Safeguarding and looked after children Survey of children’s social work practitioners Results for Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council 2010 (Dud ’10) (No. of responses = 31) With comparison: Local Authorities Overall 2010 (NAT ’10) (Base = 4146) Date: May 2010

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 2  This is the first annual survey of social work practitioners in every local authority in England.  The social work practitioner survey was conducted in tandem with a survey for third sector organisations. This report only shows the results from the social work practitioner survey; a separate report is available showing the third sector results.  These results will be used in the planning of inspections in the same way as other pre-inspection material, namely:  as part of preparation, as an aid to formulating hypotheses and to guide the scope of the inspection.  to help inform decision making about the scheduling of inspections.  Inspection judgements will not however be based on survey results, nor will we make comparisons between local authorities. As such, this report will only contain results for your local authority and the national results. Survey background

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 3 How to use this report  This report has been designed to help you easily understand and interpret the results of the survey and is intended to provide an overview of your area results in the context of the wider survey findings.  It is divided into eight sections: Induction (if applicable); training, workload, line management, organisational learning, communications, equality and diversity and the running of the service.  Anonymised verbatim comments for your LA are also available in a separate report where you can read social work practitioner’s views on the strengths and areas for improvement associated with safeguarding and looked after children in your LA.  % positive scores are featured throughout this report. These refer to the combination of positive responses e.g. strongly agree & agree. Aggregated % positive scores may vary +/- 1 percentage point after rounding.  As with any survey of this nature, we would encourage you to share and discuss these results with social work practitioners in your LA.  A total of 4146 social work practitioners took part in the survey overall, including 31 in this local authority.  Percentages do not always sum to 100%, this is due to rounding and removal of not stated responses.

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 4 Survey methodology  All eligible social work practitioners (defined as professionally qualified social workers registered with the General Social Care Council who work directly with children and young people) were invited to take part.  Survey completion period ran from 22nd February - 2nd April  An appointed LA contact was responsible for distributing the survey internally to all eligible social work practitioners via .  The survey was administered primarily online. The survey was hosted by Ipsos MORI and all completed surveys were received directly back to Ipsos MORI.  Survey branded s and letter heads were provided to help LA’s to communicate the survey internally.

Inductions

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 6 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 My workplace induction covered what I needed to know in relation to safeguarding children and young people 5051 My induction prepared me for my specific role 5047 Views on workplace induction For those in post for less than 3 years: Base: 12 : asked to all those in their current post for less than 3 yearsN.B. Results should be treated with caution due to the low base size

About training

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 8 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 My training and development needs are identified through my formal appraisals 6861 There is sufficient training offered by my local authority 5566 Training received Thinking about both in-house and external training when answering Base: 31

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 9 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 …is relevant to my role in safeguarding children and young people 8781 …helps me to understand and meet the individual needs of children and young people 7178 …keeps me up to date with legislation and good practice requirements in relation to safeguarding children and young people 6571 Perceptions on the training provided The training organised for me by my local authority.... Base: 31

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 10 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 Social workers are actively encouraged to achieve post qualifying awards 3555 Post qualifying awards Base: 31

Workload

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 12 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 I feel I have sufficient time to work effectively with the children and young people who are on my workload 1020 Workload Base: 31

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 13 Views from those with insufficient time Reasons why insufficient time to work effectively with the needs of the children and young people on your workload? % Agree: multiple answers allowed NAT ’10 Due to time spent recording information electronically 55 Due to the volume of work I have to do 52 Due to the amount of paperwork involved 56 Due to an increase in demand 29 Due to a shortage of social workers 34 Due to the lack of support from managers 10 Other 7 Don’t know * Base: 21 : asked to all those who felt they had insufficient timeN.B. Results should be treated with caution due to the low base size

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 14 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 There are sufficient numbers of suitably qualified & experienced staff to meet the needs of the children and young people on the team’s workload 1934 There is an effective caseload management system within the local authority 3225 Managing workload Base: 31

Support received from line managers

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 16 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 …manage risks arising in my casework 7778 …access appropriate training 7774 …manage my workload 6561 Line manager support My line manager gives me appropriate support to safeguard children and young people by helping me to… Base: 31

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 17 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’ Line manager support cont. I am able to raise concerns about the service I am able to raise concerns about my workload Concerns I have raised have been dealt with satisfactorily I receive regular, dedicated time for supervision and review of my performance My line manager acknowledges and praises good performance Base: 31

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 18 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’ Organisational learning The local authority is open to new ideas of how ways of working can be improved The local authority acknowledges and praises examples of good performance I feel informed of the relevant issues raised in local serious case reviews and actions plans put in place When amendments are made to policies and procedures, the LA ensure all staff are fully aware of the implications Base: 31

About communications within and across your service

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 20 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 …among staff within the local authority 2947 …between the local authority and other organisations who contribute to safeguarding 4240 Communications within and across the service There is effective communication and information sharing…. Base: 31

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 21 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’10 There are effective systems for recording all information that has been shared about children and young people 3248 The electronic case recording system is effective 1931 Views on the systems for recording and sharing information Base: 31

About equality and diversity within your service

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 23 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’ Equality and diversity Considering gender, race, and ethnicity, age, disability, faith and sexual orientation: Base: 31 There is equality of opportunity for all staff with the local authority The local authority provides or commissions services for looked after children that meet the diverse needs of children and young people The local authority provides or commissions safeguarding services that meet the diverse needs of children and young people

About the running of the service

Ofsted social work practitioner survey 2010 | 25 % Agree Dud ’10 NAT ’ Views on the running of the service Base: 31 Senior managers govern services for safeguarding children effectively Senior managers govern services for looked after children effectively There are opportunities for me to have my say about the running of the service