Issue - meetings

The purpose of this report is to provide an update on the outcome of the Safeguarding and Looked After Children (SLAC) inspection which took place between 3-14 October 2011.  The detail is contained within the attached full inspection report and the associated Action Plan.

(i)         that the outcome of the Safeguarding and Looked After Children inspection report for Brent be noted;

(ii)        that Members approval be given to the revised Action Plan contained in Appendix B which addresses the recommendations identified in the inspection report and articulates the department’s ambitions to make significant and far reaching improvements to the service;

(iii)       that authority to be delegated to the Director of Children and Families to make amendments to the Action Plan as required, to ensure this continues to drive improvement.

Councillor Arnold (Lead Member, Children and Families) introduced the report on the outcome of the safeguarding and Looked After Children inspection, a revised version of which had been circulated in advance of the meeting. The inspection took place between 3-14 October 2011 and Councillor Arnold outlined the findings in the Care Quality Commission Ofsted inspection report and asked members to approve the department’s resultant action plan.  It was recommend that power be delegated to the Director of Children and Families to make amendments to the action plan as required, to ensure the continued drive to improvement. Councillor Arnold assured that the inspection report was being taken very seriously and the authority acknowledged the need to raise standards to above the current judgement of ‘adequate’ for both Safeguarding for Looked After Children services. Further action would also be taken to address concerns expressed on the health of looked after children which resulted in this service being given an ‘inadequate’ rating. A variety of monitoring arrangements would be put in place to ensure that all services were at a high standard including a mid-year challenge of progress against the plan by an external agency and a peer challenge in mid-November.

The Director of Children and Families acknowledged the need to make a step change given the authority’s corporate responsibilities and assured that robust monitoring arrangements would be in place.

RESOLVED:-

(i)         that the outcome of the Safeguarding and Looked After Children inspection report for Brent be noted;

(ii)        that approval be given to the revised Action Plan contained in Appendix B of the revised report which address the recommendations identified in the inspection report and articulated the department’s ambitions to make significant and far reaching improvements to the service;

(iii)       that authority be delegated to the Director of Children and Families to make amendments to the Action Plan as required, to ensure this continues to drive improvement.