Children's sector leaders outline improvement agenda

A memorandum of understanding between the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS), Local Government Association (LGA) and Society of Local Authority Chief Executives (Solace) outlines the roles each organisation will play in improving children’s services and the key principles underpinning this. 

Signed by ADCS president Andrew Webb, Solace chief executive Mark Rogers and chair of the LGA's Children and Young People Board David Simmonds, the memorandum was drawn up in light of the withdrawal of Department for Education funding for the Children’s Improvement Board (CIB), the body jointly run by the LGA, Solace and ADCS to co-ordinate sector-wide improvement initiatives and work, which held its last meeting on 12 July.

The CIB director Colin Hilton left at the end of last month leading to concerns in the sector that the improvement agenda could stagnate if new arrangements weren’t put in place quickly to replace it.

The three partner bodies have now agreed to take on different aspects of the CIB’s functions to ensure its work continues, but with it becoming part of the LGA’s wider sector-led improvement service.

The memorandum says: “The three-way partnership between DCSs, chief executives and lead members is critical and remains central to driving sector-led improvement nationally, regionally and locally. We encourage all regions to use the memorandum we have agreed as the basis for the future governance of their sector-led improvement work.”

At the core of the memorandum is the understanding that councils are responsible for their own improvement, but that LGA, Solace and ADCS will promote good practice locally, regionally and nationally around service design, delivery and performance monitoring.

Under the agreement, ADCS and Solace will attend LGA children's board meetings, while discussions will take place on a joint approach to the thorny issues of defining what “good” services look like, an inspection system that is “fit for purpose”, guidance on the future shape of children’s services, and the role DCSs play in that.

The LGA has also agreed a package on sector-led improvement in children’s services it will offer to councils. This includes free places at leadership academies for lead members for children, joint leadership programmes for DCSs, chief executives and lead members, and direct work supporting councils in difficulty.