Ofsted is set to introduce a new, more effective and
proportionate approach to inspecting Cafcass (the Children and
Family Court Advisory and Support Service).
The inspectorate will use a ‘whole-system’ approach of shorter
inspections every 3 years, with more regular contact in between,
to build a better picture of Cafcass’s practice. It will bring
Cafcass inspections in line with Ofsted’s other inspections of
children’s social care.
Today, Ofsted has published its consultation outcome
confirming that its proposals will be introduced in full. The new
approach includes:
- a 3-yearly national judgement inspection
- focused visits between judgement inspections, looking at a
specific area of service/cohort of children
- annual sharing of a self-evaluation of frontline practice in
both public and private law
- an annual engagement meeting between Ofsted and the Cafcass
chief executive and senior leadership team
At the 3-yearly inspection, Ofsted will judge the quality and
effectiveness of Cafcass’s private law and public law practice,
and the impact leaders have on practice with children and
families. If Cafcass is judged to be inadequate, Ofsted will
carry out monitoring visits to make sure improvements are made.
Ofsted received over 300 responses to its consultation. The
majority broadly agreed with the proposals. Responses were from a
mix of those working with children and families in the family
courts, parents and other family members.
The new approach will take effect from 1 April 2021. Ofsted will
begin with a focused visit of
Cafcass as part of a phased return to routine social care
inspection. The visit will provide assurance about the quality
and impact of Cafcass’s work with families, while taking ongoing
COVID-19 restrictions into account.
Ofsted will review the effectiveness of the new approach during
the early stages of rollout.
Yvette Stanley, Ofsted’s National Director for Regulation and
Social Care, said:
Children involved in the family justice system deserve the
highest standard of care and support during what is often a
distressing time. Our new approach to inspecting Cafcass is
proportionate yet rigorous, providing more frequent scrutiny of
its work with families and a greater focus on children’s
experiences. My thanks to everyone who gave us their views.
