1. On 16 October 2023 the Care Inspectorate wrote to the Chief Executive of East Dunbartonshire Council to advise that the Care Inspectorate, Healthcare Improvement Scotland and Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland will undertake a joint inspection of adult support and protection arrangements in East Dunbartonshire. Similar notification letters were received by the Chief Executive of NHSGGC and the leadership of Police Scotland.
2. The focus of the joint inspection will be to provide:
- Independent scrutiny and assurance of how partnerships ensure that adults at risk of harm are kept safe, protected, and supported.
- Assurance to Scottish Ministers about how effectively partnerships have implemented the Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007.
- An opportunity to identify good practice and support improvement more broadly across Scotland.
3. The inspection team will conduct this scrutiny using two quality indicators:
- Key adult support and protection processes.
- Leadership for adult support and protection.
4. The inspection will include five key activities:
- A staff survey relevant to health, Police Scotland, social work and social care staff, and provider organisations.
- The review of a short position statement and supporting documentation provided by the partnership (15–20 documents).
- The reading of records of a sample of adults considered at risk of harm who did not require any further adult support and protection intervention beyond the initial inquiry stage.
- The reading of the records (health, police, and social work records) of a sample of adults at risk of harm in cases where inquiries have used investigative powers under sections 7-10 of the 2007 Act. This includes cases where adult support and protection activity proceeded beyond the inquiry with investigative powers stage.
- The engagement of frontline practitioners, managers, and strategic leaders in focus groups to discuss their experiences of process and governance.
5. The notification letter sets out key dates for the process as follows:
Specific stages of the inspection process:
- Confirm local contacts – 20 October 2023 - complete
- Staff survey - opens Monday 13 November 2023, progress report provided 24 November 2023, closes 1 December 2023
- Position Statement and Supporting Evidence provided to inspection team – 29 November 2023
- Complete multi-agency case files uploaded for inspection team – 8 December 2023
- Reviewing case files - w/c Monday 15 January 2024
- Focus groups, staff and those in leadership roles – provisionally 19 January 2024
Key partnership meeting dates:
- Partnership Discussion 1 – Monday 20 November 2023
- Partnership Discussion 2 – Wednesday 21 February 2024
- Factual accuracy checking processes expected late February 2024 with embargoed then published report in March 2024
Further briefings to Members will follow as details of the inspection programme, and the self-evaluation information submitted as part of that, are developed and agreed.