Our progress: A summary of progress against our Business Plan 2024/2025

Our Progress and Achievements in 2024/25

During 2024/2025, our focus remained on delivering the strategic programmes outlined in our Business Plan:

• Care – Delivering a service that feels right for each child, young person and family that experiences it.
• Connect – Working together to receive the right referrals, for the right children, at the right time.
• Protect – Making high quality and timely decisions for children and young people, using the right information that is relevant, clear and secure.

During 2024/25, we successfully completed a high proportion of the actions in our Business Plan – some of which are highlighted in this next section of the report.

More detailed information is available in the Performance Review section of our Annual Accounts 2024/25.

Short term absence at 1.9% was within the 2% target and was rated as green but was 0.4pp higher than the prior year. Short term absence meeting the target will be in part around staff having more flexibility about where they work from even when they are feeling unwell, but not unwell enough to be absent from work. The target being met may also be a result of the various health and wellbeing supports that SCRA has in place, such as EAP, vicarious trauma support, menopause support etc.

Long term absence at 3.9% was up 0.5pp from the prior year and well above the 2% target and is therefore rated as red. We recognise that long term absence remains a challenge in terms of available resources. We work closely with managers pre, during and post long term absence to ensure that the most appropriate supports are in place to sustain the employee at work.

Of the finance targets, revenue savings (target of 2.5%) and the efficiency savings (target of 0.5%) were both met. The revenue spend target was rated as red at 6.4% below budget against a target of being within 1% of budget. Savings mainly arose from staffing underspends arising from vacancies and the timing of recruitment to additional posts in advance of Children (Care and Justice) Act implementation. The capital spends target was narrowly missed at 6.1% below budget against a target of being within 5% of budget and was rated as amber. Capital savings arose primarily due to the decision to treat the Glasgow refurbishment project as a two-year project, resulting in a reduction of spend within 2024/25.

Our Performance and Targets

Decision making by Reporters within 50 working days at 72% was up 2.0 percentage points (pp)  compared to 2023/24. It was slightly below the 74% target and was rated as amber for the year. In terms of delays in case processing, on average, 3.4% of referrals were open beyond 100 working days in the year. This was below the 4.1% target and this measure is therefore rated as green. It was an improvement of 1.7pp on the prior year.

There was a focus on improving performance in 2024/25  which included reinforcing expectations with operational teams and individual Reporters and the use of Quality Improvement methodology.  However, Reporters are reliant on partner agencies to provide reports and information to help them make the right decision for a child.  The time taken to receive this information continues to be impacted by resourcing pressures experienced by some local authority social work teams.

The scheduling of grounds Hearings within 20 working days of a Reporter decision to arrange a Hearing was up 3.7pp in the year to 70%. The performance in 2024/25 continues the improvements seen since the pandemic and the prioritisation that was required at that time. Performance was though below the 74% target and is rated as amber.