The Commission for Social Care Inspection assured directors that there would be a smooth transition to measuring councils' performance.

Its chief inspector, David Behan, told the seminar that the body was "ensuring that there is continuity and not discontinuity".

The commission went live in England this month, taking on the work of several bodies, including the Social Services Inspectorate.

Behan said that, in some cases, staff involved in judging a council's performance before the commission was created would carry out the same function in their new role in the new body. In other cases, there would be a change in personnel, but the previous staff would still have an input.

"Whatever job somebody is going to in the commission [from the SSI] we will ensure they remain involved up to or where necessary beyond the judgement of a council's performance," Behan said.