Worry over number of checks on children

THE NUMBER of children being referred to children’s services in Wakefield on multiple occasions is “still too high”, the council has admitted.

Re- referrals occur when the local authority is advised to check on the well- being of a child within a year of their previous file having been closed.

Latest figures for July suggest these cases make up around 34 per cent of all children who have been referred to Wakefield Council, compared to a nationwide average of 24 per cent.

Speaking at a scrutiny meeting, the council’s service director for children’s social care, Vicky Schofield, said “too many” children were being referred for a second or third time to the service. However, no children have been left at risk as a result of their file being closed, she added.

Significant progress has taken place at Wakefield’s children’s services since it was placed in special measures by Ofsted in 2018. Council bosses are expecting Ofsted to fully re- inspect the department some time after April 2021 and are hopeful of an improved rating.

The meeting heard that improvements made included a big reduction in the number of cases that individual social workers have on their plates, after Ofsted said staff were critically overworked two years ago.

Labour councillor Kevin Swift questioned whether some cases were being closed too quickly to keep caseloads lower and this was affecting re- referral numbers, but Ms Schofield said only around 10 per cent of its re- referrals could have been prevented with an additional piece of work or an intervention.