2. Care Inspectorate Review of SW Gov and Assurance ECSPB 21 08 25
Renfrewshire Council · 21 August 2025
Back to Education and Children's Services Policy Board — 21 August 2025 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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Page 1 of 4 To: Education and Children’s Services Policy Board On: 21 August 2025 ___________________________________________________________________ Report by: Director of Children’s Services ___________________________________________________________________ Heading: Care Inspectorate Review of Social Work Governance and Assurance Across Scotland ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Summary 1.1. This report is to inform the Board about the findings and implications of the Care Inspectorate’s national review of social work governance and assurance, conducted between June and November 2024 and published in May 2025. 1.2. The national social work context is highly challenging, with increasing demand, workforce shortages, and financial pressures. Renfrewshire has a number of actions in place to mitigate these pressures and the recent social work service re-design is strengthening our capacity to address contextual challenges. 1.3. The review provides reassurance that Renfrewshire’s arrangements are largely aligned with national best practice. There are general findings which will be reflected upon by the Chief Social Work Officer and planning partners and will be integrated into existing service improvement plans. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. Recommendations 2.1 The Board is asked to note that the Care Inspectorate Review of Social Work Governance and Assurance Across Scotland was published recently and made a number of findings about local service arrangements as well as recommendations for local and national leaders. 2.2 The Board is asked to note that, overall, the review provided reassurance about our arrangements in Renfrewshire and that Renfrewshire Council’s annual world social work day event was highlighted in the report as a good practice example.
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Page 2 of 4 2.3 The Board is asked to note that the Chief Social Work Officer and service planning partners will reflect on the findings and adapt learning and any necessary actions into existing service improvement plans. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. Background 3.1. The Care Inspectorate Review of Social Work Governance and Assurance Across Scotland was undertaken between June and November 2024 and was published in May 2025. The purpose of the review was to evaluate how well governance and assurance arrangements support the delivery of statutory social work duties across Scotland. 3.2. It focused on ensuring that: • Social work duties are carried out safely and effectively. • Staff are supported, accountable, and effective in their practice. • Core social work values are upheld. 3.3. The review was conducted under Section 53 of the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010. It covered adult, children’s, and justice social work services and considered the interplay between social work and other statutory partners, especially within Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCPs). 3.4. The review acts as both a diagnostic tool and a strategic guide, aligning its findings with the operational realities of social workers and leaders. It provides a framework for systemic improvement, rooted in the challenges that have been building over recent years. 3.5. The over-arching finding of the review was that the national operational context of social work is extremely challenging and that the increasing volume and complexity of demand, alongside severe difficulties in recruiting and retaining suitably qualified staff, and that the enduring financial position are impacting the sustainability of social work services. 3.6. The review highlighted a number of national challenges facing social work service delivery: • Workforce pressures; • Complex governance structures; • Leadership visibility and influence; • Role misunderstanding; and • Service demand and complexity. 3.7. In response to these, the review proposed a number of recommendations for national and local leaders: • Requirement for national workforce planning, better support structures, and investment in staff wellbeing.
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Page 3 of 4 • Clarification of governance and assurance mechanisms, particularly within integrated structures between local authorities and HSCPs to ensure leaders can effectively oversee statutory duties. • Stronger leadership roles and better representation of social work values in strategic decision-making. • More education and awareness raising for partners and stakeholders about the distinctiveness of social work practice. • Better assurance systems and shared responsibility for outcomes, helping services adapt to growing complexity of need. 3.8. While the review findings about national challenges chime with our local experience, the recommendations are only somewhat applicable to Renfrewshire because many aspects of our service and governance arrangements already align with the review recommendations. Of particular note is the review finding that public protection governance was strongest when this was overseen by chief officer groups (COGs): this is the practice in Renfrewshire and our arrangements were very positively viewed within our recent statutory inspection. 3.9. The review highlighted the vital importance of promoting and amplifying the voice of social work within strategic decision-making. It found that areas with a depute Chief Social Work Officer (CSWO) role were in a better position to ensure appropriate influence within decision-making structures. Under half of Scotland’s local authorities have such a role, and Renfrewshire established this role a year ago as part of the social work service re-design. 3.10. Renfrewshire’s approach to promoting and upholding social work values was highlighted as a practice example within the report. The CSWO’s annual social work day event was acknowledged for increasing the visibility and accessibility of social work leaders within the council and for its role in positively modelling shared values. 3.11. The review emphasises the importance of the identification, oversight and mitigation of risk as a critical feature for the leadership and delivery of social work services. The social work service re-design was largely premised on the need to bolster our operational and performance management, strategic oversight and quality assurance capacity. Alongside this, we have strengthened our professional development and training offer and refreshed our service policies and procedures to drive and embed our new ways of working. The review findings give us reassurance that our new arrangements are fit for the future. 3.12. The review report has been shared with senior leaders and its findings will be considered within the context of our multiple and ongoing service improvement activities. ___________________________________________________________________ Implications of this report 1. Financial None.
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Page 4 of 4 2. HR and Organisational Development None. 3. Community/Council Planning Our Renfrewshire is safe - The review provides learning for continuous improvement and helps to protect vulnerable local children and adults. 4. Legal None. 5. Property/Assets None. 6. Information Technology None. 7. Equality and Human Rights The Recommendations contained within this report have been assessed in relation to their impact on equality and human rights. No negative impacts on equality groups or potential for infringement of individuals’ human rights have been identified arising from the recommendations contained in the report because for example it is for noting only. 8. Health and Safety None. 9. Procurement None. 10. Risk None. 11. Privacy Impact None. 12. Climate Risk None. 13. Children’s Rights None. 14. Cosla Policy Position None. ___________________________________________________________________ Children’s Services KN/JT 17 July 2025 Author: John Trainer e-mail: john.trainer@renfrewshire.gov.uk/ Karen Nowland e-mail: karen.nowland@renfrewshire.gov.uk