Agenda item

SERVICE IMPROVEMENT AND TRANSFORMATION

Minutes:

The Sub-Committee noted a report that detailed the service approach to continuous service improvement. The report updated Members on progress to improve the delivery of social care.

 

Members noted that the service had several key objectives for the year, across the range of front-line services. These include;

 

  1. Improving the quality and effectiveness of social work interventions and improve the experience for families.
  2. Provide effective interventions at all levels of need ensuring effective primary and secondary prevention.
  3. Increase the stability and skills of the workforce to improve the quality of relationships with children and their families.
  4. Improve the response to demand to ensure that families are provided a timely and proportionate intervention and increase the reach of early help services.
  5. Consolidate learning to ensure we continue to provide effective and co-ordinated services for children at risk of child sexual exploitation.
  6. Ensure that feedback from children and their families is sought to improve the quality of interventions.
  7. In house and commissioned services demonstrate good value when outcomes and costs are benchmarked against other authorities.
  8. Continue to build on improvements to the quality of placements for children in care, improving timeliness of permanency and enhancing the outcomes for care leavers.
  9. Reduce the budget deficit by installing strict financial controls. Monitor and report on progress, whilst looking for further opportunities.
  10. Implement and track the first year of the Innovation Programme.
  11. Monitor against the thirteen recommendations made by Ofsted and report on progress to them, to the Department for Education and internal stakeholders.
  12. Ensure the workforce development and retention activity is in place to increase the number of permanent social workers.
  13. Develop and implement the Social Care Academy, providing a strong and competitive offer for social workers, with the aim of encouraging highly skilled and experienced practitioners to work for Havering.

 

The Sub-Committee was advised that the following range of activities were underway to deliver against the outlined objectives;

 

·      A review of all placements had been carried out outlining the forward plan for these and determining the potential costs and savings that could be achieved by March 2019.

 

·      A workforce development working group had been formed with clear terms of reference, to ensure we have a robust approach to recruitment and retention. The group had led to the development of the Social Care Academy.

 

·      A financial recovery plan had been developed, which demonstrated what activity could lead to reducing the budget deficit and making efficiencies which included strict controls on expenditure.

 

·      Social care workforce were undergoing Systemic Practice training in order to enhance practice and allowing for more meaningful and purposeful interventions to be delivered to children and young people.

 

·      A work plan was being developed with the Joint Commissioning Unit, to enable better value for money on placements and other commissioning ventures.

 

·      An approach to demand management was being considered, including greater detail on the projected increase in population and what impact that would have on resources.

 

·      A more effective and regular supervision was now taking place to improve quality and timeliness of interventions.

 

The report outlined the following next steps by the service:

 

·         To continue monitoring progress of the service plans, ensuring all risks and issues are managed. To evidence improvement and where relevant, report/escalate to the Transformation and Improvement Board.

·         The service was looking to develop an approach to ensure that all future reporting needs go through a single point of contact and were managed through a joint panel with the corporate performance service.

·         To develop a reporting calendar, so all services were clear when to expect Performance Indicators and other information.

·         To review all Service plans in September in order to ensure they were all still current and meet the developing needs of the service.

 

The Sub-Committee noted the continuous service improvement report.

 

 

Supporting documents: