Failing Essex social services will get £90m

A £90 MILLION rescue package for the county’s failing social services department has been unveiled after a Chronicle exposé into how children were left in the care of paedophiles.

Social services chiefs have revealed an ambitious three-year action plan to turn the ‘inadequate’ rated department around by:

●Investing £50million over the next four years

●Redirecting a further £40million of savings over the same period

●Employing 90 new social workers with strong backgrounds in child protection

●Launching recruitment drives in universities and even in Australia and New Zealand, where there is a ready-made network of experienced and qualified social workers.

In an exclusive interview with the Chronicle, county hall bosses admitted failings highlighted in a damning Ofsted report published three weeks ago, but announced a raft of immediate changes addressing weaknesses.

A number of members of staff have ‘moved on’ after a revamp of senior management with new ‘experienced’ directors with ‘good track records of improving child protection services’ being poached from other authorities.

The Safe Guarding Children’s Board, which independently investigates social care cases, has been beefed up with a third team of eight experts from various partners, including the police.

Deputy leader and cabinet member for children Peter Martin said: “We were found to be adequate overall which is still unacceptable. There were some very good points that came out of the review but that doesn’t excuse the inadequate rating in safeguarding children.

“We’re not apathetic to the areas we need to improve and take it very seriously, which is why we are investing this significant amount of money.”

Executive Director for Schools, Children and Families, Graham Tombs said: “We’re building a team for the future – we are recruiting ready-made social workers now as an immediate solution but we are focusing on homegrown talent for the future.

“However, we need to remember our social workers are champions. They deal with very difficult cases that you and I struggle to believe exist in this day and age.”

And the duo also revealed ambitions to get the authority rated ‘outstanding’ by 2012.

The news comes on the back of a Chronicle investigation into a shocking case in which mistakes by social services left three children in the care of a mother who neglected and allowed them to visit paedophiles.

Essex County Council is currently conducting a serious case review into the way it handled the investigation which spanned seven years with social services never making a move to remove the children from their mother’s care – despite dozens of warnings from neighbours, teachers and an MP.

The case came to light with the life imprisonment of Chelmsford paedophile Richard Moulding, 61, in July last year when he pleaded guilty to 22 charges of sickening sex offences against six children, which he filmed at his caravan in Halstead over a 14 years.

Police found evidence of the abuse on 27 DVDs and two video tapes when police raided the caravan in September 2007 after one of his victims, a girl under 10, revealed what he had subjected her to.