Ofsted Outstanding Report
‘Camden’s Local Safeguarding Children’s Board (LSCB) is outstanding. It has well-established and highly effective arrangements in place to hold partner agencies to account for safeguarding children. An exceptional commitment to continuously improve frontline practice is both evident and demonstrable. Led by an experienced, effective chair, the culture of the board and its sub-groups is one of openness and constructive challenge. Partners are both engaged and highly committed to monitoring the effectiveness of safeguarding services for all children in Camden.’
‘Strategic priorities are informed by a comprehensive analysis of local need that is reflected accurately in the business plan of the board and its sub-groups. For this reason, actions are identified and taken that lead to demonstrable improvements in the safeguarding of children and young people.’
‘The sub-groups that support the board are a real strength. An effective focus on engaging the community in safeguarding has resulted in a heightened profile and understanding of some specific risks that children face, such as female genital mutilation and potential risks of abuse from family beliefs about spirit possession. The online safety sub-group has raised the profile of the risks that children can face when using the internet, and provided useful resources and training to help to tackle this issue.’
‘Learning from audits and serious case reviews (SCRs) is a well-established culture of the board. The LSCB’s multi-agency and single-agency audit activity is reviewed and scrutinised. Learning is widely shared and actions closely monitored to ensure that recommended changes to practice are made and sustained. Learning from SCRs is a strength that is evident across all of the board’s activities.’
‘A clear understanding of priorities and local issues informs the board’s multi- agency training programme, and its impact on subsequent practice is evaluated well to inform future need. There is a wide-ranging programme of highly effective and targeted multi-agency training for partners. Expertise from local professionals is willingly shared through workshops to enhance the training provided.’