Island’s Social Services ‘On The Right Track’

Recruiting staff and prioritising services are the key challenges for Shetland Islands Council’s social work department, according to its chief officer. Brian Doughty’s comments came after the Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) determined that the isles social care services delivered well for many people in the isles.

The agency said this was particularly true for older people and those with learning disabilities. Presenting their inspection report to a meeting of the council’s social work committee yesterday afternoon, the agency’s lead inspector Katie Lamb said that Shetland had achieved a good report “overall”.

The 84 page report comes at a time when there are huge pressures on social care services in the light of an ageing population and the council is trying to keep its spending under control. Weaknesses listed in the service and its management were:

• some gaps in the services provided;
• the slow pace of change;
• an increasing demand on services;
• the need for more strategic service development;
• weak financial planning;
• lack of staff awareness of policies and procedures; and
• weaknesses in adult protection procedures.

Ms Lamb said she and her team had received a very thorough insight into social care work in Shetland when they interviewed staff, clients and management. She said staff and management were “not resting on their laurels” and there was a clear commitment toward continuous service improvement. “We got some sense of the challenges of delivering social services in such a remote area,” she added.

She listed strong points as:

• a good outcome for people who use the service;
• positive feedback about the service from clients;
• committed and motivated staff;
• good strategic leadership;
• staff undertaking effective assessment and case management;
• many high quality services; and
• commitment towards service improvement.

The SWIA made 19 recommendations, including advice to ensure that service plans were more clearly linked to available resources. Management must now prepare an action plan to implement the improvements. The agency will revisit Shetland within the next 12 months for a follow up inspection.

Mr Doughty, who was brought in a year ago to make the department more effective, said that he was delighted by the report as it showed that they were heading in the right direction. “The report shows that Shetland Islands Council has a really good foundation now to move forward,” he said. “The report says that our capacity for continuous improvement is good, and I think that is one of the most important things, as well as providing good outcomes for people.

“The issues in Shetland are not financial. It’s a people issue. Our ability to access the staff required to continue and provide the whole range of services that are currently provided, and that will be needed in the future, is the greatest challenge. We do need to develop a comprehensive work force strategy, but at some stage we have also to prioritise who receives services. That is the most important issue Shetland has to face,” he said.

The services committee also received the results of an inspection report into the criminal justice service in the isles. Inspector Willie Paxton praised the service as one of the best in the country with highly motivated and competent staff that were meeting the nationally set key objectives and delivered an “impressive community service scheme”.