A latest Ofsted inspection carried out at Devon County Council's 'children's front door' service has found it has 'improved and declined since the last inspection.'

Ofsted decided to revisit the front door to assess whether Devon County Council now has the capacity to make positive and significant and enduring change for children.

Children's front door service was formerly known as the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub or MASH.

This was Ofsted's seventh monitoring visit since the council's Children's Services were judged inadequate, in January 2020.

This time, inspectors looked at areas of concern identified at their last visit to the Children's Front Door, and at how risk or harm to a child is assessed.

Inspectors note that one of the reasons why the council's pace of improvement has been slow, is because since 2020 the council has had 'multiple changes to the corporate and departmental leadership team', which they say has resulted in 'slow and inconsistent progress.’

A new permanent senior leadership team has now been installed.

That new senior leadership team identified last summer that making the Children's Front Door service safer for children was a priority for the council.

They note that they 'did not find any decisions in the MASH that had left children at unassessed risk of significant harm.’

And that 'senior leaders have a credible plan in place, with additional capacity to deliver those changes', to build on these firmer foundations.

Where last time, in February 2022, inspectors found the oversight of contacts and referrals regarding concerns about children had become unmanageable, this time 'the response to demand is under control, with minimal delay in decision-making by team managers.’

Inspectors say that 'significant and effective efforts have been made to simplify the processes that staff have to follow' which makes it quicker for people to access to advice, guidance and decisions regarding their concerns about children.

A new professional 'consultation' phone line, staffed by social workers, 'has been received positively by partner agencies which 'has reduced the time families wait for appropriate support.'

Children are also benefiting with an introduction to a more informal 'early help', with some children and their families now being signposted quickly to other support.

Social workers' caseloads are now manageable; their morale has improved, 'and they feel increasingly confident in their managers' guidance and direction,' inspectors write.

Councillor Andrew Leadbetter, the council’s cabinet member with responsibility for children’s services, said: "It's important to see, and for inspectors to note, the improvements that our teams are making, and that as result, children and their families in Devon are receiving a better level of support from us.

“For that, I want to thank our teams for their hard work and commitment.

“But it's equally important for us to hear from inspectors that we're not yet there, and that further improvements are needed in some areas of our work.

“Today's report should be seen on the one hand as saying we are a council that is making the right moves in the right direction, but also that we have room to improve and that we must continue at pace with our improvement plans."