Social services improving – but more progress needed

In his Annual Report, the Chief Inspector of the Social Services Inspectorate for Wales (SSIW) has warned that whilst social services are generally improving, there is much to do in some local authority areas.

“Some authorities should search their own souls in terms of their standards,” said Graham Williams.

“Some authorities are already achieving the standards we have set, others are working very hard to lay the foundations, but some are struggling to obtain basic standards.”

In his overview of the current state of services, Williams concluded that “further progress needed to be seen in improving service quality, in making services more flexible and responsive to people’s needs and in ensuring that high quality services were consistently available throughout Wales”.

The way forward, he argues, is down to creating a sharing and learning culture within and between authorities; improving the use of resources; sharing specialisms between authorities; and considering the need for additional, targeted support.

To read the full report, click here.