Joint Inspection of Adult Support and Protection in the Dumfries and Galloway Partnership - November 2021

Joint inspection of adult support and protection in the Dumfries and Galloway partnership - November 2021

We as chief officers in Dumfries and Galloway today welcome the publication of the joint inspection report from the Care Inspectorate, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland and Healthcare Improvement Scotland after they undertook a joint inspection of adult support and protection arrangements in Dumfries & Galloway.

This joint inspection, one of many planned across the whole of Scotland, looked for assurances that adults at risk of harm in our region are supported and protected using both national and local adult support and protection arrangements. This also provided an opportunity to identify good practice and support our commitment to continuous improvement in our region.

The joint inspection, in addition to looking at the impact of the covid-19 pandemic and how services adapted to these unforeseen challenges, focused on two key questions:

1. How good were our partnership's key processes for adult support and protection?
2. How good was our partnership's strategic leadership for adult support and protection?

The inspection found that, whilst there were some areas for improvement, these were outweighed by the clear strengths supporting positive experiences and outcomes for adults at risk of harm.  We are pleased with findings that the partnership achieved good outcomes for almost all adults at risk of harm, including during the period of Covid-19 restrictions, and that our approach to risk assessments was very strong. The inspection also recognised the commitment of front-line staff, working through a clear vision that ensured adult support and protection remained a strategic priority prior to and during Covid-19.

They also recognised the exceptional challenges and impact on staff working in Adult Support and Protection through the pandemic, and the report details some clear strengths in the approach that was taken by both agencies and staff. That the report highlighted there was a clear collaborative ethos across the whole partnership was fundamental to this.

There are some areas for improvement and development identified for our partnership and action has already started to progress these. We as a Public Protection Partnership will report back on our improvement planning to the Care Inspectorate in January 2022, marking the formal end of the inspection process but not the end of our commitment to building our capacity and capability to protect those in our region.

We must acknowledge all those who were involved in the inspection process.  Most importantly, we wish to thank all of our staff who work together to keep those adults who are vulnerable and at risk safe. It is a testament to them that this inspection report is very positive in terms of many aspects of the work that we undertake. The clear commitment of staff is a strength of which we as chief officers are very proud.

The final report is available on the Care Inspectorate website www.careinspectorate.com