Brighton moves from 'requires improvement' to 'good'
The senior leadership team at Brighton and Hove Council, supported by strong cross-party political and corporate support, has worked effectively to improve services and moved from an ofsted rating of 'requires improvement' to 'good' in the latest inspection.
Leaders have already improved services, which has resulted in children in need of early help and children in [...]
Partnership work highlighted as Bexley rated as 'outstanding'
A whole-system partnership approach in the London Borough of Bexley children's services has helped the authority achieve an 'outstanding' judgement from Ofsted.
Leaders and senior managers provide inspirational leadership that is both ambitious and highly effective in improving outcomes for children.
"Children who need help and protection receive an outstanding service, with highly effective help and support [...]
Ofsted reports published in August
Here is a round-up of the Ofsted reports of children's services published during August, with links to individual articles on each inspection and to the full report.
Early progress ‘from low base’ in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire children’s services is making some early progress in improving services for children and young people who are the subject of a child [...]
Youth custody staff rises by nearly 15%
The number of youth custody staff has risen by almost 15% in a year, according to official statistics.
There were 1,545 full-time equivalent youth custody staff employed by Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service at 30 June 2018, representing 3.2% of all prison and probation staff.
The number of FTE youth custody staff rose by 198 staff [...]
Expert's Corner: Interview with Sylvia McKenzie
ISW Sylvia McKenzie talks to Clare Jerrom about the in-depth process of Special Guardianship Order assessments and why they must always remain child-centred.
Special Guardianship Order assessments (SGO) must be completely child-focused and address the needs of the child first and foremost, an expert in SGO's has warned.
Independent Social Worker Sylvia McKenzie, who has more [...]
More than 400,000 children live in 'toxic trio' households
More than 400,000 children live in 'toxic trio' households: read the full story below
There are 420,000 children in England living in a household with an adult experiencing all three ‘toxic trio’ issues - domestic abuse, parental substance misuse and mental ill health to a moderate/severe extent, analysis has found.
Research carried out for the Office of [...]
