Innovation Fund Projects Announced

On the 20^th Mach Edward Timpson announced thirty six million pounds for new innovation projects. This includes some projects the involve services in the South East Region.

The 11 projects that have been awarded funding are:

• The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime and NHS England’s Child House
• Newham’s NewDay project
• Northamptonshire county council’s alternative delivery model
• Shared Lives Plus
• The Fostering Network’s Mockingbird project
• Family Rights Group’s Lifelong Links
• Hertfordshire’s Family Safeguarding model
• Catch22 and Southwark council’s Care Leavers’ Partnership
• Havering council’s project for children in, and leaving, care
• Slough’s Transformation ProgrammeHackney’s project on contextual safeguarding theory

Full details of the announcement can be found at: 

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/innovative-projects-to-get-36-million-funding-boost

Programme SE DCS Peer Challenge

Many thanks for all your responses, the visiting teams are now filled.

The Brighton and Hove (26/27 June) team led by Steve Crocker (DCS Hampshire and IoW) will include Rachel Morgan (Head of Standards and Effectiveness at Bracknell Forest), Mark Frankland (Principal Manager, Young People Services and Family Support, West Sussex CC) and Sam Bushby (Assistant Director – Children’s Services at Surrey CC).

Many thanks for all your responses, the visiting teams are now filled.

The Brighton and Hove (26/27 June) team led by Steve Crocker (DCS Hampshire and IoW) will include Rachel Morgan (Head of Standards and Effectiveness at Bracknell Forest), Mark Frankland (Principal Manager, Young People Services and Family Support, West Sussex CC) and Sam Bushby (Assistant Director – Children’s Services at Surrey CC).

Children’s Workforce

On the 10^th March the ADCS published their detailed response to the DfE consultation on the Children and Social Work Bill.

They also released a press release which includes the following:

“In the context of austerity and rising demand for our services, the Association questions whether the NAAS, at a cost of £23m to the public purse, represents good value for money. Instead, this money would be much better spent on supporting front line and early help services that we know are currently under enormous strain given the deepening pressures on children social care. We would welcome further discussion with government on this.”

The Full response can be read at:

http://adcs.org.uk/assets/documentation/ADCS_response_National_assessment_and_accreditation_system.pdf

The press release can be found at:

http://adcs.org.uk/workforce/article/national-assessment-and-accreditation-system-pr

Data Benchmarking Group

The Q3 Adoption benchmarking reports and a revised version of the Social Care benchmarking first published two weeks ago. Both these reports are ‘restricted’ circulation.

Many thanks to all concerned.

‘Restricted’ reports contain unsuppressed data, and data which is not in the public domain. Please do not share these outside of your LA. Colleagues in the Data Benchmarking Group have the password access they require to see these reports. If you have any questions, please contact Alastair Lee (details below).