Safeguarding
Serious case review launched after double murder verdict
A serious case review has been launched after a woman and her partner were sentenced for murdering her two teenage sons.
Spielman in fresh illegal schools warning
Ofsted’s chief inspector has made a fresh call for the Department for Education (DfE) to crack down on unregistered or illegal schools.
Who’s in charge?
Changes to an organisation’s management structure are attractive, argues Blair Mcpherson - but not at the expense of clarity about who’s in charge.
Reaping the benefits of a whole-service approach
Leigh Zywek describes how a programme of long-term support for a young mother is making a vital difference.
All-round safety for our children
Dez Holmes explains the role of the recently-launched programme to support children’s services to tackle child exploitation in all its forms.
No time to waste in boosting early intervention
Cllr Nickie Aiken says early intervention programmes across London are creating higher quality, responsive provisions that prevent needs from escalating, and helping to manage costs.
The use of child spies ‘needs urgently reviewing as a priority’
Stuart Carlton says the Association of Directors of Children’s Services and the Department for Education need to know which children are being used as spies - and jointly assure themselves that the risks are acceptable.
How London delivers safeguarding
London’s adult safeguarding partnership was set up to unite a plethora of agencies in the capital to develop a single policy and set of procedures and drive learning and improvement. Dawn Wakeling explains,
Evidence emerges for the effectiveness of Intensive Family Preservation Services
A review has found evidence of the effectiveness of Intensive Family Preservation Services (IFPS) in reducing the risk of care entry to children for up to two years after the delivery of the interventions.
Call for leader to quit after 'repeated failures'
Shadow local government secretary Andrew Gwynne has called for Northamptonshire CC leader, Matt Golby, to quit after ‘repeated failures’ in the council’s children’s services.
Tackling child exploitation together
A programme to support areas battling child exploitation has been launched by the Department for Education. Ann McGauran reports on how the £2m scheme will work with councils
Making progress in Powys
An inspection revealing child protection processes at Powys CC were not good enough came as a ‘hard knock’, says leader Rosemarie Harris. She talks to Dan Peters about the council’s continuing improvement journey.
Don’t let children’s services become ‘black box’ of council
Chief executive Merran McRae has warned her colleagues not to let 'insular' children’s services become the 'black box' of their council.
Children ‘not being protected’ by Stoke-on-Trent City Council
Children’s social care services are ‘inadequate’ at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, according to the findings of a new Ofsted inspection.
Rebuilding lives lost to slavery
Local authorities must do more than meet the ‘bare minimum of the Modern Slavery Act’, writes Paul Gerrard. With councils spending more than £40bn a year, there is leverage that can and should be used for social good
A charter to tackle County Lines
Islington LBC’s first report on the local implementaton of the Charter Against Modern Slavery shows it has led to progress in earlier identification of children at risk of exploitation through County Lines. Ann McGauran reports
Norfolk has the systems in place to combat domestic abuse
Dr Louise Smith is confident that with strong direction, a multi-agency strategic board, and excellent collaborative working within Norfolk, the council and its partners can make a 'substantial, long-term impact on domestic abuse'.
Local areas must face up to the scale of child criminal exploitation
Children's commissioner for England Anne Longfield says her recent report on improving the safeguarding response to gang violence and criminal exploitation shows many local areas are not facing up to the scale of the issue.
Lessons from Croydon's review into the causes of youth violence and exploitation are also relevant to other areas
The learning points from Croydon's independent in-depth review into the root causes of serious youth violence and exploitation are relevant to communities everywhere, says Di Smith.
Councils ‘failing’ children exploited by gangs, report reveals
The same mistakes that led to child sexual exploitation failings are being repeated with gangs, the children’s commissioner has warned.