REGULATORY ISSUES
The Children's Safeguards Review
3.1 The key recommendations were:
- to regulate small private children's homes which unlike other children's homes are not currently registered and inspected
- to register all independent fostering agencies
- to register and approve all private foster carers
- to extend welfare inspections under Section 87 of the Children Act 1989 to all boarding schools
- establish a General Social Care Council to regulate professionals
- review and consider simplifying and making more effective the requirements to dually register as a school and a children's home
- review the Notice of Complaint procedure for closing down independent schools with a view to reducing the bureaucracy and the length of the process
- to make sure that children with disabilities in registered care homes and children in nursing homes and hospices were safeguarded by appropriate regulation.
The Government Response
3.2 Better regulation to
safeguard children
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3.2 The Government will introduce legislation when Parliamentary time allows to:
- make all types of children's home subject to the same regulation and inspection provisions, including small private homes with three children or fewer
- register and inspect all independent fostering agencies and introduce comparable regulation of relevant aspects of local authority fostering services
- extend Section 87 (which requires welfare inspections of independent boarding schools) to all schools with boarding provision
- establish a General Social Care Council for regulating social work training and to take responsibility for setting conduct and practice standards for all social services personnel. The Government will have powers to make the council a registration body for occupational groups in the social services workforce. It intends to use this power to register qualified social workers and other qualified staff working in children's services at an early stage in the new council's existence.
3.3 New regional
regulatory bodies to
regulate children's homes,
independent fostering
agencies, local authority
fostering services and the
welfare aspects of boarding
schools
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3.3 The new regulatory changes will be covered in more detail in the forthcoming Social Services White Paper. All regulation of children's homes, independent fostering agencies, relevant aspects of local authority fostering services and the welfare aspects of boarding schools will be undertaken by new independent regulatory arrangements to be announced in the Social Services White Paper.
3.4 More effective
enforcement of current
regulations on private
fostering
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3.4 The Government will not seek legislation to require local authorities to register private foster parents. It does not consider that a new system of regulation is necessary as there is already a wide range of offences associated with private fostering and the Government does not believe it would be right to extend them further. However, it will take steps in 1999 to enforce the current regulations for private fostering more effectively. This action will include an awareness campaign and will be targeted at the most vulnerable groups of children. When Parliamentary time allows, legislation will be introduced to target the private fostering regulations at placements (whether singular or consecutive) lasting more than 42 days. The Government will also work with a range of agencies to draw up a Code of Practice for language schools bringing children from overseas.
3.5 New arrangements for taking simpler and faster action against schools which fail on welfare grounds are also being developed. Improved welfare arrangements for all independent schools, including those with boarding, are being considered by the DfEE and Welsh Office as part of a wider review of the existing statutory system of registering and monitoring all independent schools. This will be the subject of a consultation exercise and may require legislation to implement changes. Comparable changes will be made in the powers for acting against children's homes with poor welfare standards.
3.6 As part of the work on regulating children's homes, the Government will ensure that the welfare standards for children (often with disabilities) in registered care homes, nursing homes, independent hospitals and hospices are properly taken into account and will announce proposals in 1999.
3.7 The Government will simplify and clarify procedures for dual registration as schools and children's homes. More details will be announced in 1999.
3.8 In drawing up these proposals the impact has been considered. As they are developed further a more in depth assessment will be undertaken and a full Regulatory Impact Assessment produced.
Implementation, Monitoring and Enforcement
3.9 The Government will set out its plans in the forthcoming Social Services White Paper to introduce legislation as soon as Parliamentary time allows to:
- introduce new arrangements for the regulation of all children's homes
- regulate independent fostering agencies
- regulate relevant aspects of local authority fostering services
- extend Section 87 welfare inspections to all boarding schools
- establish a General Social Care Council to set conduct and practice standards for all social care personnel
- deal more effectively with unsatisfactory schools and children's homes.
While waiting to introduce legislation, the Government will draw up more detailed plans for the future arrangements including plans to target private fostering regulations at placements lasting more than 42 days.
3.10 During 1999 the Government will take action to enforce more effectively the existing private fostering arrangements. This will include an awareness campaign. The Government will also work with relevant organisations to draw up a Code of Practice for language schools bringing children from overseas.
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3.11 The Government will monitor carefully the performance of agencies through the SSI and OFSTED. Where arrangements are not satisfactory the Government will not hesitate to use its powers of intervention.
Outcomes
3.12 These policies will deliver:
- improved protection for children living away from home
- improved welfare arrangements in all settings in which children live away from home.
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