Social services boss to head new trust

Former director of social services at South Tyneside Council Trevor
Doughty is to be the children’s services director at Northumberland
Council.

But, Andrew Cozens, president of the Association of Directors of
Social Services, said that while there were between 35 and 40
children’s services directors posts in the country, only around a
dozen encompassed joint children’s social services and education
responsibilities, with the trend so far being to appoint directors
of education to these roles.

Northumberland, which has a two-star social services department,
said Doughty would oversee the development of its families and
children trust. He previously worked at the council as assistant
director of adult and children services before joining South
Tyneside in 1999.

The ADSS fears social services directors will be scared off
applying for the fundamentally different children’s services
directors posts (news, page 6, 19 August).