New Torbay care leader appointed

Torbay Council is working to improve its child social care

An experienced social work leader has been given the job of turning round children’s social care in Torbay.

Nancy Meehan has been confirmed in the role as director of children’s services.

She previously stepped up to become acting director after joining Torbay Council as deputy in October last year.

The top job became available after the end of joint arrangements with Plymouth City Council last month.

Plymouth had been put in charge of Torbay’s children’s services as part of a recovery plan.

But a decision was taken to wind down the arrangement less than two years later in November 2019 after it failed to deliver the expected improvements.

Torbay Council’s children’s social care had been rated inadequate by Ofsted inspectors for a second time in the summer of 2018.

Monitoring visits have raised ongoing concerns, but the latest in January reported a series of improvements.

The inspector highlighted good staff morale and improved management, and acknowledged the commitment of political leaders and the senior management team.

That followed a fundamental review of the council’s improvement programme headed by Ms Meehan.

The approach was switched from complying with regulations to a focus on the outcomes for children, which was widely welcomed.

The revised improvement plan sets out measures to achieve a rating of good by April 2021.

Initiatives include a Learning Academy to help tackle the difficulty of recruiting and retaining staff, which is a nationwide problem.

The partnership of Liberal Democrats and Independents running Torbay Council has put improvement to children’s services at the top of its list of priorities.

Children’s social care in Torbay is facing a predicted overspend of £6.7million by the end of this financial year, although there have been signs of the pressures easing.

Next year’s proposed budget is £47m, more than a third of the council’s total spending.

The 2020/21 budget includes £9million of extra cash, including £2.8million to fund improvements.

Costs have been rising for children’s services across the country due to an increase in the number of children in care and the increased complexity of some cases.

Figures at March 2018 showed Torbay had the highest rate of looked-after children in the region and the fourth highest in England. 

Ms Meehan has more than 25 years’ experience as a senior manager and consultant in children’s services.

She has worked in  Blackpool, Coventry and Rotherham, and in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets which recently achieved a Ofsted rating of ‘good’.

Ms Meehan said in a statement: “Since I joined Torbay Council in October last year, I have really enjoyed worked working on different projects and initiatives. 

“During this time, I have been able to grasp a good understanding of the challenges we face in Torbay and I am extremely passionate about making a difference.

 “I look forward to continuing to work with the community, colleagues and partners in Torbay with the ambition to provide excellent and innovative services, which will enable our children and young people to be safe, happy, healthy and successful.”

Council leader Steve Darling said: “Nancy’s experience and time spent in her interim role has already demonstrated that she can help to bring about positive change for our local children and young people. I wish her every success in her new role.”