Children’s initiative needs consistency

The Department of Health is trying to “re-energise” the Quality
Protects programme, a civil servant told conference delegates last
week. Originally launched in 1998 with the aim of reforming and
improving local authorities’ children’s services, the three-year
programme has been extended to five years. But DoH national lead
inspector for Quality Protects Amy Weir said that although progress
had been good, “nationally it is very variable”.

The DoH recently approved all the current year’s management
action plans (MAPs) by local authority’s authorities, but found
that about 25 of the 150 authority plans needed significant extra
work. “Nationally there were 20 to 25 MAPs people were concerned
about when they first came in. Similarly, 20 to 25 were, on the
whole, good,” said Weir. “There were four or five where we
continued to have significant concern.”

Most of the programme’s impact had been on children’s social
services, added Weir, with less progress generally in ensuring
change and commitment from health and education authorities. The
programme needed to encompass, and integrate with, new initiatives
such as Sure Start and Connexions. To this end, the government had
issued joint departmental guidance this month on planning.

n Co-ordinated Service Planning for Vulnerable Children and
Young People in England, DoH, from:
www.doh.gov.uk/scg/childplan.htm

The Department of Health is trying to “re-energise” the Quality
Protects programme, a civil servant told conference delegates last
week. Originally launched in 1998 with the aim of reforming and
improving local authorities’ children’s services, the three-year
programme has been extended to five years. But DoH national lead
inspector for Quality Protects Amy Weir said that although progress
had been good, “nationally it is very variable”.

The DoH recently approved all the current year’s management
action plans (MAPs) by local authority’s authorities, but found
that about 25 of the 150 authority plans needed significant extra
work. “Nationally there were 20 to 25 MAPs people were concerned
about when they first came in. Similarly, 20 to 25 were, on the
whole, good,” said Weir. “There were four or five where we
continued to have significant concern.”

Most of the programme’s impact had been on children’s social
services, added Weir, with less progress generally in ensuring
change and commitment from health and education authorities. The
programme needed to encompass, and integrate with, new initiatives
such as Sure Start and Connexions. To this end, the government had
issued joint departmental guidance this month on planning.

n Co-ordinated Service Planning for Vulnerable Children and
Young People in England, DoH, from:
www.doh.gov.uk/scg/childplan.htm