Children at Risk of Harm Inspection Process ECSPB
Renfrewshire Council · 2 November 2023
Back to Education and Children's Services Policy Board — 2 November 2023 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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1 ___________________________________________________________________ To: Education and Children’s Services Policy Board On: 2 November 2023 ___________________________________________________________________ Report by: Chief Social Work Officer ___________________________________________________________________ Heading: Children at Risk of Harm Inspection Process ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Summary 1.1 The Care Inspectorate is the national regulator for care services in Scotland. They inspect the social work services provided by local authorities and carry out joint inspections with partner organisations. are responsible for inspecting Local Authority Community Planning Partnerships on behalf of the Scottish Government. 1.2 A joint inspection of children’s services in Renfrewshire was last undertaken by the Care Inspectorate in 2015 and it is anticipated that notification of an inspection will be received in the near future. 1.3 Renfrewshire Child Protection Committee (RCPC) is the main multi-agency group which coordinates and leads the protection of children agenda in the local area. As part of the regular improvement work in the area of child protection RCPC encourages single and multi-agency quality assurance work. A multi-agency preparation for inspection group was established in Renfrewshire in March 2023 and meets regularly to consider the areas of good practice and areas for improvement. 1.4 This report provides members with information on the model of inspection which is utilised by the Care Inspectorate.
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2 2. Recommendations 2.1 It is recommended that the Education and Children’s Services Policy Board note the content of this report. _____________________________________________________ 3. Background 3.1 The Care Inspectorate, at the request of Scottish Ministers, lead joint inspections of services for children and young people at risk of ham. The remit of these joint inspections is to consider the effectiveness of services for children and young people up to the age of 18 at risk of harm. 3.2 The inspections look at the difference community planning partnerships are making to the lives of children and young people at risk of harm and their families. They take account of the full range of work including services provided by social workers, teachers, health visitors, police officers and the third sector. 3.3 Children at risk of harm are defined as children up to the age of 18 years who need urgent support due to being at risk of harm from abuse and/or neglect. This includes children who need urgent support due to being a significant risk to themselves and/or others or are at significant risk in the community. The Care Inspectorate identify young people as children aged 13 to 17 years old. 3.4 Joint Inspections include representatives from Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS), Education Scotland and His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) and volunteer Young Inspectors. 3.5 Joint inspections aim to provide assurance on the extent to which services, working together, can demonstrate the following: Children and young people are safer because risk have been identified and responded to effectively. Children and young people’s lives improve with high-quality planning and support, ensuring they experience sustained loving and nurturing relationships to keep them safe from further harm. Children and young people and families are meaningfully and appropriately in decisions about their lives. They influence service, planning, delivery and improvement. Collaborative strategic leadership, planning and operational management ensure high standards of service delivery.
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3 3.6 The Care Inspectorate will look at the cases of 60 children and young people in Renfrewshire who in the two years prior to the date of the notice of inspection have been involved in the processes below: 15 children or young people who have been subject to an Initial Referral Discussion (IRD), Child Protection Investigation or Child Protection Planning Meeting but has not led to their name being placed on the Child Protection Register. 30 children or young people whose names have been placed on the Child Protection Register. 15 young people who have been subject to the Vulnerable Young Person’s process or Care and Risk Management Procedures (CARM). 3.7 The Care Inspectorate will provide four weeks’ notice of an inspection. Following this a pre-inspection return must be completed and a list of cases identified and submitted to the Care Inspectorate for the 60 cases to be chosen for review. 3.8 A staff survey, a children and young people’s survey and a parent and carers’ survey will be undertaken. A position statement will also be provided, the content of which will be informed by the pre-inspection return and initial findings. 3.9 All information from the file reading, surveys and position statement will be triangulated through focus groups with staff and meetings with parents, carers and young people. 3.10 There will be focus groups held for frontline staff, managers and strategic leaders. The inspectors will also meet with Renfrewshire Children’s Services Partnership (RCSP), Renfrewshire Child Protection Committee (RCPC) and Renfrewshire Public Protection Chief Officers Group. 3.11 The inspection will be completed within 22 weeks and the process and timings are set out below:
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4 4. Preparation for inspection in Renfrewshire 4.1 RCSP and RCPC have already completed a staff survey across the partnership this year which is based on the survey that will be sent by the Care Inspectorate to staff. The feedback from the survey was generally positive and individual services are looking at the data from the survey to inform service development. 4.2 The multi-agency preparation for inspection has reviewed the feedback and is developing a multi-agency action plan to inform areas for improvement within the partnership. 4.3 A multi-agency case file audit is due to take place in November 2023 which is based on the Care Inspectorate’s inspection model. Renfrewshire’s link Strategic Inspector from the Care Inspectorate will lead on providing training for those undertaking the audit. _________________________________________________________________ Implications of the Report 1. Financial None 2. HR & Organisational Development None 3. Community/Council Planning Safer and Stronger - Children and families receive the right support to ensure they are safe at home and in the community. Phase 1 •Notification •Pre‐inspection return (week 3) •Professional discussions 1 and 2 (weeks 4 and 11) •Staff survey (weeks 4‐6) •Record reading (week 9) Phase 2 •Children and young people and parents/carers surveys (open for 3 weeks) •Position statement and written evidence (week 12) •Onsite engagement and focus groups (week 14) •Professional discussion 3 (week 17) Reporting •Quality and consistency panel (week 18) •Draft report to partnership (week 18) •Report and video report published (week 22)
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5 4. Legal None 5. Property/Assets None 6. Information Technology None 7. Equality & Human Rights (a) The Recommendations contained within this report have been assessed in relation to their impact on equalities 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 & Safety None 9. Procurement None 10. Risk None 11. Privacy Impact None 12. Cosla Policy Position None 13. Climate Risk None _________________________________________________________ List of Background Papers None ___________________________________________________________________ Author: John Trainer, Head of Child Care and Criminal Justice / Chief Social Work Officer John.trainer@renfrewshire.gov.uk