REPORT TO: Children’s Services€¦ · other evidence such as that arising from serious case reviews, findings from these inspections will help determine the scope and timing of

REPORT TO:

Children’s Services

DATE:

18th August 2009

SUBJECT:

OFSTED inspection framework and judgements

WARDS AFFECTED:

All

REPORT OF:

Bryn Marsh

CONTACT OFFICER:

Paul Rogers 3317

EXEMPT/ CONFIDENTIAL:

PURPOSE/SUMMARY:

To inform O&S elected members about the new OFSTED inspection framework and judgements; and note the role of O&S prior and during inspection.

REASON WHY DECISION REQUIRED:

RECOMMENDATION(S):

1) Note content of the report and briefing 2) Comment as appropriate

KEY DECISION:

FORWARD PLAN:

IMPLEMENTATION DATE:

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS:

IMPLICATIONS:

Budget/Policy Framework:

Financial:

CAPITAL EXPENDITURE

2006/ 2007 £

2007/ 2008 £

2008/ 2009 £

2009/ 2010 £

Gross Increase in Capital Expenditure

Funded by:

Sefton Capital Resources

Specific Capital Resources

REVENUE IMPLICATIONS

Gross Increase in Revenue Expenditure

Funded by:

Sefton funded Resources

Funded from External Resources

Does the External Funding have an expiry date? Y/N When?

How will the service be funded post expiry?

Legal:

Risk Assessment:

Asset Management:

CONSULTATION UNDERTAKEN/VIEWS

CORPORATE OBJECTIVE MONITORING: Corporate Objective

Positive Impact

Neutral Impact

Negative Impact

1 Creating a Learning Community /

2 Creating Safe Communities /

3 Jobs and Prosperity /

4 Improving Health and Well-Being /

5 Environmental Sustainability /

6 Creating Inclusive Communities /

7 Improving the Quality of Council Services and Strengthening local Democracy

/

8 Children and Young People

/

LINKS TO ENSURING INTEGRATION:

• Children’s trust arrangements

• LSCB partnership working

IMPACT UPON CHILDREN’S SERVICES TARGETS AND PRIORITIES:

• Significant: grade descriptors linked to key targets and priorities.

LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS RELIED UPON IN THE PREPARATION OF THIS REPORT

• Statutory guidance for Local Authorities issued under sections 18(7) and 19(2) of the Children Act 2004; and the new OFSTED inspection framework and

guidance of inspecting safeguarding and looked after children under section 20

of the Children Act 2004

1. BACKGROUND:

1.1 At the O&S meeting 13th July, Elected Members asked for further details about the new OFSTED inspection framework and judgements; and the likely role of O&S. 1.2 OFSTED, as part of its assessment and public reporting, will inspect all local authorities with reference to the framework set out in Section 2 of this report. This has implications for Children’s Services O&S and key questions will be asked about the effectiveness of the committee in scrutinising decisions made or action in connection to all aspects of work by Children’s Services. Inspectors may also look at the quality of the O&S work programme (within the context the Ambition and Prioritisation Judgement), how it holds to account officers working to implement the priorities and associated work streams of the Children and Young People’s Plan (CYPP), and role as corporate parents.

2.

OFSTED framework and judgements

Until December 2008, Ofsted assessed with other inspectorates how well local services work together to improve outcomes for children and young people through the joint area reviews of children’s services. From 1 April 2009, these awere replaced by Comprehensive Area Assessments and the new programme of inspections of outcomes and services for safeguarding and looked after children services.

These new inspections have a sharper focus on evaluating outcomes for children and young people and the impact that practice and services have on improving outcomes, including through managing risk and minimising incidence of child abuse and neglect.

The new programme of inspections of safeguarding and looked after children services and outcomes will be carried out by suitably experienced inspectors from Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission under section 20 of the Children Act 2004. In some cases, inspectors from other inspectorates and commissions such as Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary will assist in carrying out the inspections.

These inspections will contribute to Ofsted’s annual reviews of the performance of each local authority’s children’s services functions and will be taken into account in Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector’s statutory annual performance rating for each authority. They do not preclude other inspections of safeguarding and services for looked after children arising out of joint inspectorate Comprehensive Area Assessments, as set out in the Comprehensive Area Assessment joint inspection framework.

Regulatory inspections of local authority children’s homes, fostering and adoption and private fostering arrangements will continue separately. Alongside other evidence such as that arising from serious case reviews, findings from these inspections will help determine the scope and timing of inspections of safeguarding and looked after children inspections.

Pilot inspections in March 2009 helped to shape the final framework and guidance for these inspections. The framework and guidance have also been reviewed in light of the recently published report on the protection of children in England.1

Frequency of inspection

All local authority areas will have at least one inspection of safeguarding and looked after children services in the three-year period following 1 April 2009. Timing of inspections will be influenced by evidence from other inspection and regulation, including the annual unannounced inspection of contact, assessment and referral. Where the inspection judges overall effectiveness of safeguarding or looked after children to be inadequate a further inspection may follow.

Notice given for inspection

The maximum notice period for the full inspections of safeguarding and looked after children services is usually 10 working days. In some circumstances, for example where provision has been judged inadequate already or where serious concerns about safeguarding have been raised, a full inspection of safeguarding may be carried out without giving this period of notice.

Inspections will not normally be deferred because of staff absence or staff shortages in the local authority.

Inspection teams

Suitably experienced inspectors from Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission will carry out the inspections of safeguarding and looked after children services.

1 The protection of children in England: a progress report, The Lord Laming, March 2009.

In some cases, they may be joined by inspectors from other inspectorates or commissions, in particular Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary.

Inspection teams will normally consist of at least three Ofsted inspectors and a Care Quality Commission inspector. Inspectors will usually be on site for up to 10 working days.

User and stakeholder views and surveys

In this context, users are the children, young people and their families or carers who are supported by, or who make use of, services.

Inspectors will take account of the extent to which service providers have sought and acted on the views of children, young people and carers in reviewing and improving services and outcomes generally. They will also consider the views of those users and stakeholders they speak to during on-site evidence gathering.

For each inspection, surveys of children in the authority’s care and recent care leavers will be carried out through the office of the Children’s Rights Director at Ofsted. These will involve children aged eight years and over and will be web-based, with alternative paper completion as required.2 Inspectors will also take account of an annual Ofsted survey of the views of social workers and other safeguarding professionals and an annual survey of the third sector. Further details of these surveys will be published separately on Ofsted's website.

Inspecting safeguarding and looked after children together

In nearly all instances, the inspections of safeguarding and looked after children outcomes and services will be carried out as a single inspection event. Exceptionally, where provision for either safeguarding and looked after children has been judged inadequate previously or where serious concerns about safeguarding have been raised, a separate inspection of safeguarding or looked after children may be carried out.

The annual unannounced inspections of contact, assessment and referral arrangements for children and young people in need and children and young people who may be in need of protection support the new programme of inspections of wider safeguarding and looked after children. Any relevant findings or recommendations from one inspection will be followed up in subsequent inspections.

2 Ofsted is considering the use of a further survey for other children in need, including those who have child protection plans.

Safeguarding element of the inspection

Definition of safeguarding

Ofsted adopts the definition of safeguarding used in the Children Act 2004,3 and in the government guidance document Working together to safeguard children.4 This can be summarised as:

• protecting children and young people from maltreatment

• preventing impairment of children and young people’s health or development

• ensuring that children and young people are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care

• undertaking that role so as to enable those children and young people to haveoptimum life chances and to enter adulthood successfully.

Ofsted will review the framework and guidance for these inspections in the light of any review of Working together to safeguard children.

Working together to safeguard children

Inspections of safeguarding will assess the effectiveness of children’s trusts and local children’s organisations and assess whether their policies comply with statutory requirements and guidance. In doing this, inspections will take a broad view of the following.

How well agencies and professionals work together to identify, safeguard and promote the welfare of potentially vulnerable groups of children and young people that live in their area. These groups might include asylum-seeking children, children in secure settings, disabled children and children treated by health services.

How well practice is supported and underpinned by effective local policy-making and implementation.

To do this, inspectors will evaluate the impact of safeguarding systems and frameworks across local public services on safeguarding and protecting children. This will include:

outcomes for children and young people

3 The Children Act 2004: http://www.opsi.gov.uk/Acts/acts2004/ukpga_20040031_en_1. 4 Working together to safeguard children: a guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, HM Government, 2006; http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/resources-and-practice/IG00060.

how well safeguarding is prioritised

whether child welfare concerns are identified and responded to appropriately by the relevant agencies

the extent to which public agencies discharge their responsibility to work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

Looked after children element of the inspection

As set out in Care matters,5 inspection must contribute to improved and sustainable outcomes for looked after children and their families. The looked after children element of the inspection will focus on:

• outcomes achieved

• impact of services

• quality of risk management and decision-making in identifying which children need to be taken into care

• quality of care planning, review and support for children in care and care leavers

• placement stability

• safeguarding of looked after children

• access to, and attendance at, suitable schools

• support for families and carers

• the effectiveness of corporate parenting approaches

• preparation for leaving care and adult life and the subsequent support

5 Care matters: time to deliver for children in care (DCSF-00279-2008), HM Government, 2008; www.teachernet.gov.uk/publications.

Summary evaluation schedule for the safeguarding element of the inspection

Section 1: Overall effectiveness

Capacity to improve

Recommendations and required actions

Section 2: Meeting the need to safeguard and promote the welfare, development and life chances of children and young people

Leadership and management 1. Ambition and prioritisation 2. Evaluation, including performance management, quality assurance and

workforce development 3. User engagement 4. Partnerships 5. Equality and diversity 6. Value for money

Quality of provision 7. Service responsiveness, including complaints 8. Assessment and direct work with children and families 9. Case planning, reviews and recording

Safeguarding outcomes for children and young people 10. Children and young people are safe: the effectiveness of services in

taking reasonable steps to ensure that children and young people are safe

11. Children and young people feel safe: the effectiveness of services in taking reasonable steps to ensure that children and young people feel safe

Overall effectiveness

Inspectors will consider evidence and judgements from across the evaluation schedule before arriving at the overall effectiveness judgement, taking into account the:

a. extent to which the council and its partners are meeting their statutory responsibilities set out in Working together to safeguard children6 and in subsequent revisions, relevant statute and guidance

2. extent to which the council and its partners are contributing to improving outcomes for children and young people in all aspects of their safeguarding and child protection work

3. extent to which the leadership and management of those responsible for safeguarding and protecting children and young people deliver effective services which provide value for money, are efficient and effective in their use of resources

4. application of the two limiting judgements: 5. overall effectiveness must be inadequate if either of the two safeguarding

outcomes is judged as inadequate 6. overall effectiveness cannot be good or better if either of the two

safeguarding outcomes is not judged as good.

Capacity to improve

The capacity to make further improvements is a judgement about the ability of the local authority and its partners to continue improving standards and progress based on what it has accomplished so far or to maintain exceptionally high standards.

All judgements on leadership and management, quality of provision and outcomes for children and young people contribute to the inspection of capacity to improve. All judgements are based on evidence of the impact of improvements implemented by the local authority and its partners as shown in its track record and performance since the previous inspection of safeguarding and looked after children services.

Judgements about capacity to improve consider how safeguarding and child protection services are planned and managed and the effectiveness of arrangements for delivering improvement. The basis for making this judgement includes the extent to which:

1. the local authority and its partners have a consistent track record of sustained improvement and/or are able to maintain high-quality services

2. improvements in outcomes are linked to improvements in the quality of services

6 Working together to safeguard children: a guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and

promote the welfare of children, HM Government, 2006;

http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/resources-and-practice/IG00060.

3. the local authority and its partners have a clear vision, ambition and articulate appropriate priorities that will sustain improvement

4. planning is of a high quality

5. workforce planning and development are effective

6. there is effective service user engagement.

Meeting the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people to improve their life chances

Leadership and management

Ambition and prioritisation

In order to make their judgements, inspectors will evaluate the extent to which:

1. the council and the partnership provide strong, visible leadership to safeguard and promote the welfare of children across all services

2. all key partners, including the voluntary and community sectors, are well engaged

3. safeguarding strategies and policies are effectively used to deliver a high quality of service which is fully compliant with statutory requirements and guidance

4. there is competent, ambitious and determined leadership by senior officers

5. elected members champion the needs of children and young people and respond proactively and effectively to their needs

6. information-sharing protocols are established across the partnership with regular open and appropriate exchange

7. local priorities are identified and acted on so that safeguarding outcomes improve

8. reviewing risks of harm to all children and young people is a fundamental part of all planning, delivery and review

9. resource deficits are understood and risk assessed

10. ContactPoint is well established and demonstrably supports and facilitates effective safeguarding services across the partnership

11. senior officers make sure that there is effective staff contribution to safeguarding services, both within the organisation and across partnerships, to plan and deliver key priorities and achieve ambitious outcomes

12. there is extensive, ambitious and realistic target setting in relation to safeguarding

13. all plans for safeguarding services including local area agreements (LAAs) are comprehensive, linked strategically and address key areas for improvement in line with national and local priorities

14. local commissioning, including joint commissioning of safeguarding services, is established across the council and its partners

15. self-evaluation of progress leads to continuous improvement

16. working arrangements with external partnerships are well coordinated and reflected in strategic planning

17. there is clear evidence that partnership working is improving outcomes.

Evaluation, including performance management, quality assurance and workforce development


1. performance, financial management and evaluation are established across the partnership and lead to systemic and sustained improvements in safeguarding outcomes

2. the services identify weaknesses early and take effective action to address them

3. effective use is made of internal evaluation and external challenge to identify and address pressure points and improve safeguarding services and outcomes for children and young people

4. partners have good performance management systems which enable them to identify changing needs or areas for development

5. the council and its partners are routinely professionally challenging and collaborative, and focused at all times on the needs of the local child population

6. timely and robust action is taken to improve safeguarding services where necessary

7. there is a well-established complaints and representations process which is valued by children and young people

8. the views of children and young people routinely inform service improvement

9. targets are met or exceeded and performance is better than that found nationally

10. workforce planning ensures that there are sufficient numbers of qualified and experienced social workers in place alongside other staff to deliver service priorities and to maintain high-quality safeguarding services

11. relevant professional and occupational standards for integrated services, whether commissioned or provided by the local authority, are secured and monitored regularly

12. staffing and resource capacity are used effectively to respond to new demands

13. senior managers in all agencies exercise robust management oversight and offer focused support to staff at all levels

14. staff have confidence in leaders and managers

15. processes to ensure safe recruitment exceed statutory minimum requirements.

User engagement


1. children and young people, and their parents and carers, are active participants in the planning processes for universal and targeted safeguarding services and there is consistent evidence that their contributions lead to sustained improvement in outcomes

2. the partnership has regular and good opportunities for children, young people and their parents and carers to have an independent voice on key strategic processes in relation to safeguarding and child protection

3. there is regular and systematic participation of service users in all child protection planning processes, including those who are most vulnerable, that has led to some improved outcomes

4. service users report a consistently high level of satisfaction with the quality of services.

Partnerships


1. the Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) and Children’s Trust fulfils statutory duties and provides highly effective community and professional leadership in relation to universal, targeted and specialist safeguarding services and demonstrates high levels of influence across all areas where the safety and welfare of children and young people need to be considered

2. serious case reviews undertaken by the LSCB have been judged to be good or better and none have been judged to be inadequate

3. action plans following serious case reviews have been implemented and are reflected in practice and service delivery

4. partnerships with stakeholders, relevant community groups and commissioned services have led to improvements in service design and the quality of delivery

5. the council monitors commissioned services effectively, in line with policy and procedure, and ensures delivery to service and quality standards.

Equality and diversity

Leadership and management are not likely to be adequate if equality and diversity are judged inadequate.


1. outcomes for children and young people from minority groups are good overall and at least consistent with those of all other children and young people in the area

2. the profile of children and young people, and their parents and carers, is known and used to inform service planning and delivery

3. user feedback is analysed differentially for equality and diversity

4. management information is used effectively to deliver continuous improvement and to sustain high-quality safeguarding and child protection services that are sensitive to the diverse needs of local communities

5. effective action is taken to tackle inequalities

6. children and young people, and their parents and carers, report that their needs are understood in the context of their culture, religion and identity

7. children and young people, and their parents and carers, report that they are treated with dignity and respect

8. the workforce plan addresses staffing requirements to meet the needs of the local community and to reflect its diversity.

Value for money


1. the partnership and the LSCB actively consider how safeguarding and child protection objectives can be achieved effectively, efficiently and economically

2. local commissioning, including joint commissioning of safeguarding services, is established across the service and is flexible, responsive and effective

3. systems to evaluate value for money have been developed and embedded across the partnership

4. informed choices are made about the balance of cost and quality in, for example, planning, commissioning and decommissioning services

5. assessment data is aggregated to inform effective commissioning of services

6. services can demonstrate consistently good or better value for money

7. there is evidence of some efficiency savings having been made

8. unplanned spending and/or high unit costs are identified and addressed effectively

9. safeguarding and child protection services can demonstrate that they are cost-effective and are delivered efficiently and effectively

unit costs are benchmarked.

Quality of provision

Service responsiveness, including complaints


1. suitably appropriate, clear and agreed thresholds for access to services for children in need are well embedded, understood and implemented across the partnership, which reviews and updates them regularly

2. partnership working and communication, at all levels, is well established and promotes safeguarding

3. the outcomes of complaints, including those made by children and young people about staff, and concerns raised about services are systematically used to inform service development

4. statutory guidelines in relation to complaints made against staff working with children are consistently followed

5. the role and function of the local authority designated officer is effectively utilised to ensure that children are properly safeguarded and the service learns from complaints.

Assessment and direct work with children and families


1. referrals are responded to promptly and in accordance with statutory timescales

2. cases are allocated promptly, where required to qualified and experienced social workers

3. assessments are timely and involve other professionals appropriately

4. children and families are involved in assessments or planning to meet the child’s needs, and the views and feelings of children and the views of family members are taken into account in decisions and plans

5. assessments include a robust analysis, and plans include clear and appropriate objectives. Risk and protective factors impacting on children’s safety and welfare are identified well.

Case planning, reviews and recording


1. plans are clear, robust and identify the intended outcomes for children and young people

2. rigorous and timely reviews and monitoring of cases ensures that the service responds to changing needs of the child and family and reassesses risk of harm accordingly

3. partners contribute well to achieving good outcomes for children

4. management oversight is strong and effective

5. record-keeping is routinely up to date and supports high-quality practice. It demonstrates sound assessment, decision-making, including decisions made in supervision, and effective planning. Recording demonstrates good work to show that the plan is being fully implemented. All decisions and actions are recorded.

Safeguarding outcomes for children and young people

Children and young people are safe: the effectiveness of services in taking reasonable steps to ensure that children and young people are safe


1. the LSCB and partnerships provide good leadership and contribute significantly to the development of services, which are regularly audited for effectiveness

2. the safeguarding and child protection needs of children and young people are identified and responded to effectively and in a timely way

3. there is a track record of good outcomes for children and young people

4. safeguarding provision is judged good or better in service, setting and institutional inspections.

Children and young people feel safe: the effectiveness of services in taking reasonable steps to ensure that children and young people feel safe


1. effective and ongoing work engages children and young people and their parents or carers; their views are sought on a wide range of safeguarding issues and action is taken to tackle issues that children and young people may have

2. children and young people report that their views and feelings are taken into account and inform nearly all assessments and planning undertaken through common assessment, child in need and child protection arrangements

3. where safeguarding concerns about a child are identified, highly effective and coordinated work is undertaken and children and young people fully understand what is happening to them according to their age and understanding

4. surveys undertaken indicate that children largely feel safe and that almost all know where to access help and advice if they need it.

5. Evaluation schedule for the looked after children element of the inspection

Summary evaluation schedule for the looked after children element of the inspection

Section 1: Overall effectiveness

Capacity to improve

Recommendations and required actions

Section 2: Meeting the needs of looked after children and young people

Leadership and management 12. Ambition and prioritisation 13. Evaluation, including performance management, quality assurance and

workforce development 14. User engagement 15. Partnerships 16. Equality and diversity 17. Value for money 18. Effectiveness in promoting safeguarding

Quality of provision 19. Service responsiveness including complaints 20. Assessment and direct work with children and families 21. Case planning, reviews and recording

Every Child Matters outcomes for looked after children and young people 22. Being healthy 23. Staying safe 24. Enjoying and achieving 25. Making a positive contribution 26. Achieving economic well-being

Overall effectiveness

Inspectors will consider the evidence and judgements from across the evaluation schedule before arriving at the overall effectiveness judgement, taking into account:

1. the extent to which the council and its partners meet statutory responsibilities

2. the extent to which the council and its partners are contributing to improving outcomes for looked after children and care leavers in relation to:

• being healthy • staying safe

• enjoying and achieving • making a positive contribution • achieving economic well-being

3. the extent to which the leadership and management of the council and its partners delivers effective services that provide value for money and efficient and effective use of resources

4. the application of the two limiting judgements:

• overall effectiveness may be inadequate where one or more inadequate grades have been awarded

• overall effectiveness cannot be better than inadequate if either of the staying safe or enjoying and achieving outcomes is judged inadequate.

Capacity to improve

The capacity to make further improvements is a judgement about the ability of the local authority and its partners to continue improving standards and progress based on what it has accomplished so far or to maintain exceptionally high standards.

All judgements on leadership and management, quality of provision and outcomes for children and young people contribute to the inspection of capacity to improve. All judgements are based in evidence of the impact of improvements implemented by the local authority and its partners as shown in its track record and performance since the previous inspection of safeguarding and looked after children services.

Judgements about capacity to improve consider how looked after children services are planned and managed, and the effectiveness of arrangements for delivering improvement. The basis for making these judgements includes the extent to which:

1. the local authority and its partners have a consistent track record of sustained improvement and/or are able to maintain high-quality services

2. improvements in outcomes are linked to improvements in the quality of services

3. the local authority and its partners have a clear vision, ambition and articulate appropriate priorities that will sustain improvement

4. planning is of high quality

5. workforce planning and development is effective

6. there is effective service user engagement.

Meeting the needs of looked after children and young people

Leadership and management

Ambition and prioritisation


1. looked after children strategies, policies and procedures are used to deliver a high quality of service which is fully compliant with statutory requirements and guidance

2. highly competent, ambitious and determined leadership of senior officers and elected members champions the needs of children and responds proactively and effectively to needs

3. senior officers make sure there is effective staff contribution to looked after children services, both within the organisation and across partnerships, in order to plan and deliver key priorities and meet suitably ambitious outcomes

4. extensive, ambitious and realistic targets are set and achieved including for the educational outcomes of looked after children

5. coordinated working arrangements with external partnerships are reflected in strategic planning, where appropriate, across looked after children services

6. a culture of continuous improvement in the council and its partners is leading to improvements in practice and sustained high performance

7. plans for looked after children services, including in LAAs, are comprehensive, linked strategically and address key areas for improvement in line with national and local priorities

8. self-evaluation of progress leads to continuous improvement

9. working arrangements with external partnerships are well coordinated, reflected in strategic planning and contributing to improved outcomes

10. senior officers ensure staff from across the council and its partners contribute to the planning and delivery of key priorities and to the achievement of sustainable and high-quality outcomes

11. local commissioning, including joint commissioning of looked after placements, has been developed and is contributing positively to improving outcomes for looked after children and care leavers

12. resource deficits are understood and risk assessed.

Evaluation, including performance management, quality assurance and workforce development


1. performance and financial management and evaluation are well established across the partnership and very effective and lead to systemic and sustained improvements in outcomes for looked after children and care leavers

2. performance targets are mostly met and achievement is in line with similar areas and/or nationally

3. effective use is made of internal evaluation and external challenge to identify and address pressure points and weaknesses in looked after children services and improve outcomes

4. the views of looked after children, care leavers and carers routinely inform service improvement

5. workforce planning has led to the people, skills and capability being in place to deliver service priorities and to maintain high-quality looked after children services

6. staffing and resource capacity are used dynamically to respond to new demands

7. staff have confidence in leaders and managers

8. processes to ensure safe recruitment exceed statutory minimum requirements.

User engagement


1. looked after children, care leavers and their carers, including those from different age groups and with diverse needs and backgrounds, have

participated in the review and development of provision. Procedures are embedded in practice and result in numerous improvements that have had significant positive impact on outcomes

2. the partnership has regular and good opportunities for children, young people, and their parents and carers, to have an independent voice on key strategic processes in relation to services for looked after children and care leavers

3. service users report a consistently high level of satisfaction with the quality of services.

Partnerships


1. the council and its partners, including Children’s Trusts, provide competent and effective leadership of services for looked after children and care leavers

2. productive partnerships with key stakeholders contribute to improvements in all outcome areas

3. cross-agency partnerships for looked after children and care leavers with high levels of need are highly effective and improve outcomes

4. partnerships with stakeholders, relevant community groups and commissioned services have led to improvements in service design and delivery and outcomes.

Equality and diversity

Leadership and management are not likely to be adequate if equality and diversity are judged inadequate.


a. outcomes for looked after children and care leavers from minority groups, including unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people and those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, are good overall and at least consistent with those of all other children and young people in the area and the attainment gap is being significantly closed

2. management information is used effectively to sustain high-quality services or to deliver continuous improvement that is sensitive to the diverse needs of looked after children and care leavers

3. a diversity and equality strategy has led to better outcomes for looked after children, care leavers, children from minority ethnic groups and those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities

4. effective action is taken to tackle inequalities

5. children and young people, and their parents and carers, report that their needs are understood in the context of their culture, religion and identity

6. where necessary, specific services are provided to service users from minority ethnic groups

7. the workforce reflects the diversity of the population.

Value for money

in order to make their judgements, inspectors will evaluate the extent to which:

1. local commissioning, including joint commissioning of looked after children

services, is established across the service and is flexible, responsive and effective

2. systems to evaluate value for money have been developed and embedded across the partnership

3. informed choices are made about the balance of cost and quality in, for example, planning, commissioning and decommissioning services

4. assessment data is aggregated to inform effective commissioning of services 5. services can demonstrate consistently good or better value for money 6. there is evidence of some efficiency savings having been made 7. most unintended high spending is identified and addressed effectively 8. looked after children services can demonstrate that they are cost effective

and are delivered efficiently and effectively 9. unit costs are benchmarked.

Effectiveness in promoting safeguarding


1. the safeguarding and child protection needs of all looked after children and young people and care leavers are identified and responded to effectively and in a timely way

2. the council and its partners contribute effectively to safeguarding and protecting all looked after children and care leavers that they are responsible for

3. the council and its partners are effective in working with other areas where looked after children may be placed in order to secure the best outcomes for those children and care leavers

4. the Children’s Trust, LSCB and corporate parenting group provide effective leadership and contribute significantly to the development of services, which are regularly audited for effectiveness

5. safeguarding provision for looked after children and care leavers is judged good or better in service and settings inspection

6. there is a sustained upward trend in safeguarding performance or sustained high-level performance against ambitious targets.

Quality of provision

Service responsiveness including complaints


1. the changing needs of looked after children and care leavers are routinely monitored to ensure that the services provided meet these needs effectively

2. partners develop services in a timely way to adapt and meet changing needs

3. outcomes demonstrate good-quality care and education which includes comprehensive and highly effective direct work to meet the needs of looked after children and care leavers

4. partners contribute well to meeting the needs of looked after children and care leavers

5. resources are managed very effectively to ensure that the needs of looked after children and care leavers are met

6. arrangements are in place to commission good-quality placements and services which result in positive outcomes for children

7. there is a well-established complaints and representations process which is valued by looked after children and care leavers

8. the outcomes of complaints, including those made by children and young people about staff, and concerns raised about services, are systematically used to inform service development

9. the complaints system is regularly reviewed involving children and young people and information of effectiveness is part of the work of the corporate parenting panel

10. looked after children and care leavers are aware of how to complain and make representations and are appropriately encouraged and enabled to do so, supported where necessary by specialist advocacy services

11. looked after children and care leavers express satisfaction with, and confidence in, the complaints processes and there is demonstrable evidence that concerns are addressed

12. statutory guidelines in relation to complaints made against staff working with children are consistently followed

13. the role and function of the local authority designated officer is effectively utilised to ensure that children are properly safeguarded and the service learns from complaints.

Assessment and direct work with children and families


1. decisions and action are timely and ensure that children and young people who need to be looked after are accommodated appropriately

2. children and young people have sustained relationships with professionals who know them well and care about them

3. support to those on the edge of care results in good decisions to only look after those with needs that can be best met through care provision

4. there are clear and agreed processes for assessing risk and decision-making regarding whether a child needs to be admitted to, and remain in, care, and these are well embedded, understood and implemented consistently across the partnership

5. assessments result in a comprehensive understanding of the needs of looked after children and routinely include the views of children and their parents/carers

6. looked after children and care leavers experience direct work which leads to improved outcomes.

Case planning, reviews and recording


1. all plans for looked after children and care leavers are comprehensive and underpinned by thorough needs assessment and analysis and are implemented, monitored and evaluated

2. plans effectively address consideration of permanent alternative placement or return home where appropriate

3. planning ensures that there is no drift in care for a looked after child

4. plans are regularly reviewed to ensure timely interventions and progress against outcome goals

5. unplanned changes of placement are avoided

6. records are up to date and support high-quality practice

7. plans reflect available evidence, sound assessment and decision-making, including those decisions taken in supervision

8. systematic quality assurance and auditing procedures improve practice and develop services.

Every Child Matters outcomes for looked after children

Based on all the evidence, how well does the contribution made by the council and its partners improve child protection and safeguarding outcomes for children and young people?

Being healthy


1. innovative and accessible multi-agency targeting, planning, reviewing and monitoring of health services for all looked after children and care leavers have led to a sustained upward trend or high performance in outcomes for physical, emotional and sexual health

2. joint agency commissioning has been effective in improving health outcomes for looked after children and care leavers with complex needs

3. effective information-sharing across agencies ensures consistency in meeting the health needs of looked after children and care leavers

4. looked after children and care leavers have access to a comprehensive health needs assessments which they are encouraged to attend

5. targeted health promotion services are in place for looked after children and care leavers

6. arrangements are in place to ensure that looked after children and care leavers can achieve timely access health services, including specialist services, when required

7. an annual report identifies the health needs of looked after children and this contributes to service improvement

8. health outcomes for looked after children and care leavers are better than in similar areas/authorities

9. looked after children in external placements have access to a full range of health provision

10. clear and effective systems are in place to ensure that looked after children placed out of authority receive healthcare that addresses their physical and emotional needs.

Staying safe


1. risk is managed to ensure that all children and young people who need to be in care are admitted

2. thorough arrangements for monitoring care placements, including those outside of the local area, have an impact on improving safeguarding outcomes for all looked after children

3. multi-agency care planning ensures outcomes are regularly reviewed

4. all agencies are actively engaged and held to account for their responsibilities in delivering quality services

5. information, support and guidance are well targeted to need

6. looked after children, families and professionals report referral and assessment workers as highly effective in identifying children in need of services and offer timely intervention

7. there is sufficient choice to meet local need, with regulatory inspections showing good and outstanding provision

8. looked after children live in stable placements which provide very high-quality care and support.

Enjoying and achieving


1. looked after children and care leavers have very good support to access the best possible education to meet their particular needs and are fully included in school life

2. attendance is above average and fixed-term and permanent exclusion rates are low compared to other looked after children and are comparable with rates for all children

3. looked after children make good progress in relation to their starting point, underpinned by effective and up-to-date personal education plans that have been agreed with the child’s full involvement

4. looked after children and care leavers’ achievement is above that of similar areas

5. the performance gap in attainment between looked after children and the national average for all children and young people has narrowed significantly

6. monitoring arrangements for looked after children and care leavers educated outside the area ensure that they are supported well and achieve well

7. partners have very high aspirations for looked after children and care leavers

8. looked after children and care leavers have access to good leisure activities of their choice

9. promoting access to leisure and recreation is high priority

10. positive action overcomes barriers to participation.

Making a positive contribution


1. consultation with looked after children and care leavers is formalised at strategic level and well embedded in practice, ensuring that their voice is heard

2. the views of looked after children and care leavers routinely inform strategic planning and provision

3. a strong and active looked after children council (or equivalent) has developed a pledge for children in care and actively monitors its progress and relevance

4. the views of looked after children and care leavers routinely inform quality assurance, training and evaluation. Their involvement has led to a sustained and significant improvement in service provision

5. looked after children and care leavers are willing and able to take on lead roles

6. looked after children and care leavers are supported to develop effective communication skills and speak out on issues that matter to them

7. multi-agency action to prevent offending and re-offending is well embedded, has led to significant reductions and improved life chances for those at risk.

Achieving economic well-being


1. outcomes for economic well-being are above those in similar areas

2. the performance gap between looked after children and the national average for all pupils post-16 has closed dramatically or been eradicated

3. care leavers receive strong support to access high-quality provision that enables them to continue their education or training post-16

4. care leavers are assessed and are effectively prepared for the next stage of their education, employment or training

5. the 14–19 curriculum for care leavers offers a wide range of well-matched vocational options

6. transition planning for looked after children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities receiving services is thorough, timely and regularly evaluated to ensure smooth transition to adult services and further education, employment or training

7. care leavers have high aspirations and a high proportion are achieving well in further and higher education

8. care leavers, including older care leavers, contribute routinely to their pathway plan reviews

9. pathway plans are of high quality and comprehensive

10. care leavers are very positive about the plans in place to support their transition to adulthood

11. care leavers have access to a range of high-quality permanent and affordable accommodation which meets their needs.

Documents

REPORT TO: Children’s Services€¦ · other evidence such as that arising from serious case reviews, findings from these inspections will help determine the scope and timing of