From Shropshire’s DCS.
As Shropshire’s Director for Children’s Services, I'm proud to share the strides we've made in transforming children's social care. Our journey has been marked by dedication and innovation, particularly with the relaunch of our Early Help service. This investment is testament to our commitment to providing timely and effective support to families, ensuring that children, parents and carers receive the help they need at the earliest possible stage. We have worked closely with our brilliant public health colleagues to develop community hubs that families can access in their local communities. This is particular important in a rural county like Shropshire where access to support can be challenging due to limited public transport and our approach of “how can we help” has now been adopted across the system.
The collaboration with public health has been instrumental in our transformation. Together, we've embraced the principles of Working Together 23, fostering a shared understanding and a united approach to supporting families in Shropshire.
We all share the same uphill battles in recruiting permanent, experienced child protection social workers, and this has been another key focus for our transformation in Shropshire. Over the past year, we've successfully converted 17 agency social workers to permanent contracts, and have developed a new child protection specialist role. Whilst we were not successful as a trailblazer, we wanted to take forward this approach in Shropshire and have recruited some really experienced social workers to this role, these posts are a great start in helping us to deliver excellent social work practice in Shropshire. The employment of registered social workers by local authorities, not agencies, is key to ensuring stability and continuity in the care we provide.
At our recent Ofsted annual conversation, I was really heartened from our discussions with a focus on the impact on children and a shift towards outcome-focused inspections. This aligns with our vision of a service that prioritises the well-being and development of every child and is another improvement we are committed to as a priority in Shropshire.
As we continue to address the challenges before us, we remain bold in our mission to create stable homes built on love, support, and understanding. Our collective efforts are shaping a brighter future for the children of Shropshire.
From a regional perspective I must just mention two inspection reports that have been published now that pre-election restrictions have ended. These are Worcestershire’s SEND inspection and Telford & Wrekin’s ILACS. As always there is learning we can all take from both of these and I would encourage you to read them, when you have a moment.
Finally, as the summer holidays approach, I am sure many of us will be taking time off to relax with family and friends. Please switch off from work and take it easy, you have earned it, THANK YOU!
Kind regards
Tanya Miles
DCS updates:
Bernie Brown has now started in post as the new DCS in Staffordshire. Please join us in offering Bernie a warm welcome to the region.
Also this month, Karen Graham has stepped up to the DCS role in Dudley, along with Adam Johnston in Worcestershire following Tina Russell’s move to Herefordshire. Congratulations to them all.
Putting Participation on the map training delivered to professionals:
The West Midlands Regional Participation leads network have been developing the Putting Participation on the Map training as one of the priorities for the group. The Putting Participation on the Map training is for all professionals working with children and young people from across the region to gain a better understanding around Participation, and to have a regional approach to participation in the context of working with children and young people in Social Care.
As a network, the Putting Participation on the Map training was developed with children in care and care leavers. Following this, we have been on a journey over the last eight months, working in partnership with young people from across the region to co-design and co-deliver an introduction to participation.
At the Principal Social Worker conference on the 20th June, we piloted our first workshop, a one-hour condensed version of the training. 7 care-experienced young adults from Warwickshire, Sandwell, Dudley and Walsall came together and delivered the workshop by themselves. This was the first time they had delivered the presentation to a live audience, and we couldn't be prouder of them. We are immensely grateful for their contribution and the effort they put into making the workshop a success. Their dedication and hard work have been truly inspiring.
They delivered 2 workshops each lasting for one hour and received overwhelmingly positive feedback from the attendees. The audience's response was a testament to their hard work and dedication. This feedback serves as an assurance of the effectiveness of the training for it to continue to be delivered by young people across the region.
Our next steps are to roll this training offer out to the regional network, putting together a series of face-to-face and online training sessions. Anyone working with and supporting children is welcome to attend, and this will provide a unique opportunity for staff across 14 local authorities to work in partnership with each other. By doing this, we will strengthen our regional network connection and partnerships and give the young people a unique opportunity that they will be able to use in the future.
Here is some feedback from some of our care experienced trainers:
What did I like best about the training?
"That hopefully our voices were heard."
How did I feel it went?
"Feels like it went the way that it should have gone."
What would I like it to achieve?
"Well, that it would support other care-experienced young people/ care leavers with next steps for more support."
"I enjoyed the feel of coming and dedication like people was actually there to contribute and listen and take back from what they've learnt. I feel as though there could be a gap in between sessions so that we can gather thoughts/ feedback and less people doing the training as well and I feel if people actually listened and changed then yes it could help people."
Independent Scrutineer Vacancy:
The Birmingham Safeguarding Children Partnership is seeking to appoint an Independent Scrutineer.
If anyone would like to find out more please visit the website www.lscpbirmingham.org.uk or contact Simon Cross, Partnership Business Manager.
Key Events:
Upcoming conferences:
Participation Leads Conference – 24th September
This is the first time we will be holding this event, which is aimed at those working within participation teams. Places are limited, so please talk to your Participation Manager if you would like to attend.
Many thanks to Worcestershire County Cricket Club who are providing space, at New Road, for this event at no cost to the region.
Big Thinking 24 – 12th November
The aim of these Big Thinking Events is to think differently when it comes to working collaboratively in our efforts to promote the permanency and retention of a good quality Childrens Services workforce in the West Midlands. The aims of the event are to find creative solutions which ultimately aim to ensure that children and their families receive the best outcomes that we can offer because they are supported by a strong, stable, and quality Childrens Services workforce.
Each local authority area has a limited number of places, so if you are interested in being part of an exciting and innovative conversation, please talk to your Children’s Workforce Lead or Principal Social Worker.
Safeguarding Conference – 28th November
Following on from last years successful Safeguarding Conference, we have agreed to hold a similar event in November.
The theme of this years conference is Safeguarding, Innovation & New Ways of Working.
The target audience is IRO’s and CP chairs, but if you have an interest in attending, please talk to your Regional Safeguarding Network representative.
Leading Change in SEND/AP:
The Staff College and NDTi are thrilled to offer a second cohort on this comprehensive programme designed for ambitious leaders keen to improve life outcomes for children and young people with SEND/AP and their families.
Details can be found here.
Please note that the deadline for applications is 26th July.
Limited places remaining Inspiring Women into Leadership:
In response to popular demand and compelling feedback, The Staff College are excited to introduce a new programme tailored for aspiring female leaders at a pivotal stage in their career.
For more details, please click here.
Regional Master Classes: Each year our 14 Councils and Trusts share their good practice across the breadth of children’s services in the form of online Master classes.
Our current round of Masterclasses has now finished, however we will be announcing more dates in August, for a series that will run across the autumn.
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