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With many local authorities still reeling from the huge reorganisation that merging education and social care departments created, is now really the time to be considering more change?

Yes, apparently. And the changes are coming thick and fast for Children’s Services Directorates. First it was the requirement that every authority have an electronic social care record (ESCR) to help information-sharing within social services teams. Then, more recently, authorities have been asked to develop an Integrated Children System (ICS), which combines social services, education and other data on children and young people for a single view of the child. Next its the electronic Common Assessment Framework and ContactPoint.

A Noble Aim
All this change is to support one aim – a single record for each child so that the clues which identify a child at risk are not lost in countless different files or databases. It has been recognised that joined-up thinking needs joined-up IT systems in place supporting it. And there is no doubt that a youth services officer will be better equipped to support a teenager who self-harms if they have the child’s school record of bullying to hand or details of their fostering history.

But how do local authorities bring all these disparate systems together?

Plan A
Some authorities are choosing to stick with their existing IT systems and simply integrate the data within these through software or adapters, to minimise disruption to their workforce and reduce the need for retraining. Of course, this approach can currently be adequately catered for if you gain the co-operation of multiple IT suppliers. As business processes change, however, and stakeholders demand more from the information stored in these systems, the argument for retaining separate systems will become weaker. Could these authorities simply be delaying the inevitable? Wouldn’t it be better to follow a strategy which links practitioners and managers with all the information they need to make smarter interventions and decisions on service delivery?

Efficiency, Efficiency, Efficiency
The cost of maintaining data across separate systems is undoubtedly more substantial than with a single system. There is also a greater risk of double data-entry and the additional IT support costs to consider. With the ongoing drive for efficiency in government, it will not be long before these authorities may be required to reconsider their approach.

Future Focus
Arguably, what authorities need to do is to look beyond the many demands placed on them today to what the expectation will be in the future, where the only constant – to quote some bright spark – will be change.

Plan B - The Alternative
The alternative is a single database that supports all the core services within an authority that deal with a child. This approach is more likely to support Children’s Services teams in the future. Data will be stored centrally and delivered in a format that is relevant to the user. The social worker and teacher will see the same parental contact information for the child. If one changes the telephone number then this can be reflected on all other services’ records. In terms of reporting, a one-system approach is far easier to manage. The question ‘how many excluded pupils are in care?’ becomes an easy question to answer, helping authorities understand how they are delivering on their aims for all the children in their area.

This need for more detailed information and even greater efficiency will ultimately drive local authorities to opt for the single system approach. If not now, then certainly in the very near future. This will help ensure they are delivering the best possible services to those children who need it most, which is after all, the end goal.

www.capita-cs.co.uk