"More children should be in care", say MPs

I'm John Dennis. I'm the Managing Director of Insight and I spend a lot of my time working with providers of Social Care. I was struck by a news headline recently, from the BBC website. The story is based upon a report from the House of Commons Education Select Committee. In some ways, the report and the story are encouraging! We need to have  a public debate in this country about Children in Care.

The professional view of taking children into care has moved back and forth in recent years. As it became more and more clear that the life prospects of children in care were very poor, professionals increasingly took the view that 'at home with parents' may be the best of two poor choices. However, after the death of Baby P, the pendulum swung the other way and admissions to care are now up by something like 30% across England and Wales.

So this does seem like a time when a public debate could help professionals to understand what those who pay for public services expect from them. However there is an elephant in the room!  I recently witnessed some discussions among child care professionals. One of the main topic under discussion was cost and how cash strapped Councils can reduce the cost of children in care. Several people said that Care for Children is by it’s nature very expensive. The key would be to “reduce the size of the front door”. In other words to find ways to take less children into care!

The members of the House of Commons Education Select Committee may have written a good report, however until Parliament “joins up’ it’s thinking about resources and services, the public debate may have to wait.

Meanwhile we can all look forward to a prolonged game of Parliamentary fantasy football with children’s lives providing the footballs...

NSA Leadership Qualities Framework Launch!

On Friday, three lucky members of the Insight Team and two members of the NSA Graduate Scheme attended the Launch of the LQF. The National Skills Academy has launched the Leadership Qualities Framework (LQF) for Adult Social Care and describe it as a "one-stop shop for developing yourself, strengthening and differentiating your organisation and providing better services."

Sophie and Paula from the NSA Graduate Training Scheme tell you more:

Attending the LQF launch was a great experience!  It was inspiring to hear those at the forefront of leadership in adult social care speaking with such passion and commitment.

Jo Cleary, Chair of the National Skills Academy for Social Care, provided an overview of how the behaviours in the framework have been developed, how the LQF will be used to support the development of leadership in the sector, and how it will support the integration of health and social care services.

Norman Lamb, Minister for Care Services, launched the Framework and shared his strong support for the NSASC’s leadership strategy.

Meeting the Minister after his speech was a huge privilege. He was very interested in the Graduate Management Trainee Scheme and where we have been working throughout the year.

The atmosphere at the event was indicative of what a landmark the launch was for the sector.

However, as Debbie Sorkin commented when she closed the speeches, the hard work lies ahead in putting the Framework into practice across care services.

The evening was so enjoyable and unlike anything we’ve experienced before. It presented a fantastic opportunity to meet and speak with the people involved in shaping the future of the sector. 

The vision for the future of Social Care is strong, and Insight are excited to continue to support change.

"A sector brimming with leaders at all levels." - Norman Lamb

       

Have a look through our gallery for a few snaps of the event (courtesy of NSA):