Sandwell Council's children's social care services were stuck in a cycle of failed Ofsted inspections, leading to management changes but no sustained improvement. To break this cycle, Sandwell Council implemented a long-term improvement plan focused on developing a stable, high-performing workforce. Key aspects of the plan included recruiting an experienced new senior management team, tackling high agency staff levels, and engaging frontline staff to spread ownership of the changes. These efforts have led to continuing improvements in the services as measured by fewer failed inspections and a more motivated workforce invested in the services' success.

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W
hen Sandwell Council began looking
for another new director of children’s
services (DCS) in the summer of 2012
HR and the senior management team made a
commitment to be anything but ‘inadequate’ in how
they responded.
Now the West Midlands based authority is very
much on the move, both in improvement terms
and in real terms as it undertakes a roadshow
recruitment tour in London to attract more qualified
and experienced social workers to the service.
In setting out the challenge chief executive Jan
Britten says: ‘Sandwell’s children’s social care
services were locked in a cycle of failed Ofsted
inspections leading to senior management change,
another new improvement plan, some progress but
ultimately another failed Ofsted, and then the cycle
beginning again’.
Part of the problem was that the council’s
expectations for improvement rested heavily on
the shoulders a small number of senior managers,
often no more than a director and one or two
assistantdirectors,who–byforceofcircumstances
– adopted very top-down, directive management
techniques, while the morale of the majority of the
workforce was undermined by successive failed
inspections.
‘TobreakthiscycleiMPOWERandPenna
have helped us to appoint and develop
a new senior management team with the
confidence to adopt a more constructive
management style – and to develop
workforce ambassadors at every level in the
service to help spread the message that this
time things will be.
‘We have now reached the point where
continuing improvement is driven not by
requiring 200% from a few beleaguered
senior managers, but by a relatively small
percentage point from every one of the
hundreds of employees in the service:
for me this is the definition of sustainable
improvement.’
Over the last year the HR and OD team has
contributed significantly to the turnaround
of the service and through working closely
with its improvement partners, have made
lasting changes to the structural, cultural and
developmental foundations of the service.
First thing’s first, the council had to get a strong
children’s services management team in place
that would lead the change and spearhead the
transformationwithJanBritton.Highlyexperienced
and committed interims and consultants were
secured who could stabilise the leadership team
and help us with the diagnostic stage of the
improvement plan.
Simon White, who took up the DCS role in
January 2013, says: ‘My plan was not a series of
“quick fixes” but a long-term solution that focused
on a number of key areas – a stable and high
performing workforce being number one.’
Longer-term thinking and succession
planning were a vital and a key part of Sandwell’s
improvementplan.Activityaroundthemediumand
longer-term organisational design began very early
andwestartedrecruitingtothepermanentpositions
immediately.
Through honesty about where we were and
supportive recruitment programmes that set out
a desire for candidates who wanted to be part of
the change, we were able to attract high quality
candidates and fill all roles to create a new senior
management team.
Theapproachtoattractandselectthenewsenior
management team has set the standard for the
future. We also tackled agency recruitment levels
and through a transition programme to permanent
hires have saved in the region of £600,000 so far
this year alone.
A new induction programme with one-to-one
support has been pivotal in ensuring new recruits
take up post effectively and positively.
The theme of the attraction and indeed the core
branding for the change programme was centered
on the voice of the child: ‘No decision about me,
without me’. This mantra became our reality
check – and we had to be honest about
whether we were genuinely listening to the
children and young people we cared for.
The theme emerged from workshops we
ran with current employees and a values
survey which helped us understand what our
key strengths were and what our staff valued
(see left).
A joint team from Sandwell and
iMPOWER spearheaded a service redesign
with our newly established professional
reference group. We very quickly created a
new MASH (Multi-Agency Safeguarding
Hub), MAET (Multi-Agency Enquiry Team)
and an early help approach – all were new
approaches at the time for Sandwell and
for the region. With these big changes the
reference group, made up of current and
new employees, helped the service adopt
new ways of working and helped everyone
intheservicefeelpartofmakingthechange
happen.
Quarterly roadshows led from the front
by the chief executive effectively engaged the
workforce. At these roadshows, managing change
and progression through the change curve were
core subjects and the message of the change being
done by the workforce rather than to the workforce
was reinforced. Volunteer workforce ambassadors
were asked to lead engagement outside of the
roadshows and ensure that communications and
examplesofgoodworkwerecelebratedandshared
regularly. The roadshows and feedback were cited
by Investors in People as being best practice in
engagement and management of change.
Thenewmanagementteamhaveplayedabigpart
in the improvement journey and have established
an outcome-focused team manager forum; new
leadership qualities to set clear expectations for
current and future leaders at Sandwell; and most
recently launched the Sandwell Gateway which has
brought together the expectations that we have of
teams / individuals and a great deal of new exciting
career development opportunities including our
partnership with the University of Birmingham.
Matthew Sampson, the new service director
of children’s services, who joined from Sheffield,
says: ‘Children come first’ was a clear message
when I spoke to people about Sandwell and the
backing was, and continues to be there, from
members and senior directors to make sure it
happens. Addressing the historical issues in a
constructive and innovative way was what got my
attention.’
In September the Sandwell children’s leadership
team will be in London to meet with prospective
employees who are perhaps seeking a new
challenge in a new location. We know that to
continue to improve the service we need to have a
robust attraction and retention plan.
Coming to London to spread the word about
Sandwell, a place that many people know little
about,isakeyplankofourfutureattractionstrategy.
It will see us bring Sandwell to London to share
our change journey with others, and help position
the council as a real career alternative for social
workerswhomaybelookingforanewchallenge,in
a part of the country that has a lot to offer, including
affordable housing and good quality of life.
If you would be interested in attending one of
the London events please email sandwell@penna.
com. n
Richard Luckman is senior HR business
partner at Sandwell Council and Julie
Towers is managing director of recruitment
solutions at Penna
appointments l Recruitment & retention lappointments l Recruitment & retention l
‘We have now reached the point
where continuing improvement
is driven not by requiring 200%
from a few beleaguered senior
managers, but by a relatively
small percentage point from
every one of the hundreds of
employees in the service’
Sandwell – on the move
Richard Luckman and Julie Towers look at the way in which HR and OD
have supported the improvement journey in children’s services
Big plans for
your voices
Welcome to the Staff Briefing.
Take a seat and speak up, we’re all ears.
Hello
Hello
You’re determined to deliver the highest quality
service that people trust and talk about
You ensure that we get the basics right and have
clear processes and structures
You set realistic targets for yourself and your team
You’re resilient, no matter how tough the changes
You encourage thinking that represents local
needs, priorities and culture
You boost morale and set the example for
others to follow
You help colleagues see things through and
consistently improve our capabilities.
Every
helping hand
builds
a future.
The true
story of
change
Leadership Qualities
LLLet’s start
at the beginning...
WE EXIST TO MAKE LIFE BETTER FOR
THE 309,000 RESIDENTS OF OLDBURY,
ROWLEY REGIS, SMETHWICK, TIPTON,
WEDNESBURY AND WEST BROMWICH.
Every purpose
craves an
opportunity.
VALUED
APPRECIATED
INCLUD
ED
POWERFUL,
SUCCESSFUL
LISTEN
PO
SITIVE
COMMUNICATE
Movingonwards:SandwellCouncilHouse(below)thenewbrandingforthechangeprogramme
Thecorebrandingforthechange
programmewascenteredonthe
voice of the child: ‘No decision
about me, without me’