For most of the twentieth century a child in the care of the state in England had no route to challenge how they were treated. Parents whose children were removed had little more. The Short Report in 1984 described a care system children disappeared into with almost no independent scrutiny of the decisions made about […]
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Learning from repeating themes in social care complaint investigations
Three months after a decision is made, I often cannot tell whether it was a good one. Neither can a complaints panel. And that, not bad practice, is what most upheld complaints come down to. I’ve written for Children & Young People Now about the patterns that repeat across statutory social care complaint investigations, and […]
What happens when a complaint reaches stage 2
The piece is on what happens when a complaint reaches stage 2 and an independent investigator gets involved. After more than 75 stage 2 investigations across more than 15 local authorities, the patterns are consistent, and they are not always what practitioners expect. The substantive decision is usually defensible. It is almost always the process […]
What good governance actually looks like when it matters
Most charities have policies. Fewer have the clarity that holds things together when the pressure is on. My guest blog for VONNE, the North East’s voluntary sector network, looks at what good governance really means when it matters.