Children's Services Research Independent Steering Group minutes: October 2023

Attendees and apologies

In attendance from the Children's Services Research Independent Steering Group

• Professor Brigid Daniel, Research Steering Group Chair, Professor Emerita, Queen Margaret University
• Dr Ruth Astbury, Lecturer and Programme Leader, School of Health and Life Sciences, University of the West of Scotland
• Lisa Buntin, Senior Lecturer, School of Social Sciences, Education and Social Work, Queens University Belfast
• Professor Barbara Fawcett, Professor of Social Work and Policy Studies in the School of Social Work and Social Policy, University of Strathclyde
• Professor Ruth Jepson, Director of The Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy, Edinburgh University
• Barry McLeod, Programme Manager,  Public Service Improvement Framework
• Allister Short, Service Director for Women's and Children's services within NHS Lothian

In attendance from Centre for Excellence for Children's Care and Protection (CELCIS)

• Dr Heather Ottaway, Principal Investigator
• Carol Ann Anderson, Co-investigator - Data Analyst
• Michael Anderson, Co-investigator - Data Lead
• Dr Leanne McIver, Co-investigator - Research Associate
• Dr Alex McTier, Co-investigator - Evidence and Evaluation Specialist
• Dr Joanna Soraghan, Co-investigator - Data Analyst
• Emma Young, Co-investigator - Research and Evaluation Associate
• Dr Robert Porter - Lead – Rapid evidence review (strand 1)
• Michaela Manole - Co-investigator – Workforce survey (strand 4)
• Nadine Fowler - Co-investigator  - Rapid evidence review (strand 1)
• Susan Reid - Administrative support to research team
• Jane Scott - Lead – strand 5 and co-investigator for rapid evidence review (strand 1)
• Kate MacKinnon - Co-investigator – rapid evidence review (strand 1) and deep dive (strand 2)
• Maria Flores-McGinty - Administrative support to research team

Secretariat 

• Childrens Services Reform PMO

Apologies

• Professor Leah Bromfield, Professor Sandra Nutley, Professor Margaret O'Brien

Items and actions

Welcome, introduction and apologies

The Chair opened the meeting

Apologies were noted from Professor Leah Bromfield, Professor Sandra Nutley and Professor Margaret O'Brien

 

Chairs Update

The Chair thanked CELCIS for their work to date.

The Chair noted meetings held to date with continued ongoing offers to support the research.

Members approved minutes from the previous meeting on 29 August 2023.

The Chair thanked the research team for thier extremely hard work. 

 

Research update

Dr Ottaway noted thanks to the members for their continued support and acknowledged the amount of work completed by the research team.

CELCIS provided an update on the following;

• progress of strand 4
• current publication timeline factoring in the response rate from the workforce survey, delays with approval, COVID and industrial  action
• final report will answer the research question focusing on answering the overall research question and what it will take to implement a decision in practice

 

Strand 4  - Children's Services workforce experiences of supporting children, young people and families

• the research team noted the quantitative findings of strand 4 as analysed to date
• noted the workforce survey is looking at different aspects of integrated working 
• CELCIS noted the good response rate across the workforce survey and good attendance at focus group sessions and interviews

 

Final Report

• CELCIS provided a high level overview of the emerging findings to be inlcuded in the final report

No further business was noted

Final meeting of the Independent Research Steering Group

29 November 2023