Grey areas

Back in June, we reported on a planned shake-up of Safeguarding Children Boards in England and echoed those who wondered if Wales would ever get around to following suit.

Today, the Assembly’s Health, Wellbeing and Local Government Committee published its own report into Local Safeguarding Children Boards in Wales and among the 20 recommendations is that the Welsh Government issues guidance to “clarify the specific focus of LSCBs and their role in holding other partnerships to account”. It also says that ministers should address “differing safeguarding thresholds” held by agencies throughout 22 local authority areas.

As we highlighted some time ago, the current system allowed the Swansea LSCB to delay publication of a serious case review into the death of a youngster by nearly three years. The final document was a heavily watered down version of critical findings and blurred an earlier assignment of blame. Questions were also raised about an apparent conflict of interest when it transpired that the chairman of the Swansea LSCB was also director of Swansea social services.

The investigating Assembly Committee, under the chairmanship of Darren Millar, says it has "uncovered grey areas". It is to be hoped that such euphemisms do not get in the way of root & branch reforms clearly needed to ensure a switch in emphasis towards real improvements rather than the culture of collective evasion that is presently allowed to exist among the “professionals”.