in relation to Children's Services, and unlike other CSC staff did not move around to provide cover in other areas;

·         There would be no changes to the training provided unless approved by Children's Services DMT following the transfer of service to Serco;

Recommendation 11

·         There was a whole raft of measures underway to improve the recruitment and retention of frontline social workers;

·         There was beginning to be a move away from 'growing our own' as it was thought there were better and more effective ways of recruiting.  Officers were looking at opportunities for working with other universities in the region;

Recommendation 12

·         In the East Midlands, officers were working with innovation fund money to carry out work into encouraging more social workers;

·         Vacancy rates were tracked, and for Lincolnshire, were quite low.  However, it should be noted that since the additional money had been provided for recruitment of more social workers, the vacancy rate would rise as the authority would be seeking to increase the number of social workers that it employed.  This work to increase recruitment was now underway;

·         This review had quashed the myth that social workers were not supported in their work;

·         There was an underlying concern that the degree courses offered by universities bore little relation to the work that qualified social workers were asked to carry out.  It was noted that the practice placements were a key aspect of the course;

·         Part of the strategy was to go out to work with other universities.  However, there was a national debate over the quality of social work courses;

·         Alternative universities were being explored to determine what they offered in terms of work placements;

Recommendation 13

·         This referred to the reports which were written by the social workers in relation to a child;

·         Action was already being taken in relation to this recommendation, and it may be revisited in a year or two to determine whether it was having the desired effect;

Recommendation 14 & 15

·         No further comments;

Recommendation 16 & 17

·         Implementation of this recommendation was still on scheduled for April 2015;

·         Mobile technology should be available to all frontline staff from April 2015;

·         It was requested whether a report relating to the trials could be brought to this Committee for information;

·         Remote technology was key to being able to work more effectively and efficiently;

·         It was suggested whether 2/3 members of the Committee would like to speak with frontline staff in the future and then report back to the Committee.

RESOLVED

1.    That the Executive response and action plan be received;

2.    That the first monitoring update on the action plan be brought to the 24 April 2015 meeting.