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One of our biggest challenges was how we developed closer working relationships
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with partner agencies. We'd been quite risk-averse, we had one of the highest
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looked after children populations in the country, we had one of the highest child
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protection registrations in the country, and we had the highest child in need
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population in the country. Partners had lost confidence in us and as a result
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the workforce had become very pressurised and overheated, and staff had
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started to leave the authority and when we came in we had 42 agency staff
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working for us, the turnover was huge. It was like spinning
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plates all at the same time. Whilst we were trying to create a
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happy, healthy and resilient workforce and build up experience, at the same time
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we were trying to build relationships with partners. We took the same approach,
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we spoke with partners, we made them aware of the situation, and we talked to
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them about what our plan was in order to recover from that position. We took a
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very hands-on approach, I spent time, along with other principal officers, in
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case conferences, we spent time with our conference-and-review service and
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we sat in on conferences. We sat in on conferences to particularly look at
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the experience of vulnerable families and children in that formal setting. My
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feelings at that time were that we were very process driven and that we had lost
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the voice of the child and the voice of the vulnerable mum and dad in that
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conference setting. The outcomes model of working has transformed the
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conference arena. I've been delighted by the way in which we have now moved to a
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way of working where families remain at the heart of everything we do in a
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conference, and that older children are invited to the conference,
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they are prepared for conference and their voice is heard in conference. The language
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is family-friendly, every opportunity is given to talk to families about their
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own personal outcomes, they play a big part in the plan, the outcomes focused plan,
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and I have spent time then with families that have experienced conferences before
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outcomes and after outcomes. The difference is incredible, hearing some
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families say 'there were lots of big words', 'there was lots of jargon', 'people
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looked very official', 'I didn't think I could speak', 'I just wanted to get it over
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with', and 'then we have meetings after the
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conference where they talk about me, they talk about my children as if I'm not
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there', families saying 'we just needed time to pass for our children to come off the
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register' but not really understanding what the local authority was worried
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about, what the priority risks were. Very little discussion around what the
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strengths were, what they were doing well as a family, and a recognition that all
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families including our own will get things wrong sometimes. I think that's
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something that we are particularly proud of. It's still a work in progress, partner
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agencies have started to see the difference it's making. We've moved away
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from statements being made, for example, 'I don't believe the child is suffering
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significant harm but I will recommend registration so that the family will get
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support'. And empowering chairs, and helping chairs support partners in
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reminding them of what the criteria is for registration and helping
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them during the conference process to remain focused on what those
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priority risks are.