Celebrating the successes of our Children’s Services

An event was held on Monday 24 March at the Brighton Centre to celebrate the new Family Help and Protection Service and mark the 10th anniversary of the introduction of our model of relationship-based practice in Children’s Services.

The event was attended by the Minister for Children and Families, Janet Daby MP, Councillor Bella Sankey, Leader of the Council, and Councillor Emma Daniel, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People.

Minister Daby spoke about the Government’s proposed Families First reforms and recognised the good work already done in Brighton & Hove.

Around 200 practitioners joined the event to share their experiences of working in relationship-based practice model and reflected on how we develop and grow our ways of working so that we continue to meet the needs of children and families in the city.

An outstanding service

The event highlighted the progress that has been made in Children’s Services since the introduction of relationship-based practice in 2015.

It emphasised the difference that this way of working, which recognises that a practitioner’s relationship with a family is the most powerful tool to bring about change, has made for children and young people in the city.

Since the introduction of the practice, we have seen a decrease in complaints from families and a reduction in turnover of social care workers, so that we no longer use agency children’s social workers.

There has also been a reduction in children in care, with child protection plans or needing a social worker.

The major improvements in the council’s children’s services were recognised by the Ofsted inspection in March 2024 which saw the 2020’s ‘Good’ rating improve to an ‘overall effectiveness of Outstanding’.

A lot to be proud of

Council Leader Bella Sankey said: “There is a lot to be proud of and lot worth celebrating in our Children's Services.

“Ten years ago, children’s services in the city were struggling. This was shown in the data, the turnover of social workers and, most importantly, in the feedback from the families the services worked with.

“Now we have the very highest rating across the board as a children’s service, for our social work, for our youth justice work, and for our work with children with special educational needs.

“Over the last 2 years, we have also seen the successful transformation that created our Family Hubs across the city, which are vital in providing community-based services for families.

“An excellent service means that social care practitioners want to work for us, and we do not have to rely on expensive agency social workers.

“I’m particularly proud of the work the service has done to address racism and discrimination, and the excellent support provided to young people at risk of criminal exploitation, which is key to our role as an anti-racist city and a City of Sanctuary.

“I want to thank all of our social care staff for their hard work and dedication – the model of practice is only so successful because of them and the relationships they built with each other and children and families in the city.”