More information about this self-evaluation
We will undertake this self-evaluation in two phases.
Phase 1: National self-evaluation – 2 September to 20 November 2024
All local authorities will be asked to undertake a self-evaluation against Quality Indicator 6.4: Performance Management and Quality Assurance, using a specially developed tool. The below online briefing provides an overview of the approach, the templates and the submission process.
The Care Inspectorate team will analyse the responses to identify key strengths and challenges emerging from the evaluations.
Phase 2 – Validation activity – 20 January to 24 February 2024
The Care Inspectorate will select four local authority areas and will work with them to validate their self-evaluation. This will include review of documentary evidence and focus groups with staff and people who use services.
Participating local authorities will receive a validation letter and feedback on their self-evaluation.
A final thematic report will be prepared summarising the findings of the national self-evaluation and the key messages emerging from the validation activity. This will reflect national messages and share information about examples of innovative practice – findings will not be attributed to individual local authorities.
What you will need
We have developed a blank template, with guidance, to support you to undertake the self-evaluation. This template is available in word to allow you to develop your responses over time and share it with colleagues. However, final submission of the self-evaluation will be via the smart survey. If you have used the word version of the template to compile your responses, please paste your answers in to our smart survey using the link below.
This is the link to the smart survey for submission. This link will go live on Monday 2 September. Please make your final submission on or before Wednesday 20 November.
We have provided an exemplar of what a completed self-evaluation template may look like for your reference and guidance. We have also provided a Quality Indicator 6.4 illustration.
For further information on privacy in relation to how this review is conducted please see our privacy statement.
Week by week guide
Our joint inspections of services for children at risk of harm last for around 22 weeks in total from the notification letter being received by the partnership being inspected to the report being published. The actual timespan may be longer if the period of the inspection includes school or public holidays.
Each inspection begins with a preparation stage, is then conducted over three phases, and concludes with a reporting stage. More information about what happens during each of these is available here:
We will share information about the scope and process of the inspection and the rationale for this, during scheduled meetings with partnership representatives at the start of and during the inspection. We will discuss which scrutiny activities will best help us to clarify any areas of uncertainty.
More information about the review
Exploring the delivery, experience and impact of services when young people are planning to leave care and after they have moved on.
We have now completed a thematic review of the experiences of young people leaving care in Scotland and the extent to which their rights are upheld. The review was started in April 2024 and a final report was published on the 5 November 2024.
In 2021, the A Way Home Coalition published Youth Homeless Prevention Pathway: Improving Care Leavers Housing Pathways. This paper highlighted the need for equality in provision of aftercare services, the importance of pathway planning and of reducing risks and crises for young people in Scotland. The following recommendation was made:
The Scottish Government should work with the Care Inspectorate to develop and undertake robust thematic integrated reviews of ‘transition services’ involving key stakeholders and providers (such as housing and accommodation and further and higher education) and Aftercare engagement up to 26.
Purpose of the review
The review focussed on the experiences of young people aged between 16 and 26 who are, or have been, formally looked after and accommodated in foster care or care homes for children and young people. We were committed to seeking the views of young people about how they felt their rights were being upheld. It was carried out under Section 53 of the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010.
The review aimed to establish the following:
- The extent to which young people and their families are actively and meaningfully involved in all decisions about their continued care and have effective opportunities to influence service design and development.
- The extent to which young people’s lives are improving through high quality assessment, planning and support which enables them to live in stable and suitable accommodation which is right for them.
- How leaders ensure the effective delivery of services for young people who are either continuing to be cared for or are leaving care.
Although the statutory duties rest with the local authorities, the review took account of the roles of children’s services planning partners.
We have conducted the review in two phases.
Phase 1
- was based on self-reported information (through a ‘national survey’) provided by leaders and staff with responsibility for corporate parenting, and the local champions’ boards (or equivalent) of all 32 local authorities.
- we undertook a literature review, including national research and publications, and additional published reports.
- we gathered feedback from focus groups with scrutiny partners, a professional interest group and regulated care service inspectors.
- we also took account of relevant national data.
Phase 2
We offered children’s services partnerships in four local authority areas the opportunity to take part in phase two to support their development in this part of their work and help us better understand the experiences of young people in their area. Our intention was that these four areas would support our work in phase two which was made up of the following key elements:
- a focused meeting with the lead professionals for five selected young people in each area: combining a case discussion with access to records.
- individual meetings with the five young people
- focus groups of senior leaders, champions boards and corporate parenting boards.
- a review of relevant local documentation.
Reporting
The thematic review concluded with the publication of a single national overview report, with individual feedback also given to each of the four participating areas. While we were not evaluating partnerships on their performance, we have reported on what is working well across Scotland. We have also reported on the current challenges for transition services; drawing on the perspectives of young people, families, and staff supporting care experienced young people.
- Final report
- Key messages (press release)
The lead for this review was Jackie Deas, supported by Elena Mills, Strategic Support Officer.
More information about the review
What will we do?
Between July 2024 and December 2024 we will carry out a review that will focus on social work governance and assurance in Scotland. We will answer the following question.
How well do social work governance and assurance arrangements support leaders to:
- Ensure statutory duties are carried out safely and effectively?
- Enable social work staff to be supported, accountable and effective in their practice?
- Assist social work staff to uphold core social work values?
What is the purpose of the review?
The purpose of the review is to add to the understanding of the role, remit, effectiveness and the current challenges facing social work services. We will do this by exploring the impact of governance and assurance arrangements. The review will:
- highlight the areas of influence for chief social worker officers, principal social workers and other key social work leaders as they provide governance and assurance
- explore the support and assistance provided by leaders and managers to encourage staff to uphold social work values in practice
- identify and disseminate information about what is working well
- recognise the challenges faced by local leaders and staff across the country and identify areas where improvement is required.
How will we do this?
A team of strategic inspectors from the Care Inspectorate will carry out the review. The scope of the review is relative to the current pressures currently being experienced by the sector. It is designed to be mindful of the impact on those leading and working in social work services. We will take a collaborative, flexible and supportive approach when working with local areas. Each area is asked to nominate a co-ordinator to act as a main point of contact for the review. The timeline below (figure 1) illustrates the core tasks being undertaken through the review. The key dates are outlined below.
How will we report our findings?
The review will conclude in December 2024. Using the principles of the European Framework for Quality Management (EFQM) model, we will analyse all of the information gathered systematically and will draw together messages for the sector. A national report will be published on our website in March 2025. We will also use other methods, such as webinars, to share the learning from the review.
For more information, please visit our website here.
Review timeline
Figure 1: Review timeline
Details about the review timeline
Date |
Type of activity |
More details |
| 15 July 2024 | Notification | Local authorities and HSCPs formally notified and asked to nominate a co-ordinator to act as a single point of contact by 19 July 2024.The following week co-ordinators receive detailed guidance about the review. |
| 5 - 16 August 2024 | Briefing sessions for co-ordinators | Co-ordinators invited to attend a virtual briefing session with the review team from the Care Inspectorate.Information about the review will be shared and there will be opportunities for co-ordinators to ask questions. |
| 19 August - 4 October 2024 | Staff survey | Local authority areas/HSCPs asked to share a staff survey for all frontline social work staff and first line managers. |
| 27 August 2024 | Document return | Co-ordinators asked to return a short list of documents to the partnership by this date. |
| 30 September - 1 November 2024 |
Interviews with leaders and focus groups | Structured interviews with Chief Social Work Officers and a maximum of two other people during this period.Middle/senior managers (e.g. operations managers, service managers) from each local authority invited to participate in themed virtual focus groups. |
| 17 March 2025 | National review report publication | National review report published on the Care Inspectorate website. A local staff survey report will be provided to each area after publication.Further opportunities to discuss findings will be arranged, including webinars. |
Key definitions
Some definitions to clarify the remit of the review:
By governance and assurance we mean: A robust system for assuring high standards in the delivery of safe, personalised and effective social work services [adapted from the definition in “Governance for quality social care in Scotland” SWS 2018]
By statutory duties we mean: those outlined in the “Role of the registered social worker in statutory interventions: guidance for Local Authorities” in relation to the wide range of statutory duties across children’s, adults and justice social work services [source: Role of registered social worker in statutory interventions: guidance for Local Authorities SG 2010].
By social work staff we mean: social workers and other staff employed to fulfil or support the delivery of statutory social work duties such as occupational therapists, paraprofessionals (social work assistants and justice assistants). For the purposes of this review, we will not involve staff who work in registered services (such as residential care home staff, housing support staff or similar), because they are already involved in inspections of regulated services.
By core social work values we mean: those outlined in the SSSC code of practice (May 2024) underpinned by the ethical principles of human rights and dignity, social justice and professional integrity [source: BASW Code of Ethics 2021]
Self-evaluation of performance and quality assurance in justice social work
This justice social work self-evaluation will focus on the current capacity of services to evidence performance, quality and outcomes in relation to community based sentences. The self-evaluation activities will be undertaken in two phases between September 2024 and March 2025. A national report will be published in May 2025.
The approach to this work will be informed by Quality Indicator 6.4 (Performance Management and Quality Assurance) which is drawn from the Care Inspectorate’s Guide to Self-Evaluation for Community Justice in Scotland. The aim is to develop a clear understanding of strengths and develop an evidence-base that informs local and national improvement initiatives.
By using a self-evaluation approach rather than a traditional inspection model, we hope to minimise the burden on local authorities whilst building capacity for improvement across the sector.
Useful links:
Learning reviews
The Care Inspectorate, on behalf of the Scottish Government, acts as a central repository for all learning reviews carried out by child protection, adult protection and public protection committees in Scotland.
As part of our general duty of furthering improvement in the quality of social services, the Care Inspectorate is responsible for reviewing the effectiveness of the processes for each learning review and providing observations to individual chief officer groups and protection committees. This forms part of the Care Inspectorate’s improvement remit. The key aim in relation to learning reviews is to assist the sector in its continual development and improvement of the learning review approach.
National Guidance for Adult Protection Committees; Undertaking Learning Reviews was published in May 2022. The revised National Guidance for Child Protection Committees for Undertaking Learning Reviews was published in 2024. Both guidance documents clearly set out that adult and child protection committees should inform the Care Inspectorate of two things. Firstly, the decision about whether they are proceeding with a learning review and if not, the reasons for not doing so. Secondly, the outcome of the learning review, including an anonymised copy of the review report which should be sent to us.
For all situations considered under learning review guidance, a decision notification form should be completed. This electronic notification form should be completed at the point when a decision has been made whether to conduct a learning review, or to detail the reasons for not doing so. Committees are required to notify the Care Inspectorate of their decision to proceed, or not to proceed, to learning review using the learning review notification forms below.
In circumstances where protection committees agree to carry out an alternative review approach for learning they should submit anonymised completed reports or minutes that record learning and recommendations to the Care Inspectorate via secure e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. This will enable the Care Inspectorate to use the learning from these alternative approaches to inform the content of annual national overview reports. The Care Inspectorate will not provide observations to partnerships on these types of submissions.
Submission of learning review reports
Please submit the full learning review report via secure email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Any queries can also be directed to this address.
Provider and services template
Provider and services template
Joint inspections of adult support and protection
Background
Phase 1 of our programme of joint inspections of adult support and protection took place during 2020-2023. Twenty-five joint inspections were carried out, and individual partnership reports were published. An overview, summarising the findings in these reports was also published, and is available here. This shaped our subsequent phase 2 approach.
Phase 2
In June 2023, the Scottish Government asked the Care Inspectorate to lead further joint inspection work with our inspection partners including, Healthcare Improvement Scotland and His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland. This commenced on 1 August 2023 and is scheduled to conclude in July 2025, and blends scrutiny activity with improvement support. There has been close collaboration with adult protection partnerships throughout.
The programme provides assurance on the quality of adult support and protection services in Scotland and promotes improvement activity through the development of a quality indicator framework and supported self-evaluation. Phase 2 of the programme comprises four workstreams.
Workstream 1
The joint inspection of the six adult support and protection partnerships first inspected in 2017.
The first year of our phase 2 programme included reviewing the progress of the six adult protection partnerships that were subject to adult support and protection inspections in 2017/18. The joint inspection team used the inspection methodology employed in Phase 1. These inspections focused on key processes and strategic leadership.
This programme of inspections was completed in May 2024 and included the North Ayrshire, Highland, Dundee, Aberdeenshire, East Dunbartonshire and Midlothian partnerships. Individual reports of the inspections have been published and can be accessed using the links above.
A joint inspection of adult support and protection overview report took account of the key findings from these six reports. This was published and can be accessed here.
Workstream 2
Development of a multi-agency quality improvement framework (QIF) for adult support and protection partnerships in Scotland.
Design of the QIF was undertaken in collaboration with The Scottish Government National Implementation Group self-evaluation subgroup. Four consultation workshop events took place, to which representatives from all health and social care partnerships across Scotland were invited. This included events in Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Dundee, as well as one online session. These were held to provide an opportunity for the sector to comment on, refine, and enhance the draft framework. The sessions were attended by approximately eighty-four delegates representing almost all Health and Social Care Partnerships and the feedback gathered was then used to inform the final document.
- A working group was established that included joint inspection partners and representation from the national implementation group.
- The working group took careful consideration of the views from people with lived experience to ensure it was trauma informed.
- A communication plan was designed and implemented and four well attended engagement sessions were arranged
- The joint inspection team undertook a ‘you said, we did’ exercise with the national implementation self-evaluation subgroup to review the key themes from the four engagement sessions. We refined the QIF following their feedback.
- The QIF was published on 15 October and can be accessed here.
- This document will be promoted widely across the sector after its launch at a series of national events.
- This includes a formal launch at the Aspire event that took place on 28 November 2024
- This framework will support partnerships multi-agency self-evaluation of their adult support and protection arrangements and is designed to lead to improvement in services.
Workstream 3
This review of progress activity provides assurance of improvement in those partnerships where areas of weakness outweighed strengths in phase 1. This programme involves the South Ayrshire, Moray, West Lothian, Edinburgh, Orkney, and Western Isles partnerships.
Our file reading tool had previously been updated to reflect the changes in methodology and take account of the Scottish Government revised code of practice for adult support and protection (July 2022).
Completed workstream 3 progress reviews include South Ayrshire, West Lothian, Edinburgh and Moray. Individual reports will be published in due course for all six partnerships.
In these progress reviews we are using the following evaluations to measure progress.
Minimal progress: Improvement is minimal. The partnership’s overall approach to improvement is not comprehensive or put into practice. Its deployment and implementation are limited. It has not embedded improvements or they are still at the planning stage. It does not communicate improvements effectively and they are not well understood by staff. It does not assess and review the effectiveness of its improvement progress.
Some progress: Evidence of some improvement. The partnership’s approach to improvement is moderate. Its implementation and deployment of improvements are structured. It is beginning to embed improvements in practice. It communicates improvements partially and staff understand them reasonably well. It has limited measures to evaluate and review impact and outcomes for adults at risk of harm. It periodically assesses and reviews its improvement methodology.
Significant progress: Significant improvement. The partnership’s approach to improvement is comprehensive and embedded. Its deployment of improvements is well structured, implemented and effective. It communicates improvements purposefully, and staff understand them fully. It has effective measures to evaluate and review impact and outcomes for adults at risk of harm. It continually assesses and refines its improvement methodology.
The joint inspection team will also be re-visiting the Renfrewshire partnership to complete their phase 1 inspection that was interrupted by Covid-19 restrictions coming into force in March 2020.
Workstream 4
The joint inspection of adult support and protection team aims to work with volunteer partnerships, using the quality improvement framework developed in workstream 2, to undertake a programme of supported self-evaluation. Our focus will be on quality illustration 5.7 and those cases where it is difficult to determine the three-point criteria. During phase 1 activity some partnerships had promising initiatives aimed at developing their early intervention, prevention, and trauma informed approaches to this complex group of adults at risk of harm. We will work jointly with partnerships to assess the strengths of these initiatives.
This is an opportunity for partnerships to work alongside the joint inspection team to develop and implement the methodology. We will share learning and promote a deeper understanding about self-evaluation approaches and its impact on improvement work.
We have invited all adult support and protection partnerships to formally express a confirmed interest in this opportunity week commencing Monday 11 November 2024. We will look to confirm the partnerships selected prior to the end of December 2024 and commence work with them in January 2025.
A communication and engagement plan will be put in place once we have identified the partnerships we will be working with.
Related links: