by Danielle Swainston, Executive Director of Children and Family Services at Redcar and Cleveland Council
Happy New Year! I think I can still say this in the first few weeks of January. I hope you all managed to have some chill out time with your loved ones. I had the luxury of being off for two weeks over Christmas and New Year and thoroughly enjoyed it. We had our Standard ILACS inspection before Christmas and I must say I was ready for a break!
I ended up reflecting quite a lot on the inspection while I was off (no such thing as switching off!). We very much see inspection as a learning opportunity at Redcar and Cleveland as we continue our improvement journey. Our inspectors were respectful and offered us opportunities to share what we felt was going well, whilst also holding up a mirror about what we could improve. I was incredibly proud of our children in care and care leavers who were so pleased to share their achievements with inspectors. I was also proud to hear my workers talking with great passion about the support they were offering to help children stay with their families, and for those that couldn’t stay with their families, what we are doing to help them thrive.
One of the areas I spent the most time discussing with inspectors was our approach to sufficiency. In Redcar and Cleveland, too many children are currently living in unregistered provision, and for a small number of children this means they do not yet have certainty about where their long-term home will be. This is not good enough for our children, and I do not underestimate the impact that uncertainty has on them.
With the full support of our elected members, we have therefore strengthened our sufficiency plans, with a clear focus on improving stability and securing better long-term outcomes for children in our care. A central part of this work is our commitment to being an active partner in the development of a Regional Care Co-operative, which I strongly believe has the potential to make a real difference in helping us to find permanent, stable homes for our children.
The development of Regional Care Co-operatives is set out in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, and the Department for Education has already supported two areas nationally – South East and Greater Manchester – to pilot this approach. Over the past 12 months, I have worked alongside colleagues from the North East local authorities to explore what a North East Regional Care Co-operative could look like, including the governance arrangements needed to support its successful development and delivery.
This work has been led with great commitment and expertise by John Pearce, former Director of Children’s Services for Durham. Following his departure from Durham, I will now take on this leadership role on behalf of the North East ADCS. I am grateful that John has agreed to continue supporting the region as we refine our plans and prepare for submission to the Department for Education once further national guidance is published.
For me, sufficiency is not simply about meeting inspection requirements; it reflects how seriously we take our responsibility to our children in care. Every child deserves a safe, stable place to call home, where they feel secure and able to thrive. While the challenges are complex, I feel that collaboration across the region will help us achieve this for our children.