1.6.5 Quality Assurance Framework for Children's Social Care in Oxfordshire |
Contents
- Background
- Definitions and Roles
- Coordination
- Front-line Practitioners
- The Quality Assurance Framework
1.
Background
This framework seeks to provide a significantly enhanced Quality Assurance dimension to our work in social care, by creating a consistent and transparent approach to monitoring and audit.
2. Definitions and Roles
- 'Inspection': a prolonged visit by managers and staff from County-wide services and from another area, to interview staff, review case files, observe practice, assess workflow, to assure that safeguarding systems and practitioners are operating effectively
- Audit: the review of case files against agreed and published criteria, to assure that the evidence on file supports that the key practice steps (referral, assessment, planning, implementation, review) are conducted appropriately, in a timely way, and reflect managerial oversight and contribution. This will often be conducted by managers 'off line' or more distant in the structure from practice
- Monitoring: the ongoing process of assuring quality through regular sampling, case file review, review as part of supervision, case transfer, closure etc. This will more often be conducted by a local or line manager
- Focus groups: groups of front-line staff, managers, convened by senior leaders and managers to ensure that they are appraised of the experiences of, and issues faced by, staff delivering key safeguarding and CLA services.
3. Coordination
To ensure the framework is implemented consistently, lessons learned and corrective action taken in a timely way, two strands will operate:
- Those conducting activity will liaise directly with the relevant social worker and manager, to let them know of the QA activity, to ask questions about issues raised in audit, and to provide feedback
- The full range of QA activity, and the outcomes, will be coordinated within the CPQA service, in conjunction with the Strategic Lead, Protection and Prevention. This will ensure that key activities and results are coherently managed, so that emerging issues and themes are tracked, and so that additional, responsive QA activity is commissioned
4. Front-line Practitioners
Our front-line staff need to be engaged in the purpose and process of Quality Assurance, by their first-line managers and by all involved in the process. The process must be inclusive, doing 'with' staff, rather than doing 'to' them. They will be well-placed to assess the quality of what they do, the constraints they experience in delivering quality, and to learn from an inclusive process through which to improve their practice. Those conducting the inspections, audits and monitoring, and those coordinating the programme share responsibility for involving practitioners.
5. The QA Framework
1. "Peer Inspection"
| Role | QA Task | Frequency | Purpose |
| Area HoS; Strategic Lead; ASM; UM; Lead Officer, SM, CPQA | Area Peer Review: team led by AHoS conducts a 2-day Safeguards review in each area team
|
1 Review per area per annum Initial pilot across all 3 areas 2009 |
Detailed, 'deep dive' peer review, mimicking new OfSTED model Gather assurance about service standards and quality from a range of sources |
2. Elected members and Chief Executive Responsibility
| Role | QA Task | Frequency | Purpose |
Elected Members
Chief Executive |
Monitor Performance via Cabinet, Corporate Parenting Panel |
Quarterly |
To monitor performance, practice, decision-making and outcomes |
| QA via Fostering and Adoption Panels | Monthly panel meetings | ||
| Visits to Children's Homes | Monthly visiting rota |
To meet young people, discuss and monitor the care provided | |
| Visits to Area SW teams for informal discussion with front-line staff | 6-monthly visits to area teams | To meet and review practice pressures and issues with front-line staff | |
| Monitoring via 1:1 with Director, and quarterly performance reviews | Monthly monitoring Quarterly Review | To maintain overview of service and performance issues | |
| 6-monthly meeting with Director and senior manager for children's social care to focus on service outcomes, pressures, quality issues | Twice yearly | Detailed discussion to reflect accountabilities for outcomes for Children in Need of protection and safeguarding | |
| Annual focus group with front-line social workers and managers to review service issues, pressures, outcomes, good practice examples | Annual | To hear from front-line staff about what works, where improvement is needed etc. |
3. QA Monitoring (Director and Service Responsibilities)
| Role | QA Task | Frequency | Purpose |
| Director, Children, Young People and Families | Lead focus group discussion with front-line social care managers, with a focus on:
|
Annual
|
To gather assurance about service standards
|
| Lead focus group discussion with newly qualified SWs | 6-monthly | To establish the experiences of NQSWs joining OCC | |
| Review and scrutinise key performance measures | Quarterly Performance Review | To gather assurance on performance and outcomes, holding HoS accountable as appropriate | |
| Area Head of Service | Audit 2 case files
|
Quarterly
|
Monitor case records, quality of assessment, planning, management analysis, decision-making, evidence of multi-disciplinary activity |
| Audit 2 supervision files | Quarterly | ||
Lead focus group discussion with front-line staff |
Two focus groups per annum | To gather assurance about practice and service standards, and provide opportunity for front-line staff to air concerns etc | |
| Monitor and scrutinise performance data via area dashboard | Monthly | To monitor and scrutinise performance data | |
| Strategic Leads | Audit 2 case files
|
Monthly
|
Monitor case records, quality of assessment, planning, management analysis, decision-making, evidence of multi-disciplinary activity Identify 'best practice' and Publicise/roll out to other teams |
| Audit 2 supervision files | Monthly | ||
Lead peer case audit Days |
Quarterly | ||
| Hold service user focus groups (including participation in parent-carer Sounding Boards, regular meetings with Children In Care Council)Collate, analyse and share relevant feedback from other Area based user consultations including complaints | 6-Monthly | To assess quality of service based on user experience | |
| Maintain county overview of PIs | Monthly | Identify and address patterns/geographical differences. | |
| Review processes/systems across county (with lead ASMs) | 6 monthly | Assure consistency and avoid risk of 'post code lottery'. | |
| Review Care Proceedings | Weekly (legal panel case minutes)Annual audit of care proceedings | Monitor quality and consistency of decision making (in 'real time' and in relation to care proceedings data) | |
| County-wide Service Managers | Audit 2 carers files |
Monthly |
Ensure children living away from home are receiving safe care |
| Audit 2 supervision files | Monthly | Assure quality of reflection; challenge; planning via supervision | |
| Monitor 'Out of County' Placement quality, and planning for children placed out of county | At Statutory Review | Provider delivering good quality placements appropriate to needs. No child/YP remains away from Oxon longer than they need to. | |
| Area Service Managers | Audit 2 case files |
Monthly |
Monitor case records, quality of assessment, planning, management analysis, decision-making, evidence of multi-disciplinary activity |
| Audit 2 supervision files | Monthly | ||
| Participate in peer case audit days | Quarterly | ||
| Monitor CLA /LC reviews | As completed | Address poor quality reports and identify/circulate 'best' practice | |
| Review CP monitoring forms | As received from the Independent Chairs | To monitor quality of CP and CLA practice and reporting across county | |
| Hold Quality Review meeting with SM, Sand QA: focus on CP, CLA reporting, planning etc | Bi- monthly | Ensure practice and quality issues are understood and addressed | |
| Team Manager | Audit cases at closure |
On closure
|
Ensure objectives are met, Chronologies checked for gaps/trends, key data recorded, overall quality of work acceptable and exit plan in place |
Quality Assure key aspects of work/recording:
|
As completed / signed off | Quality of work / practice standards addressed in 'real time' | |
Monitor key quality and performance issues: PIs plus:
|
Monthly | Monitor and scrutinise performance within their team | |
| Observe 2 home visits/core groups ensuring that each social worker/SP's practice is observed at least once annually | Bi-monthly | Monitor practice standards | |
| Monitor service user feedback (key themes/ | Report quarterly on key themes and action taken | Monitor practice and extent to which individual / team practice changes / develops. | |
| Asst UM | Quality Assure/overview:
|
At 'sign off' points |
Assure relevant information informs appropriate and proportionate action, and that all timeframes are adhered to |
| Sample audit recording of Family Support Workers | 3-monthly | Assure practice and recording are appropriate |
4. CPQA Audit and QA Responsibilities
| Role | QA Task | Frequency | Purpose |
| Head of Service, CPQA | Audit 2 sets of CP Conference records
|
Monthly |
Monitor quality of QA processes |
| Audit 2 sets of CLA Review records | Monthly | ||
| Attend ICs team meeting | 6 monthly | To gather information and assurance about practice and service standards, and provide opportunity for Chairs to air concerns not picked up by other processes | |
| Lead Officer, S and QA | Undertake dip samples of CP cases |
Quarterly |
Monitor quality of QA processes |
| Undertake dip samples of CLA cases | Quarterly | ||
Maintain overview of relevant PIs Report to Area Heads and Strategic Leads re info from ICS monitoring re Family Involvement; report and plan quality; non-compliance re actions; and resource shortfalls |
Quarterly | Collate and distribute key management information and suggest possible corrective action | |
| Monitor Complaints and action plans arising from complaints against Children's social Care to ensure they are collated and disseminated | 6 monthly | To ensure lessons learnt are assimilated and shared across the service | |
| Monitor compliance with expectations regarding frequency and inclusiveness of Core Group working | Quarterly | To assure multi-agency working is effective, reporting to DLT and OSCB | |
| Service Manager, S and QA | Audit 2 sets of CO Conference records |
Monthly |
Ensure rigour of QA |
| Audit 2 sets of CLA Review records | Monthly | Collate and distribute key management information and suggest possible corrective action | |
| Report to Area Heads and Strategic Leads re ICs monitoring re Family Involvement; report and plan quality; non-compliance re actions; and resource shortfalls | 6 monthly |
||
| Lead / participate in DLT / DST / SPIG commissioned audits | Quarterly | Regular 'drilling down', responsive to changing intelligence about trends, pressures, possible areas of weakness | |
| Monitor and report key PIs | Monthly | ||
| Independent Chair | Monitor:
|
At every meeting |
Measure involvement of and partnership with families for overview and feedback to frontline managers Assuring standards of assessment and planning; measure and report on follow through |
| Participate in / undertake larger audits commissioned by DLT. DST / SPIG | Quarterly | Regular drilling down responsive to changing surface intelligence about possible areas of weakness |
End