Written question asked by Tim Loughton (Conservative) on Thursday, 15 October 2009, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 20 October 2009. It was answered by Baroness Primarolo (Labour) on Tuesday, 20 October 2009 on behalf of the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Children: Social Services

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the Ofsted report entitled Learning lessons from serious case reviews: year 2, what steps he is taking in respect of those serious case reviews which were found to be inadequate.

Answer: Since 1 December 2008 all Local Safeguarding Children Boards responsible for serious case reviews which have been judged inadequate convene an independently chaired panel to reconsider the review before sending a report to the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, and copied to Ofsted, which addresses the review's inadequacies. This process was applied retrospectively to all serious case reviews which Ofsted had evaluated as inadequate, as well as to those receiving an inadequate judgment after 1 December. Ofsted reported that 62 out of the 63 reports received by 31 March 2009 following inadequate SCRs were judged to be satisfactory. A further report was requested in respect of the one inadequate report; the revised version was judged by Ofsted as satisfactory. Ofsted noted in their report that the reconsiderations had resulted in greatly strengthened reviews and valuable lessons learnt with regard to safeguarding practice. These arrangements are reflected in new draft guidance currently subject to public consultation (chapter 8 of "Working Together to Safeguard Children").

Secondary information