All change at the top of 'inadequate' children's service as council awaits government decision

The councillor who stepped down as head of Tameside's disastrous children's services department has wished his replacement well.

Cllr Teresa Smith takes charge of the service which was rated as 'inadequate' by Ofsted in its most recent inspection.

Children's commissioner Andy Couldrick has submitted his report into the authority. His recommendation could be that children's services is taken out of council control, despite new management being appointed this year.

Tameside Council Deputy Leader Councillor Bill Fairfoull, who stepped down yesterday, said: "With the Children’s Commissioner and the minister due to report, now feels like the right time for me to hand over the mantle of children’s lead to Cllr Teresa Smith to take us onto the next stage of the improvement journey that we all want and need to see.

 “Cllr Smith is an excellent appointment to this role having just retired this summer as a teacher, she has the necessary experience, expertise and capacity to drive forward the improvements needed. In my role as Deputy Leader, I will continue to support the service through our corporate commitment to do everything we can to help the borough’s children and young people thrive.

 “I am truly sorry that some children are not getting the right help at the right time, and we are doing whatever it takes to put this right.  We have some extreme challenges that we face in Tameside - being the 24^th poorest borough in the country creates significant difficulties for families and impacts adversely on children. 

“Whilst holding this role I have seen how dedicated and hardworking our children’s social care staff are, and how determined they are to achieve the best outcomes for children. We have been supporting them by increasing the investment into Children’s Services, however, we know we need better systems and support to be put in place and we have and will continue to take action to address these issues.

 “Our biggest challenge is a shortage of social workers nationally in every part of the country. It’s a very difficult and dedicated job and so makes it hard to permanently recruit particularly when there is significant competition for social workers. We know that to improve our children’s service, we need to secure a permanent workforce to provide stability and consistency of practice.

 “We still have much more to do to ensure all of our most vulnerable children and young people receive the highest standards of protection and care, and that all children are in a position to thrive and feel safe. We are absolutely committed to, and focused on, ensuring this happens.

“I remain passionate about children’s services and I have loved engaging with our inspiring and fantastic care leavers and young people and I will do all I can to support Cllr Smith and the rest of the Council to achieve the best outcomes for children. I remain hopeful that everyone can get behind the work we are doing and give their full support going forward.”

Cllr Smith added: “Starting my career as a nursery nurse before qualifying as a teacher, I have worked in education for over 41 years. In both my backgrounds of education and being a local councillor, I have always been passionate about supporting children and families to reach their potential in safe and caring environments. This is a role that I take on with both pride and understanding of the responsibility and challenge ahead.

 “I will be stepping down from my role as Chair of Children’s Scrutiny to take on this appointment and I very much look forward to leading improvement work alongside the children’s service, partners, young people and families to achieve better outcomes in Tameside.”