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Fit for the Future and for Purpose Netta MaciverPrincipal Reporter/Chief ExecutiveScottish Children’s Reporter Administration

Date: 25 September 2008

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Children’s Hearings System

• Care and justice system for children in Scotland.• Deals with care and protection of children as

well as offending.

Key principles:• Child’s welfare should be paramount in all

decisions.• Child’s views should be taken into account in

decisions about them.

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Historical Context

• Rapid rise of non-offence referrals to the Reporter (graph shows number of children)

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

30000

35000

40000

45000

1997/98 2006/07

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Historical Context (cont’d)

• Recognition that not all of these referrals were necessary

• Feeling that the CHS was becoming a gateway to service provision

• Need to allow the Reporter to concentrate on those children requiring compulsory measures of supervision

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The Children’s Hearings System Review

• Scottish Government Review in 2004

• Found broad support for the principles and ethos of the CHS

• Identified some challenges and scope for change and development of the system

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Getting it Right for Every Child

• Getting it Right for Every Child established some key principles– Every child gets the help they need, when

they need it– Integrated, co-ordinated approach across

agencies– Child at the centre of the system

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GIRFEC & the Children’s Hearings System

• GIRFEC’s fundamental principles are aligned with those of the CHS– CHS is the means of providing compulsory

intervention where necessary– Children should receive help on a voluntary

basis wherever possible, without the need for referral to the Reporter

– Child is always at the centre

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Workstreams

• Ministerial Task Group on non-offence referrals

• Pre-referral screening initiatives

• Pathfinder projects

• SCRA initiatives

• Single agency for the CHS

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What’s the impact locally?

Local Authority

2006/07 2007/08 Change

Dundee 711 502 ▼ 29%

Edinburgh 4,346 3,401 ▼ 22%

Falkirk 1,893 1,495 ▼ 21%

Highland 1,633 1,393 ▼ 15%

Perth and Kinross

213 161 ▼ 24%

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What changes are we seeing?

• Reduction in the rate of non-offence referrals• 40,204 children in 2007/08• However numbers of Hearings and Supervision

Requirements are both up in 2007/08

Hearings Supervision Requirements

42,302 13,219

Up 1% Up 4.5%

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What changes are we seeing?

• Child Protection Orders slightly down from 624 to 518 in 2007/08

• SCRA research into CPOs in Edinburgh– 30% newborn babies– Half on child protection register– 52% had open referral or subject to SR– 87% of grounds were lack of parental care

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So where are we?

• Reporters dealing with increasingly complex cases, but more of the right children

• Change in the source of referral

• Better working practices

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Looking forward

• Focus on outcomes-the so what question?– For children who do not require compulsory

measures– And for those who do

• More multi-agency planning and delivery• Clarity around interventions• A single body-an administrative change or

one that is more aspirational that can answer the so what question?