social care services

Personalisation briefing for commissioners

This briefing provides an overview of what personalisation means for commissioners of social care services. It highlights the main tasks for commissioners delivering personalisation as ensuring the right balance of investment and shaping the market. It also looks at necessary changes to contracting and procurement models, with a shift towards outcomes-focused and person-centred approaches. Two practice examples are included.

SCIE Position paper 3: Has service user participation made a difference to social care services?

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) wants to bring together a lot of knowledge about social care, so that information on what works best is available to everyone. This Position paper is about how social care services can be made better by the people who use them - that is, the service users themselves. It brings together the main findings from six reviews that looked at whether service user participation made a difference to changing and improving social care services.

Core tasks for Designated Managers in educational and residential establishments in Scotland

The role of the designated manager for looked after children and young people in schools was established following the publication of the Learning With Care report in 2001. Having a designated manager in educational establishments and developing a reciprocal role in residential child care establishments is central to improving educational outcomes. This Scottish Government guidance is aimed at assisting designated managers in discharging their responsibilities to looked after children, young people and care leavers.

Experiences of the early implementation of the Mental health (care and treatment) (Scotland) act, 2003: a cohort study

This evaluative research study was commissioned to explore the implementation of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003 (MHCT Act). A team of independent researchers including 8 mental health service users undertook the study, which lasted 2 years from September 2006.

Protection of children in England: a progress report

The Protection of Children in England: A Progress Report, by Lord Laming, was published in March 2009 as HC 330. It was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families following the death of "Baby P". "This document, and its recommendations, are aimed at making sure that good practice becomes standard practice in every service. This includes recommendations on improving the inspection of safeguarding services and the quality of Serious Case Reviews as well as recommendations on improving the help and support children receive when they are at risk of harm.

High hopes: Supporting ex-prisoners in their lives after prison

This report presents the findings from an exploratory qualitative study that centres on a key Department for Work and Pensions client group that until now has not been extensively researched in terms of its interaction with benefit and employment services and the labour market. It focuses on a cohort of 40 (male) ex-prisoners who were tracked over a six-month period following their release from prison.

At a glance 01: Learning together to safeguard children: a 'systems' model for case reviews

This At a glance summary presents a new ‘systems’ model for serious case reviews. The model provides a method for getting to the bottom of professional practice and exploring why actions or decisions that later turned out to be mistaken, or to have led to an unwanted outcome, seemed to those involved, to be the sensible thing to do at the time. The answers can generate new ideas about how to improve practice and so help keep children safe.