Bright city lights

A morning meeting with Scottish Government then through to Glasgow for our Board meeting this time on the premises of Strathclyde University.

We had various discussions including a development session on training then had the public board meeting (papers on our website).

Afterwards there was an opportunity for the Board to hear from the Institute for Inspiring Children’s Futures ( Professor Jennifer Davidson - who chaired the Kilbrandon lecture last week) and CELCIS (the centre for excellence for looked after children in Scotland). It was an opportunity for us to hear more of the work they are doing across those services which impact on looked after children; the national and international comparisons and learning; and the lessons learned on change management and implementation. We had a particular focus on the improvement methodology CELCIS are undertaking with (currently) 19 local authority areas on permanence and the work with Children's Panel members and Area Support Team members who are keen to see how the system might be improved. Lots of positive messages which we need to capture and disseminate.

It is hard to distil 2 hours’ of free flowing discussion. Suffice to say it was a very informative session and helped each of us think about how we might support each other. Thanks to Claire, Ben and Aileen as well as Jennifer.

On our way back to the train we had this view of George Square in all its glitzy glory. I recall being brought through as a child to see the George Sq lights which were always brighter and more colourful than Edinburgh’s. Edinburgh has developed massively over the decades: but I think Glasgow still wins out on colour and vibrancy!