Bradford Council's Children's Services have been given the thumbs up by national inspectors, who are confident they will continue to get even better.
Services to Children and Young People have been given a Grade 3 (Good) rating by Ofsted inspectors in their Annual Performance Assessment (APA) and are expected to continue to improve further with the Council's "quality of leadership."
This is the first official inspection since all the Council's different services for children and young people were united under one new department. A number of areas are singled out for praise under each of the five Every Child Matters objectives set out by the Government:
Being Healthy - Good strategies to promote breastfeeding and good progress on the Healthy Schools programme.
Staying Safe - "Most children report feeling safe and feel that their concerns are listened to."
Enjoying and Achieving - "The Council has continued to take action to effectively break down the range of educational barriers facing children and young people" and attendance in primary schools is at its highest rate, above the national average.
Making a Positive Contribution - Excellent progress made in involving a wide array of children and young people in key decision-making and the first Young Citizens Awards held in March 2007 actively celebrating children and young people's achievements.
Achieving Economic Well-being - Initiatives to reduce the number of young people not in education, employment or training are proving very successful and the number of young people in care getting university places is its highest ever this year.
Areas in need of more work include reducing health inequalities across the district, improving primary school attainment at Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 and improving success rates for 16-18-year-olds.
Coun Colin Gill, Executive Member for Children's Services said: "I am delighted that we have had such a positive report when the new service has only been running for a short time. I would like to congratulate all of the Council team who work with and for children and young people in our district. This shows what a splendid job they are all doing."
Kath Tunstall, Strategic Director of Services to Children and Young People said: "It is fantastic that the progress being made in all aspects of Children's Services is being recognised - there is a great deal to celebrate here. We are also already working to address the areas outlined as needing improvement.
“Throughout the last month children and staff have been celebrating their successes – Early Years and Childcare Staff Awards, Looked after Children achievement events, a National Health Service Journal Award for TRACKS - a joint venture involving Education Bradford and Bradford District Care Trust - which helps children with a fear of going to school and last March the first ever Bradford Young Citizens Awards.”
The APA looks at every local authority over the last 12 months to see how well they have served children and young people. The inspection includes surveying randomly selected primary and secondary school children through a confidential online questionnaire. The APA feeds into the Joint Area Review (JAR) of how local authorities are supporting their most vulnerable children and young people and those at risk of underachieving.
The Council wants to hear from the public what suggestions for improvement they would like to see taken forward. Email kt@bradford.gov.uk or cg@bradford.gov.uk
Officer/Contact
Kath Tunstall
Strategic Director of Services to Children and Young People
Telephone: 01274 431266
Media Relations Officer
Kathy Grillo
Telephone: 01274 433526
Fax: 01274 432005
Email: press.communications@bradford.gov.uk
Date: 26.11.07
