We have published our joint review of child protection arrangements (JICPA) in Bridgend
The joint inspection took place in June 2023.
Together with His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) (External link), Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) (External link) and Estyn (External link), we carried out a joint inspection on the multi-agency response to abuse and neglect in Bridgend.
This report outlines our findings about the effectiveness of partnership working and of the work of individual agencies in Bridgend.
In common with many areas across Wales, we found recruitment and retention of key staff is impacting on children’s safeguarding arrangements. This is made more difficult by the high levels of demand and increasing complexity of children’s and family’s needs. The workforce position within social services remains fragile. The shortage of social workers and a competitive market has resulted in an increased reliance on agency social workers. Partner agencies, such as police and health, have identified issues with resourcing the increase in child protection activity.
Despite these workforce issues, we found that improvements have been made in Bridgend since Care Inspectorate Wales’s previous full inspection in May 2022 and our follow-up visit in November 2022.
To see all our findings and recommendations, read the full report below.
Joint Inspectorate Review of Child Protection Arrangements (JICPA): Bridgend 2023