Report Praises Highland's Innovative Children's Services

Two national think tanks have published a report that highlights integrated children’s services in Highland as a prime national example of innovation in public services. The report by The Young Foundation  and the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) examines why some areas innovate more effectively to meet social needs than others, and how these areas – like Highland - have gone further to create a culture of social innovation. 

It notes that the Council has made significant service improvements in a short period of time and that in 2006, the success of the integrated Children’s Services was recognised by the Scottish Government, which selected the Highlands as a Pathfinder for the rest of Scotland.
 
The report is the outcome of various studies in different parts of the UK, including a week of fieldwork that took place in Highland in late 2007.  The researcher, Nusrat Faizullah, met professionals across all agencies, from Skye to Inverness, and detailed their collective contribution to the improvement of outcomes for children.  She looked at practice at an individual and strategic level, and identified the elements that had contributed to rapid improvement over the last 10 years.
 
The report concludes: “The Highland Council pioneered an approach to integrating Children’s Services in Scotland that was ahead of national strategy and practice in this field but was in tune with the direction of national policy priorities.  The Highland Council’s development of an integrated, multi-agency Children’s Service can be described as a radical innovation in the context of local and national approaches to service delivery.”
 
Councillor Liz MacDonald, Council spokesperson on children’s issues, welcomed the report, and said:  “This report shows how Highland is leading change and innovation, not just in Scotland, but in the UK.  We have formed an excellent partnership with central government, annd together we are finding new ways to deliver services more effectively, to achieve better outcomes for children and families”.

Councillor Margaret Davidson, Chairman of Housing and Social Work for The Highland Council, added: “It is rewarding to receive this praise, which is due to a commitment to joint working – from the DirectorDirectors to front line staff, who are dedicated to achieving the best for Highland’s children.”
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Notes for editors:
 
The Young Foundation was launched in 2005, bringing people together from NGOs, government, business and academia. It focuses on fields where they see the greatest potential for social innovation.
NESTA is the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts, and aims to promote a vibrant UK leading the world in the application of knowledge, enterprise and creativity. NESTA aims to achieve its vision by developing strategies that transform the UK's capacity for innovation.