Acting Minister for Children, Fiona McLeod, will be coming to Dumfries tomorrow (Tuesday 14 July).
The Minister will be attending a number of different projects throughout the day, all demonstrating how in Dumfries and Galloway, we are committed to providing the best start in life for all our children.
In the morning, the Minister will attend a meeting of the Children’s Service Executive Group. The Care Inspectorate recently delivered extremely positive feedback on progress made on services for children and young people in Dumfries and Galloway following the Children’s Services report in April 2014. The team focused on the 5 priority areas for improvement identified in a report in April 2014 and encourages the partners to maintain the momentum for change and to continue prioritising the safety and wellbeing of vulnerable children and young people.
About the report from the Care Inspectorate:
Council Leader, Ronnie Nicholson, said, “Providing the best start in life for all our children and protecting our most vulnerable people are priorities for our Council. So, I’m delighted with the findings of the follow up inspection and welcome the positive feedback received. The recognition of strong leadership and positive progress in Social Work services is particularly encouraging. Our elected members are, of course, aware that there is still a long way to go and I recognise the significant challenge to maintain the momentum to achieve the change needed and raise the standards of practice in Social Work Services. We’re confident that the progress we’ve provides us with the foundation to ensure a positive impact on the experience for children in Dumfries and Galloway.”
Colin Grant, chairman of the Children’s Services Executive Group, said, “Were all clear that we have much work still to do in order to deliver the best outcomes for all of our children. Nonetheless, this report reflects a major turnaround and I believe that frontline staff should be encouraged. There is a strong commitment to continue to develop our joint working and build on the effective improvement plan that was led by Patrick Shearer. The collaborative approach across our agencies needs now to ensure that children and families feel the impact of positive change.”
In the afternoon, the Minister will be visiting the Oasis Centre to meet young people from the Listen to us project. The Listen2Us project seeks the views and experiences of looked after young people and care leavers across Dumfries and Galloway, providing them with the opportunity to design, shape, influence and improve the range of services they access and receive. This innovative project puts young people at the heart of the decision-making that influences policy. It aims to use the experiences of young people in a positive way, making a real difference for current and future young people.
The Minister will also visit the Dumfries Adult Resource Centre later in the afternoon to meet the service users and staff and talk to them about what they like about the centre.
Vice-chair of the Council’s Social Work committee, Ted Thompson, said “I’m pleased that the Minister has chosen to come and see first hand some fo the brilliant work that is happening here in Dumfries and Galloway in relation to young people. We have made a number of commitments to ensure that we are providing the very best services. We introduced a Champions Board, chaired by our young people and putting them at the heart of our decision making. We continue to deliver high qulity, essential services that people relay on every day. The Minister will experience some of these services for herself and see what a difference we are making.”
Acting Minister for Children, Fiona McLeod said:
“I’m delighted to be able to visit Dumfries and Galloway to see first-hand the improvements in children’s services that have been made in the last year. I’ve been impressed by the positive work done by council and I look forward to meeting those who have helped bring about these changes. This government is committed to supporting children and young people to reach their full potential and I’m pleased that local authorities share this commitment and are working hard to ensure Scotland becomes the best place for children to grow up.”
