Improvements mean notice is lifted

The authority is pleased to have had its intervention notice lifted ahead of the deadline set for improvements by the Department for Education.

In a letter to the Council, Under Secretary of State for Children and Familes, Tim Loughton MP, congratulates the service for the "progress made to date" and commends the strong local commitment to tackle areas that still need further improvement.

Councillor Roger Stone, Leader of Rotherham MBC, said: "This is good news for everyone who has worked so hard to make the improvements so that we can ensure our children and young people get the care, support and opportunities they deserve.

"The introduction of the notice was a real wake up call to everyone and people have responded magnificently to the challenge and created strong foundations for the future development of services.

"These are challenging times in the public sector but the removal of this notice and recent inspection reports and reviews show that by agencies working together in Rotherham we can make a positive difference to the lives of children and families across the borough."

The Improvement Notice was placed on the authority in December 2009 after the service was rated by Ofsted as "performing poorly". Rotherham was one of a number of authorities who were given notice to improve by the Government, although the level of intervention in Rotherham was lower than elsewhere.

Representatives from the DfE joined the Council's CYPS Improvement Panel and regular monitoring of services and progress meetings were held with DfE officials.

Councillor Paul Lakin, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People's Services, said: "We are clear that there is still a long way to go and we have to build on the improvements we have made so that our our young people reach their full potential."

In December 2010, in its latest assessment, Ofsted rated Rotherham as 'performing adequately'. The assessment brought together all Ofsted's review of services, schools and other educational settings and showed:

• Acknowledgment of the improvements to services made over the past eighteen months and the "strong corporate action", including additional investment
• Performance  in the  'very large majority of outcomes' in line with the national averages and those for similar areas
• Good multi-agency partnership working
• Successful work to recruit and retain staff
• Five of the borough's special schools are rated "outstanding"
• A "good" rated adoption agency
• Good work by Schools and the Fostering Service to encourage children and young people to live healthy lives
• Improvements to services for children with emotional or mental health difficulties
• Children are "generally safe within the community."
• Good arrangements for involving children and young people in planning and reviewing local services
• Most services and settings help children and young people do well in education and enjoy their learning
• Reductions in the number of young people committing crimes for the first time or re-offending