Stoke scraps director of children's services role

The council has announced that Sharon Menghini, the council’s current director of children’s services, will leave the council at the end of March. The management of children’s social care will be merged with adult services.

Adult services director Tony Oakman will take on responsibility for handling children’s social care and areas such as children’s centres. He will be assisted by an interim children’s director during the merger.

In a statement the council said it is looking to create a people’s directorate covering adult and children’s services. It added: "During this time Tony will be supported by an interim director of children's services to fulfil the statutory requirements."

A council spokesman said that the council would make no further comment about the restructure or Menghini’s departure.

A survey of 58 councils by the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) and the National College published last year found that a third either no longer have a director of children’s services or are planning to change the role by splitting children’s social care and education or merging adult and children’s services.

Reasons highlighted in the survey included the need to cut the senior management wage bill.

Professor Eileen Munro’s child protection review last year urged councils to keep the director of children’s services role.

In January this year Slough Borough Council announced it was to axe its director of education and children’s services post as part of a management restructure.

The need to save money and the reduction of the council’s involvement in education, caused by the expansion of free schools and academies, were cited as factors in the move.

ADCS president Matt Dunkley said that it could no longer be taken for granted that every local authority will have a dedicated director of children’s services.

"It is understandable that, with budgets under pressure across public services, local authorities are looking for ways to focus their resources on the frontline by reviewing the role and number of senior managers, and local authorities must have the freedom to decide the structures that best reflect the needs of their communities."

Dunkley said that some senior managers with wider responsibilities report benefits from aligning services for families under one director.

However, he stressed: "It would be remiss not to sound a note of caution – Professor Munro’s recent review of child protection warns against expanding the responsibilities of the DCS beyond the core remit of education and children’s social care.

"What is vitally important is that local authorities ask themselves serious questions about these arrangements."

Andy McCullough, UK head of policy and public affairs at charity Railway Children, said: "While we appreciate the pressures local authorities face, decision makers should not make cuts that will simply lead to a false economy."

Describing the move to scrap the role of children’s services director as a "backwards step", McCullough added: "Effective safeguarding of children has never been more critical and must be led by champions with expertise in child protection, otherwise more children and young people will be put in danger."