In recent months, North Tyneside Council has received high praise for its work to improve services for children and their families.
At a meeting of Full Council last night (July 26), councillors heard how, in recognition of its high performing services, the council has been awarded government funding of £1.6m – to be shared with South Tyneside Council – to assist other local authorities to improve and drive up standards in children’s social care.
Councillors also heard about the positive outcomes of the inspections by Ofsted, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and a peer review.
Following a focused visit to the children’s services department earlier in the year, Ofsted recently wrote to the council outlining its findings, which highlight its work to protect children.
Inspectors looked at the department’s ‘front door’, the first stop for people raising concerns about the safety of children, and praised the ‘strong corporate leadership and ambition to improve services for children and their families, reflected in a determined transformation programme of children’s services.’
Senior leaders were recognised for knowing the service welland inspectors saw ‘sound social work practice’ in the multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH) and social work assessment teams.
And in a separate inspection by the Care Quality Commission, the children’s public health service, which includes health visiting and school nurses, also received high praise.
Inspectors highlighted how staff protect children and young people from avoidable harm and abuse and make sure they follow procedures to keep them safe.
Staff were found to be ‘highly motivated and inspired to offer the best possible care to children, young people, and families’ while leaders were described as ‘dynamic’ and ‘proactive’.
Members of the council also heard about a peer review of the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) provision.
It found that the council provides strong leadership and the ‘high quality’ service is very responsive in helping schools and settings address the needs of children. The service was also praised for its innovative practice and identification and intervention in the early years.
The news also comes after the council was placed among the top 10 of children’s services departments nationally last year following another Ofsted inspection.
North Tyneside Elected Mayor, Norma Redfearn CBE, said: “We are incredibly proud of our children’s services and the commitment they’ve shown to improving services for children, young people and their families. I would like to thank them all for their hard work.
“I was delighted the team was able to share the fantastic results from all of these important visits with members of the council. These types of inspections give residents the confidence that we are providing the best possible services.”
Councillors were also told about the work of the authority and partner agencies to promote, protect and improve the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people in the borough, including engaging with young people as part of a MH:2K project. This project invites young people to become citizen researchers and consult with decision-makers on mental health services.
Mental health first aid training has also been provided to schools and links continue to be improved between schools and mental health professionals. In April, an online digital platform with online counselling, Kooth.com, was launched for young people across the borough, increasing access to additional support.
Cllr Margaret Hall, cabinet member for Public Health, said: “Although the majority of children and young people in North Tyneside have good mental health and emotional wellbeing, we must ensure that we continue to focus on this important area.
“We know the demands and expectations our people face today can be challenging and we must ensure that we have services in place, to both prevent mental health problems arising and also intervene early to stop them escalating. We also need effective and easy access services in place for those young people who may need extra help.”
During the meeting, the results of an inspection of Adult Learning services were also shared with councillors. Ofsted said the service continues to be ‘good’, since its previous inspection in 2013, and provides a ‘very effective’ level of support to help local people identify opportunities, develop new skills, and enhance their career prospects.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
North Tyneside Council, together with South Tyneside Council, has been named the North East’s first Partners in Practice (PiP), along with eight others nationally. The Department for Education’s (DfE) PiP programme sees the best performing local authorities work with Government to drive up standards in children’s social care.