RECOMMENDATIONS on how to save Worcestershire’s failing children’s services include the possibility of a new company being responsible for parts of the department.
There are two types of model being recommended for cabinet to take forward to phase two of consultations, after the county council’s children services were rated inadequate in January.
The two recommendations include the idea that a partnership with another local authority could be formed or a new company could take responsibility for delivering parts of children's services.
The next stage of deciding how Children's Social Care Services are to be delivered in the future will be agreed by Worcestershire County Council's Cabinet later this month.
Councillor Andy Roberts, cabinet member with responsibility for children and families, said: "We remain committed and determined to improve the lives of children and young people in Worcestershire.
“Our vision is for Worcestershire to be a wonderful place for all children and young people to grow up and ensuring we have the right way of delivering children's social care for our county is a priority for us.
"We will be doing everything we can in the coming months to keep families, staff and partners informed of progress and where possible, involve them with shaping how we deliver our services for the future."
In September 2017, following the Worcestershire Children's Commissioner report, the Department of Education directed that the county council should move the operational delivery of Social Care Services for children to an Alternative Delivery Model (ADM).
This means that the council will no longer have the responsibility of operationally delivering these services it currently provides and will move to an alternative way of delivering these services.
There are 2 key phases; phase 1 involves a complete review of the types of ADMs available with recommended options agreed by cabinet later this month, subject to ministerial approval.
Phase 2 will include a detailed explanation on how the recommended models will be put into place and what's included in scope. This phase needs to be completed by the end of March 2018.
To read more, visit http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/childrensadm
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