Inspection finds ‘weak’ foster service ‘letting down’ carers
“Unsatisfactory” leadership within Orkney Fostering Service has led to a culture of “anxiety and stress” for carers, inspectors have discovered.
Issues in how the service is managed by Orkney Islands Council (OIC) — including “significant delays” in finding permanent care for young people in need — have been highlighted in a new report published by the Care Inspectorate this week.
According to OIC, a “significant staffing crisis” has had a “serious effect” on its ability to deliver services such as this one.
Responding this Wednesday morning to the report’s findings, the authority has said its leadership team will take time to “reflect on those challenges” along with councillors, staff, and service users, in order to improve it foster care system.
The Care Inspectorate, which has assessed Orkney Foster Service as “weak” following a visit in September, also found that no training had been provided to carers in the last year. According to inspectors, carers are “committed” to providing a healthy environment for the children and young people they look after — but they are being “let down” by “service failures” when it comes to communication and ongoing support
The report does suggest, however, that young people’s access to mental health services has improved.
Responding to the report’s findings this Wednesday, an OIC spokeswoman said: “Clearly the outcome of the inspection is a sobering one — although it is not unexpected given the significant staffing crisis that we are facing, and the serious effect this is having on our ability to deliver services to the level that the people we support rightly expect.
“We now need as a leadership team to take some time to reflect on those challenges and the content of the report, alongside elected members, staff and service users in order that we can make the improvements that are needed to provide the level of service that our fostering families deserve.”
More in next week’s edition of The Orcadian.