Councils on child protection system increase by 54%
The number of councils to have joined the Child Protection-Information System (CP-IS) has increased by 54% since last September.
The CP-IS is the first national safeguarding system which links information held by local authorities on children who are looked after or on child protection plans, with NHS unscheduled care systems such as those used by A&E departments.
If a vulnerable child known to a local authority receives unscheduled care, CP-IS generates a notification and sends it to the child’s social worker. It also alerts clinicians that they are dealing with a vulnerable child.
The number of notifications each month has increased by 129% since September. More than 131,000 vulnerable children are protected by the CP-IS, which has received a funding boost of £500,000 from the Department for Education and £500,000 from NHS England to help councils and NHS organisations implement the system.
Double digital accolade for Salford
Salford City Council has been awarded both overall winner and Digital Council of the Year in the DL100 awards for its work in digital transformation, after facing a panel of 16 judges.
The awards celebrate individuals and teams leading digital transformation in the UK across the sectors, according to their peers.
Salford has launched the project Digital You, which aims to help 8,000 digitally excluded residents to get online by 2020. The council also has its own Digital Eagles to develop new skills within its workforce and has appointed a Chief Digital Officer.
The council won the Digital Council of the Year award jointly with Birmingham City Council. The award recognises councils that have delivered “measurable digital transformation internally or in the way they are providing their public services” over the last year.
Mayor launches affordable housing portal
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has launched an online property portal aimed at Londoners who cannot afford to buy a home on the open market.
Users can register interest, receive email alerts for the latest properties in their area, get a financial affordability assessment and book viewings via the portal, which is free to use.
All homes advertised on the Homes for Londoners site, which already lists over 1,400 shared ownership and 230 Help to Buy properties, are funded through City Hall affordable housing programmes. The site will include rented homes later this summer.
Image: Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
