From Act to Practice : Phase 2 : Supporting the Implementation of the Children's Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 Evaluation Report

The Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 was introduced to modernise and strengthen the children’s hearings system and deliver better outcomes for children. Clan Childlaw Limited and the Centre for Excellence for Looked After Children in Scotland (CELCIS) were commissioned to develop and deliver a programme of information seminars to support the implementation of the Act. These were known as From Act to Practice and were delivered prior to the Act coming into force. Key findings from this programme indicated the need for a further series of events giving detailed guidance about the Act and offering opportunities for organisations to share good practice. To respond to this, From Act to Practice 2 (FATP2) was devised. FATP2 was delivered from April to December 2014, i.e. after the Act came into force. The FATP2 programme consisted of a series of 13 half-day events including one symposium for strategic managers, four seminars for middle managers and eight practice development seminars for front-line practitioners. The aims of the programme are detailed in the full report

Measuring Children and Young People's Outcomes in Residential Education

This study evaluates an outcomes framework consisting of a bank of outcomes, a set of tools and associated processes specifically developed by the Educating through Care Scotland (EtCS) group for use by residential providers of education and care. A group of 11 providers piloted the framework over an 18-month period. These providers met regularly to share learning and there was further input from four secure care providers with growing experience of using outcomes. The study was conducted using a range of different methods to collect data throughout the pilot process and drew on a wide range of perspectives including workers, managers, children and young people and commissioners. The report details the background and context of the pilot, the methods used in the study and the key findings. These cover the pilot process itself, the individual parts of the framework and various issues that arose as the providers tested and developed the framework. The report also draws out a number of wider learning points which may be of interest to others developing or implementing outcomes approaches

Perth and Kinross Council Transitions within the Community Project : Evaluation Report

This document reports the findings of an evaluation of the Transitions within the Community Project in Perth and Kinross (The Project). The evaluation was commissioned by Perth and Kinross Council and conducted by researchers from CELCIS at the University of Strathclyde. The Project is a change programme designed to reshape services for children and young people with Learning Disability, Additional Support Needs and Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties. The Project is a ‘preventative spend’ measure financed through around £805,000 provided through the Investment and Improvement Fund (IIF). It aims to ameliorate a projected overspend for Education and Children’s Services of around £1,000,000 per annum and annually increasing costs of around £400,000 to Housing and Community Care Services for young people transitioning to adult services. A simultaneous dual aim was to improve services by helping more young people with Learning Disability, Additional Support Needs and Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties to be part of their local community. The Evaluation is based on data and information gathered by Perth and Kinross Council over the duration of the Project; this material has been supplemented by some new interview data gathered by the researchers. As a result of this mixed approach to data collection, the evaluation has a number of strengths and limitations; these are discussed in the report

Improving Educational Outcomes for Children Looked after at Home : The Perspectives of Designated Managers for Looked after Children

The educational attainment of looked after children in Scotland remains low compared with children who are not looked after, especially for children who are looked after at home. This briefing describes an action research programme led by CELCIS, exploring how the barriers to looked after children’s learning can be overcome. Designated Managers for looked after children (DMs), pastoral staff and education officers in four local authorities were asked to describe the learning journey of the looked after children within their schools. Staff from early-years’ centres, primary schools and secondary schools were consulted. The consultation was intended to inform current work by CELCIS using improvement methodology to test practice aimed at achieving positive educational outcomes for looked after children

Contested views of expertise in children's care and permanence proceedings

In this article, we consider different perspectives on who is best able to provide relevant and helpful expertise in public law cases where the long-term care of children is under consideration. Opinions vary and sometimes conflict on the respective importance of legal, child development, and lay understandings. These opinions relate to views on rights, appropriate procedures, decision-making processes, and the effects of decisions on children. Firstly, we summarise literature relevant to the knowledge and skills of three key groups of decision-makers within the Scottish child care system: legal professionals, child care professionals and lay decision-makers, and outline literature about guardiansad litemand their counterparts. We then discuss issues of expertise emerging from a study exploring the reasons for, and impact of, the appointment of safeguarders (who, in Scotland, perform a similar role to guardians). We conclude that there may be an increasing tendency for disagreement and a lack of clarity about who brings the most relevant and helpful expertise to hearings; this may have negative effects for children

Annex to : Supporting Kinship Families: Bibliography from the Evaluation of the Notre Dame Centre’s Support Programme for Kinship Families

This bibliography contains references and (where available) abstracts for 56 sources identified during the evaluation of the Notre Dame Kinship support service and related activities. We report that evaluation as a separate document. We reproduce these details verbatim as harvested from relevant databases; the content belongs to the relevant authors who should be cited if their work is used. We hope this list is interesting and helpful. Beyond inclusion in this list, we do not provide any comment or analysis; readers will make up their own minds about the relevance to their needs of each source. This bibliography is based on academic sources that we have come across during our work – it does not reflect a systematic search. We expect that other sources, particularly grey-literature sources, are also likely to be relevant. We know that those working for children’s services may find it difficult to access some academic papers; readers are welcome to contact CELCIS using the contact details on the back cover for assistance in accessing these and similar sources

Supporting Kinship Families : Final Report from the Evaluation of the Notre Dame Centre's Support Programme for Kinship Families

This is the final report for the evaluation of the Notre Dame support service for kinship families. The aim is present the findings and conclusions of the evaluation and, where it is helpful, to provide some background and explanation

The Appointment of Safeguarders in the Children's Hearings System : Research Report and Action Plan

Safeguarders may be appointed by children’s hearings or courts in cases where it is thought necessary in the interests of the child. Their primary role is to make an independent assessment of what plans and arrangements are in the child’s best interests and to provide a report based on that assessment to assist decision-making. Since the introduction of safeguarders to the hearings system three decades ago, they have made a valued contribution. Some concerns were voiced by a number of local authority professionals to the CELCIS Permanence and Care team (PaCT) in 2013 about safeguarder appointments in relation to the permanence process. These included stated views that, in some cases, involvement of safeguarders may lead to ‘unnecessary delays’ and hamper the timely placement of looked after children with a permanent family. The present study was carried out by the PaCT researcher to explore this further, to assessreasons for the appointment of safeguarders by the hearings and to examine the impact of their involvement on subsequent decisions about recommendations by panel members1 . Whilst the research emanated from concerns about the permanence process, it explored perceptions of strengths and concerns in relation to the appointment and practice of safeguarders more generally. The study took place at a time of significant changes to the way in which safeguarders are recruited, trained, appointed and managed with the introduction of new Regulations and the creation of a national Safeguarders Panel

Randomisation before consent : avoiding delay to time-critical intervention and ensuring informed consent

Peer reviewedPostprin