The framework has been drawn up by a steering group comprising Ofsted, the Audit Commission, the Healthcare Commission, the constabulary inspectorate, and several other commissions and inspectorates linked to various key services. The document, which has been developed in the light of the Green Paper Every Child Matters and is subject to the passage of the Children Bill through Parliament, is being discussed at conferences this month with councils and other stakeholders.
Speaking at a stakeholders' conference in London last week, David Bell, Ofsted chief inspector of schools and chair of the steering group, said, 'For children's services to be effective and efficient, their objectives have to be better integrated and their actions have to be better co-ordinated. So, the proposals for an integrated inspection framework have the intention that all inspections of children's services, where relevant, will report on their outcomes for children and young people in a systematic way.'
The Children Bill has empowered the chief inspector of schools, working with the other commissions and inspectorates, to develop the inspection framework and set up joint area reviews to evaluate how well services are being run. Inspections of schools and early years settings will continue to be based on statutory requirements, but there will be a closer evaluation of what the settings do and the part they play in the local network of services.