Accountability and Effectiveness in Social Services Management:An evaluation of inquiries into NAI deaths 1973-1982

Abstract

The thesis sets out to explore the functions and processes of formal inquiries into the non-accidental injury (NAI) deaths of children known to social services departments in England and Wales. NAI inquiries are discretionary and non routinised, they are expensive and disruptive to organisational behavioural relationships. They bring into sharp focus the public accountability of social workers to the client, social workers to departments, departments to the local authority and the local authority to the public. There have occurred during the period 1973 to1982 approximately two formal NAI inquiries per annum. The thesis examines the impact NAI inquiries have had on the management of child abuse within social services departments. It does so in terms of the development and use of child abuse practices and procedures, the utility of the recommendations of various modes of NAI investigative processes from the viewpoint of practising managers and explores some of the reasons why one NAI death may warrant an investigation while another NAI death may not. The primary emphasis of the research methodology is based upon a qualitative approach to data analysis. The research strategy comprises the following: a content analysis of twenty two inquiry reports published during the period 1974 - 1982, a questionnaire survey of social services departments an analysis of which provides a snapshot of child abuse policies in practice (1980-1983) and data on views and opinions of practising managers as to the impact and utility of inquiry reports. The final part of the strategy comprises a case study. The study focusses specifically on one social services department that as a result of one NAI death in 1976 was the subject of seven investigations over a period of four years.