The Safeguarding and Education Overview and Scrutiny Committee reviewed the Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Partnership's Annual Report for 2025/26 and the findings of a Joint Targeted Area Inspection (JTAI) into the multi-agency response to child sexual abuse in the family environment. The committee also discussed the work programme for the upcoming year.

Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Partnership Annual Report 2025/26

Bernie Brown, Director for Children and Families at Staffordshire County Council, presented the Staffordshire Safeguarding Children Partnership's (SSCP) Annual Report for 2025/26. The report detailed the partnership's progress in its three-year strategy, Safeguarding Children Together, focusing on improving the integrated front door and responses to child sexual abuse in the family environment (CSAFE), alongside assurance areas of contextual safeguarding and domestic abuse.

Key achievements highlighted included significant improvements to the Integrated Front Door (IFD), which Ofsted recognised as a strength, noting better leadership, management oversight, and decision-making. The partnership also developed an evidence base for its CSAFE strategy, strengthened contextual safeguarding arrangements, and enhanced work on domestic abuse. Learning from audits, inspections, and reviews has informed improvement activities.

Councillor Nicholas Lakin, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, acknowledged the challenging environment and the need for continued improvement. Councillors raised concerns about information sharing between agencies, the impact of national reforms, and the need for greater consistency in safeguarding practices. Bernie Brown emphasised the ongoing efforts to improve data systems, workforce confidence, and partnership accountability, while acknowledging that there will always be children who we miss.

The report also detailed learning from child safeguarding practice reviews, child death reviews, and the safety of children at HMYOI Werrington. Training and development efforts were highlighted, with over 8,400 professionals trained. The partnership's structure, finance, and engagement with partners were also discussed. The Independent Scrutineer noted progress in leadership stability and multi-agency working but identified areas for development, including the voice of children, education sector representation, and sustainable resourcing.

Joint Targeted Area Inspection of Staffordshire: Multi-Agency Response to Child Sexual Abuse in the Family Environment

The committee also received a report on the Joint Targeted Area Inspection (JTAI) of Staffordshire's multi-agency response to child sexual abuse in the family environment (CSAFE). The inspection, conducted by Ofsted, CQC, HMICFRS, and HMIP, found that while Staffordshire's integrated front door responds effectively to most concerns, there are inconsistencies in the quality and timeliness of responses, information sharing, and safety planning.

Strengths identified included child-focused practitioners, effective multi-agency decision-making within the IFD, and the recognition of schools as important partners. However, areas for improvement included the pace of implementing a clear CSAFE strategy, better data analysis, more consistent information sharing, and enhanced workforce capacity. The report noted that CSAFE is not always explicitly named in child protection plans, which can lead to a lack of focus.

Bernie Brown accepted the findings and outlined the partnership's commitment to addressing the areas for development, including strengthening information-sharing arrangements, improving safety planning, and ensuring CSAFE is consistently identified and addressed. The written statement of action in response to the JTAI findings was due to be submitted to Ofsted by 12 November 2026.

Work Programme Update

The committee reviewed and agreed the work programme for 2026/27. Key additions included interim reports on the Community Safety Strategy Delivery Plan and Domestic Abuse Action Plan, and a pre-decision item on Review In-house Children's Residential Sufficiency Investment. The committee also agreed to appoint members to the Unregistered Placements and Sufficiency Working Group. A discussion was held regarding the inclusion of the JTAI findings on the work programme for future scrutiny, with a proposal to invite relevant partners to a future meeting.

The committee also discussed the need for further consideration of community safety issues related to e-bikes and similar vehicles.