Nottingham child social services in “crisis” because of a lack of staff

Nottingham City Council is struggling to cope with child social services cases because of a lack of staff. It has written to schools, the NHS, voluntary groups and others asking them not to refer cases unless absolutely necessary.

Nottingham City Council now has 15 vacancies out of a total 96 frontline social workers, with a further ten positions filled by agency staff.

As a result 300 cases have had to be redistributed among remaining staff, meaning four more each on average. Some social workers now manage more than 20 cases.

In a letter to partners, Ian Curryer, corporate director for children and families, said: “We now have significant concerns that performance in all areas of the service and outcomes for children are being affected.”

He told the Post that some assessments had been delayed and staff were forced to take on cases they were unfamiliar with, although all children were still being seen by social workers. Mr Curryer has asked other agencies to deal with issues relating to cleanliness or nutrition, but if there was a concern about child protection, his staff would respond.

Mr Curryer said the shortage of social workers was due to a national recruitment problem exacerbated in Nottingham after Government intervention at councils in Doncaster, Rotherham, and Birmingham. They now offered better terms and city staff had been poached.

Jean Thorpe, a city social worker and Unison branch officer, said: “Locally, the service is in crisis. The safety of some children is inevitably compromised.”

We can protect the vulnerable, says kids’ chief

THE man in charge of child protection in Nottingham insists his staff can still care for the city’s vulnerable youngsters.

Ian Curryer, corporate director of children and family at Nottingham City Council, admitted the authority had a problem with a shortage of social workers but he said cases were still being managed.

The problem emerged when a letter from Mr Curryer to other organisations, like schools, the NHS and voluntary bodies, was leaked to the Nottingham Post.

It revealed there were 15 vacancies out of a frontline workforce of 96 social workers. In addition, ten agency staff are employed to cover other vacancies.

Mr Curryer told the Post some assessments of children were delayed as a result of the shortages but cases were not ignored.

“We have a lot of pressure on the existing social care work force,” he said. “They are having to double up and visit cases they may not be familiar with. But we are making sure we see children on their visits, even if it is a few days later.”

Mr Curryer said it was vital social workers ensured they saw children in their care, rather than relied on accounts of parents or carers.

An inquiry into the death of baby Peter Connelly in Haringey found social workers had visited but not seen the child in the months before he died.

Mr Curryer has written to other organisations asking them not to refer cases to social workers unless absolutely necessary.

In the letter, he said: “I am writing to ask that over the next few months partner agencies seek (wherever it is safe and appropriate to do so) to hold and deal with cases rather than referring through to social care services to enable us to stabilise the service.”

Mr Curryer told the Post the city council received twice as many child protection referrals as similar authorities.

He said where concerns related to problems such as cleanliness or nutrition, then schools or the NHS could deal with it, but if there were concerns about child protection they should still refer them to the city council.

He said the council needed to focus on the most complex cases. In 2008, the Post reported on six cases in the city where children died or were seriously injured from abuse or neglect after failings by child protection workers. At that time, Mr Curryer, who had just started in post, said services had improved and the department was fully staffed by regular and agency workers.

But unions voiced fears that social workers were over-stretched by an increase in cases and more paperwork.

Mr Curryer said the situation had deteriorated recently because the Government has intervened in social work departments in Doncaster, Rotherham and Birmingham.

Those councils have recruited more social workers, offering better terms, which has resulted in staff leaving Nottingham.

The problems in social care will be discussed at a meeting of the Young Nottingham Select Committee on Tuesday.

Jean Thorpe, a city social worker and Unison branch officer, said recruitment was a national problem.

She added: “Social workers are going out to families they are not familiar with and in some cases there is no continuity of service. This adds up to a dangerous situation. The impact on staff is horrendous. There are staff reporting panic attacks and huge amounts of unpaid overtime are being worked.”