Simone White, Deputy Director for Children, introduced the Wirral Improvement Board Data Tracker for May 2018.  The Data Tracker, which set out performance for a set of key performance measures related to the child’s journey, plus measures related to staffing in Children’s Social Care, is produced monthly for the Improvement Board and shared with the Wirral Safeguarding Children Board.  Submission to this Committee had arisen following a Reality Check Visit undertaken in February 2018 and reported at the meeting of this Committee held in March 2018.

In introducing the report, the Deputy Director advised on the construction of the Data Tracker.  Of the data provided, some was demand led, some processed efficiency data, some outcome data, or was data required to do the job.  The outcome data, while the most important produced, was the most difficult to measure and assess.  As an example of the difficulty, an increase in the number of children in care might be a ‘good’ result if this was right for the children involved, or a ‘bad’ result if it was wrong for the children involved.  Other outcome data such as educational achievement, or care leavers in education / employment or in good accommodation, were likewise all capable of being read in other ways or of needing supporting detail.

Demand led data was presented by benchmark or trend, and as presented followed a child’s journey through the service.  If figures showed a variance with the benchmarks or trends, this was investigated to see what had changed.  An example in the submitted report was where the number of recorded contacts appeared to have risen significantly; this was as a result of all contacts now being recorded in one system which gave a better analysis and clear oversight of practice, ensuring all information on cases was recorded to help improve practice.  Process efficiency data considered timelines such as assessments, conferences etc. which were important, but a parallel consideration was quality and there was the issue of how to measure the quality of, for example, assessments and apply this against other considerations. 

Particular issues highlighted arising from the monthly Data Tracker included –

·  the number of assessments completed within timescales in April was better than the year end figure, but remained too low.  Action was being taken to ensure the timely opening of cases on the system, which should not be done until such time as they are to be completed;

·  there had been no major changes in child protection numbers or plans, or in the overall numbers of children looked after.  While there was a need to safely reduce the numbers of children looked after, the number had now remained steady for five months, rather than continuing to increase;

·  there was little significant change to report in staffing.  It was, however, an identified area for improvement to reduce the current social care vacancy rate and sickness rates in the service as part of the wider approach to create a stable, high quality workforce.

Councillor David Burgess-Joyce commented on the reported high level of vacancies and sickness which would have implications of reduced capacity and a lack of staff in attendance.  The Deputy Director further advised that management were working hard on the issues identified, and that advanced practitioners were currently holding casework which was not intended to be the case.  With regard to sickness, the overall rate was reducing and issues of long term sickness were being progressed.

With reference to the benchmarking referenced in the Data Tracker, Councillor Andrew Hodson queried the comparator authorities and who identified them.  The Deputy Director advised that they were set nationally and a range of factors were considered to determine the benchmark groups.  The groups might not always contain authorities of a similar size which was why figures were presented on a per 10,000 population basis.

RESOLVED –

That the report and the performance data set out in the Data Tracker be noted.