Important updates
Dear colleague
Following our last Ofsted Delivery
Improvement Group (DIG) meeting, we discussed that as corporate parents of the children in care in
Devon, all of us should be concerned about the education of our children in care - their GCSE results have worsened, and
the gap between their attainment and that of their peers widened.
The Department for Education is reviewing our
progress in improving child protection services in Devon on 24 June. Representatives of the department will be
speaking to staff and children and families directly and using survey data and
information from case audits. Find out more
The DIG also identified the emotional well being and
mental health of our children in Devon to be a key priority.
The Children’s Safeguarding and Improvement Board (CIB) didn't meet this month, therefore there is no update included.
Highlighted in this issue:
- Laptops
- Lean Review update
- Placement addresses being added to adoption records
- Foster to adopt
- Your staff directory entry
- How to register on The College of Social Work website
Children’s
social work laptops
Coming
soon… dedicated laptops for childcare social work services
Our frontline Business Managers will let you know
when the laptops will be arriving at your office for you to collect and
keep. On-site support will be available as well as ‘plain English’
guidance notes. Find out more
Lean Review
implementation update
The Lean Review
implementation project continues to work alongside the Way We Work Group and
other projects to implement practical improvements to working tools and
processes supporting children’s social work.
Improvements to working processes and telephony have
been successfully implemented at the MASH this month, following several months
of work by a team including MASH, CSC, the project team and ICT. Read more
Recording adoption placement details on CareFirst
Change to process as approved at Children’s
Way We Work Group May 2014
From
2 June 2014, pre-adoptive placement details should be added to the child’s
CareFirst record, the ‘Contact Adoption Team’ address should no
longer be used. Find out what to do on the CareFirst record
 Foster
to adopt
‘Foster to adopt’ is a new type of placement for
looked after children. These placements can be used
where the local
authority’s permanency plan has decided that adoption is ‘probably’ the best
plan for the child. Children can be placed with approved adopters who when
matched to the child are then approved as temporary foster carers whilst the
care proceedings continue. Check the guidance and find out more
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Making
it easier to contact children’s social work by telephone
Improvements
have been made to the way you and the public are able to contact Devon County
Council’s Children’s Social Work by telephone.
 Keeping
your contact details accurate
-
How
much time do you spend in a week trying to track people down?
-
How
much time do you think other people spend trying to track you down?
Help your colleagues. Help yourself... just follow these search hints and tips
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 How to register on The College of Social Work website - for social workers
Devon has a full subscription to The College of Social
Work (TCSW) and is committed to this investment to strengthen social work
practice. And we have high expectations of
our workforce to deliver the best possible service to children and families
living in Devon.
As
a social worker or a student you will be able to access the college for
information to support your professional development at any time. The e-leaflet
provides more information about what TCSW offers.
If
you have already registered as a corporate member , you do not need to take any
action – your corporate membership rolls forward automatically.
New
registrants should register using the Quick
Signup Form and Devon’s voucher code:
TCSW-2013-510-izRU3-114
To
note: Choose your own password, and select Devon County Council as a College
Member. Once you complete the form, you will be sent a confirmation email.
This
requires a great deal less information than the usual online sign up available
to independent members who subscribe via the website. Please do it today and
make the most of your professional development!
HR update - Manager
Briefing: performance and workforce development
This is the second planned monthly update on performance, workforce development and recruitment activity to share with social work teams. This month the focus is on performance and workforce development.
Read more about the career progression scheme and a revised approach to appraisals
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