Event Details

Key Speakers

Jacky Tiotto, Divisional Manager, Social Care Inspection Development, Ofsted

Overview

Following her wide-ranging review of child protection services in the UK, Professor Munro’s final report, ‘A Child Centred System’ (May 2011), outlined a radical new child protection system that is child focused and measures success by the end result for the child, rather than by how well certain processes and procedures have been carried out. The review argued that significantly reducing the level of central prescription and regulation would enable local areas to develop their own child protection services according to local needs, and free professionals to use their expertise to fully assess a child and provide the right help.

Whilst the system would empower social workers to exercise greater professional judgement, Professor Munro’s review underlined the need to improve the knowledge and skills of social workers and to reform the career structure to facilitate a stronger voice for practitioners in management to drive up standards. A more responsive system would require better and more extensive multi-agency working, supported by clear lines of accountability and a new inspection framework to measure the effectiveness of all services’ contribution to safeguarding a child.

One year on since the Government accepted Professor Munro’s 15 recommendations for reform, good progress is being made at both a national and local level. As part of its effort to reduce bureaucracy, the Government has revised ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ and the Framework of Assessment for Children in Need and their Families. In order to place greater emphasis on the impact and effectiveness of help and protection for children and young people, Ofsted has introduced a revised inspection framework (April 2012), whilst a new multi-inspectorate framework for the inspection of child protection services is expected to be in place in 2013/14. A number of local authorities are trialling more flexible approaches of assessment and have begun redesigning services to better meet the needs of children. However, the ‘Munro Review of Child Protection Progress Report: Moving Towards a Child Centred System’ (May 2012), stresses that the pace of change must be accelerated and the current defensive culture of compliance tackled with urgency.

This symposium offers a timely and invaluable opportunity for practitioners and key stakeholders to examine the progress made over the past 12 months in creating the conditions for sustained, long term reform, and to explore the next steps to deliver a child-centred system.

Delegates will:

• Assess the progress made towards creating a child-centred protection system and consider the next steps to accelerate the pace of change
• Explore how to work in partnership to improve early intervention and prevention methods
• Examine how to increase local and professional flexibility and tackle a culture of compliance
• Debate how to up-skill the social care workforce, through better training and career development
• Discuss how to improve and expand multi-agency working, increasing accountability and sharing best practice

Programme

Who Should Attend?

• Directors of Children's Services
• Children's Services and Families Services Officers
• Social Workers and Social Services Officers
• Local Safeguarding Children Boards
• Sure Start
• Children's Trusts and Children's Centres
• Early Years and Childcare Practitioners
• Children's Health Service Professionals
• Child and Adolescent Mental Health Practitioners
• Teenage Pregnancy Co-ordinators
• Teachers and Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators
• HR, Training and Organisational Development Professionals
• Local Education Authorities
• Education Providers
• Extended Schools Advisors
• Children and Youth Organisations
• Community Development Managers
• Social Exclusion and Neighbourhood Renewal Teams
• Youth Workers and Youth Offending Teams
• Community Safety Teams
• Police Service
• Welfare Rights Organisations
• Training Organisations
• Employers
• DfE, DWP, DoH and other Central Government Departments and Agencies
• Equality and Diversity Practitioners
• Third Sector Practitioners
• Academics and Researchers
• Trade Unions

“ I am pleased to hear that our reforms are beginning to fundamentally change the child protection system and we now need to make sure they are implemented as quickly as possible … These reforms go to the heart of our child protection system and require a new mindset and a new relationship between central Government and local services. We are committed to keeping up momentum and doing everything we can to get the right mechanisms in place and to strengthen public confidence. But this is about putting the power of decision making back into the hands of local authorities and they all need to step up to the challenge and be strong and confident leaders who are ready to innovate. ”
— Children’s Minister, May 2012