Key management messages
Dear colleague,
In March 2105, Ofsted completed an inspection of services for
children in need of help and protection; children who are looked after; and
care leavers in Devon. The report was published on 12 May 2015
with an overall judgement that children’s services now ‘require improvement’.
The inspection report said that the quality of work with
children and families and outcomes for children and young people have improved,
particularly over the last six months, and that the welfare of looked after
children is safeguarded and promoted. But significant areas remain where
practice is not yet good enough and overall we are not yet delivering the
“good” protection, help and care for children, young people and families that
we wish and are expected to achieve. The key areas for improvement
were identified, and in response
to this we developed the Devon Children’s Improvement Plan.
Here, we update
you with progress against the expected outcomes for September 2015.
Managing allegations against
adults who work with children
The procedures for 'Managing
Allegations Against Adults Who Work With Children', which is overseen by our
Local Authority Designated Officers (LADOs) has been updated and is now
available on Tri.X. Find out what the procedures cover.
Early Help privacy notice
As
part of the expanded troubled families
programme we
have a legal requirement to inform people about how their information might be
shared.
Click to expand and download poster
Young carers and early
help
Early
Help support for young carers can help to reduce the impact of their caring
responsibilities on their social, emotional and mental welfare. Questions that
workers could consider asking around young carers are included here.
Reminder to book on Newsletter Live
This training
offers colleagues the opportunity to keep up to date on developments across the
service, and non-attendance should be the exception rather than the rule. The topics to be covered this Autumn are:
-
Special Guardianship: this will be the main
focus of the 3 hour session, examining principles, policy, and to update on the
new SG team.
-
The Modern Slavery Act 2015: an update on this
new legislation for staff, which encompasses previous Human Trafficking
legislation, and therefore essential knowledge regarding Child Sexual
Exploitation.
Dates with significant availability are:
Tuesday 20
October - Westbank Healthy
Living Centre, Exminster
Thursday 5
November - Westbank HLC, Exminster
Thursday 12
November - Cullompton
Community Centre
Tuesday 17 November - Newton Abbot
Racecourse
To book your place please follow this link
New work experience programme
for care leavers in the Academy of Social Care
Issac Davies (pictured) and Marley
Hall, two care
leavers, started a work experience programme with our Academy of Social Care.
This is a brand new
programme, which provides an opportunity for young people to gain skills and
knowledge in the social care sector. The
aim is to provide real work activities for up to 12 months. Read their first impressions.
How our young people and children in care are participating
And read how the Participation
Team are involving young people (including Marley and Issac) in the latest news from the Team. The update covers the interview for the Head of Children's Social Care panel, Stand Up Speak Up Youth Clubs; Children in Care Council Meetings; and activity days for young people.
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Devon's Youth Parliament is making it's mark
Devon’s
Youth Parliament hasbeen working very hard over the last few months on both
their local campaigns and the national Make Your Mark campaign. Members of
Youth Parliament and its deputies surveyed over 560 young people in their
communities in order to discover their views on transport, disabilities and
extra curricular activities to inform their local campaigns. Results were
striking.
 New Senior Manager - Fostering and Adoption
Rachel Gillott
has been successful in gaining a permanent
appointment to the Senior Manager Fostering and Adoption post – and this will ensure that all senior
managers are permanent. This will assist with continuing improvement plan and
ensure permanence and stability of leadership of the services.
Rachel has led the adoption service to
achieve ‘good with outstanding features’ in our recent inspection. Rachel looks
forward to taking up her new role and will start soon. Rachel will be responsible for
fostering, adoption and corporate parenting.
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Pictured: (left) Alison Barker - Service Manager (Permanency & Placement Service) Children, Young People and Families Services Plymouth City Council, (middle) Anne Osborne - Head of Service for (CYPIC) Children, Young People and Families Services Plymouth City Council, and (right) Caroline Davis - Chief Executive Officer Families for Children (Rachel Gillott pictured in above bulletin article, not present for this photo)
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