In July 2019, Barnet council’s children and family services department received a “good” rating from Ofsted. It was a fantastic moment, says Brigitte Jordaan, director of children social care at the borough – but it was just the start of its ongoing improvement journey. “We allowed everyone a little bit of time to understand and enjoy the significance of our achievement,” she says. “But we quickly regrouped to say: we don’t stop here.”
“Having been recognised as a good authority means that we have the systems and ability to provide a good service for every child. What we need to make sure is that we consistently do our best for every child. We’re not complacent. We’re now moving into the next phase of our work for families, because we know where the improvement gaps remain. We know what we need to do to make sure that every child and family gets the best possible service.”
The department had been through some tough times: just two years before, Ofsted had rated it “inadequate”, citing issues such as lack of good training, problems recruiting and retaining permanent staff, and unfocused intervention. But leaders took action rapidly to get the department back on track in its vital work with children at risk.
They immediately introduced a team of practice development workers: experienced social workers who would work alongside the existing team to model good practice and to help them develop intervention skills, bringing training into day-to-day practice. More time for reflection was also encouraged. “The practice development team was invaluable,” says social worker Tom Jones, who started work at Barnet four months after the 2017 report.
“Management identified practice points that we needed help with, such as domestic violence, or how to engage with very young children. The practice development team would create training sessions on them, and they were super helpful. Then we could go away to put them into practice. And afterwards, I could approach someone on the floor and say either ‘this didn’t quite work’ or ‘this was amazing.’ And we could reflect on that and hone our skills.”
Training was focused on communities specific to Barnet: it’s one of the biggest and most diverse boroughs in London. “For example, we spent a day in a synagogue with members of the Jewish community,” says social worker Jonny Raven. “They explained about their culture and how best to engage with their community. That was a fantastic experience. Since then, I’ve worked with multiple Jewish families and I found that the stuff I learned from that training was very useful.”
Any culture change needs top-down support, and Barnet brought in systemic leadership training, enabling leaders to model good practice. “I feel that we have the backing and drive from senior management and heads of service,” says Alastair Fabian, assistant head of service for the intervention and planning service. “There is a flattened hierarchy here, and that’s not just policy fluff. Management are interested in new ideas from their staff. There’s a clear chain of command, but they’re also approachable.” And to make sure it stayed on track, the service introduced a brand-new quality-assurance strategy and procedure, auditing files and cases on a month-to-month basis.
But bringing focus right back to the child was key, says Jordaan: hence the All About Me initiative, reminding everyone that everything they did had to have the child front and centre. Every directors’ briefing, every service meeting, and every communication sent to staff and partners emphasised that fact. Social workers were given training in how best to capture the voice of the child, such as using specific artwork or games to encourage children to talk. Even the way they wrote up their assessments changed to put the child’s voice first.
“Now, someone can read the assessment and feel like they know that person or feel like the child is in the room with them,” says Jones. “The issues are centred on the child. I try to use direct quotes, their life in their words. Rather than talking about the problem straight away, we now talk about the child first.” The service has also strengthened its partnerships with both other parts of the council and external organisations such as schools, charities and the police, to ensure that everyone stays focused on the child.
And in July this year, when Ofsted returned, all that hard work paid off. The “good” rated report praised “tenacious and determined” social workers who clearly “knew their children well”.
Now, the next stage is beginning, with a continued focus on helping families to be resilient. “If families are resilient, then they don’t necessarily need statutory intervention – which means we don’t have to separate children from families,” says Jordaan.
“Barnet is about ensuring that families are supported to overcome difficulties and that when statutory intervention is required it is measured and purposeful – we work to keep families together and through the right plan at the right time this is possible. When children cannot remain with their families we need to ensure that the children in our care benefit from excellent foster care and that our offer as corporate parents is the best that it can be.”
We are currently recruiting for social work staff. For more information on our vacancies please visit our recruitment page: Barnet.gov.uk/itsallaboutme
