Ofsted are again having their findings queried – no surprise, huh? In this article in Community Care it turns of the contrasting evidence of Ofsted and Adoption UK: http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2011/01/26/116174/loughton-casts-doubt-on-ofsted-adoption-inspections.htm

Wilt is very pro-adoption, provided of course that parents and extended families are rigorously and fairly ruled out as being suitable, and quickly double-time – not an easy task. It is important that children are not allowed to languish in the care system or be repeatedly taken in and out of care, or likewise added to and removed repeatedly from child protection registers. All too often children’s services interventions are shallow, casual, ill-focused and ultimately non-effective.

Children should of course be placed in same-race placements as a first principle, but on principle opposing trans-racial placements is perverse, potentially cruel, definitely political correctness at its worst and fundamentally flawed. That said, seeking a same race placement is absolutely correct, for a limited period of time. Leaving children in limbo in the hope of achieving the ideal is misguided.

Yet there are those who persist in this perverse thinking and accuse others of being “racist” if they demure or worse challenge the practice of political correctness. And these people can be found in all sectors – public, voluntary and private. The fact that Ofsted yet again miss vital facts in their inspections represents possibly similar attitudes, but at least a growing factual history of their general incompetence.

It seems to Wilt that Loughton and the Government are far more in touch with what needs to happen in local communities, in provision of local services and in identifying where there are barriers to good practice than Ofsted. What value Ofsted? Would they be missed?

Wilt

Wilt likes to keep up with events up in north Wales, given his holiday home connections there. First there is that sad loss of the Wrexham to London train service as reported on this morning on the Radio 4 Today programme and online by the BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-shropshire-12305519

This is a real shame – it provided an excellent service albeit Wilt only used it several times over its short 3 year history, either for business or pleasure. Everyone felt like First Class customers on old style Pullman type carriages, in excellent comfort with complimentary amenities and really friendly staff.

The service will be missed – few business people used it as it was an essentially casual cliental that used its route to London, or vice versa to Wrexham and a few stopping off points in-between.

Then there is Anglesey Council under special measures as a failing local authority that look possibly set to merge with a adjacent authority, as in this article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-12295620

Meanwhile in this article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-12296950 it seems another local authority are getting to grips with silly local authority staff and union expectations that staff cut off from work due weather conditions can expect to continue to get paid. These fools need to get real – what do they think happens in the real world of business?

Well, let Wilt remind them. You see if Wilt cannot get to an appointment or complete an item of work because of snow, which was the case this winter, he does not get paid – no pay. It is simple. No work, no pay – bad luck. The same happens if he is sick, when on holiday or otherwise unable to work – no pay.

As the budgets tighten not only in Wales but UK wide and indeed world-wide everyone of modest to average means are having to adjust – what is it about local government, civil servants and NHS workers et al that think they are special? Need special treatment.

Of course it is not confined to Wales, it is UK wide according to this article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-12304080 where it is reported that trade unions are planning coordinated strike action.

Will their services be missed? No doubt there would be disruption but then the roads will have less traffic as these strikers stay at home. And will it make any difference to the number of job losses in the public sector? NO!

Does public sector services, de-regulation and investment in small and medium business need to be forthcoming? YES!

Of course the BBC is also facing major cuts – whereas Wilt loves the BBC and its online content, is there really a need for the online content to be in 32 different languages? Does Wilt want his tax and licence fee to pay for news content to support all those other languages (in written form) to some populations, whether here in the UK or abroad, who are in large measure are illiterate? NO!

Returning to local government, Mrs Wilt told me only last night that a local authority she is undertaking work for have received in excess of 700 requests for voluntary redundancy – solely within social services and in fact in a very small borough council. That must be fast approaching a quarter to a third of its entire social services workforce – and what does that tell you? They want out, ASAP! And who could blame them?

So the doom mongers (the unions) might just reflect on these figures, probably replicated across the UK.

Things will get better the sooner government (local/national) and quangos are depleted. Then there are less taxes and people can get on with running business.

Wilt

Do not forget to keep Guido company:  http://order-order.com/

Wilt

Not long now……….

We will be back full blown with a new site and editorial, oh and a few more revelations of the thoughts of Wilt and that dirty Salty Dog.

Oooooooeeeeeerrrrrr

Well, the Wilt is back – his absence is a long story and one too boring to explain to the avid followers of Regulator Watch.

Anyway, there is a lot of catching up on news since August although whether that will prove to be possible now is doubtful – however in the days/weeks to come we will be attempting some anthology of newsworthy events, in social care and at the same time comment current events. None of the regulators have yet escaped the clutches of Wilt and the team.

Watchful, mate, I was neither kidnapped by extremists in Egypt, nor gagged by lawyers for Calleja or anyone else. The explanation is much more practical and benign – and boring, not least the period incorporated the end of the corporate tax year (together with a very painful bill), personal tax year (none a everything is offshore), increasing workflows (still much overseas) and some element of exhaustion.

Oh and there was Xmas and New Year and a lot of snow, especially in them there hills and mountains in north Wales where Mr & Mrs Wilt, both Wilt offspring and Salty Dog spent most of the between Xmas and post New Year period in up to minus 15 degrees! Bust pipes – I lost count!

Anyway, energy recovered – Wilt is up to the task again.

Our apologies for any worries caused.

Wilt

By ecke it’s hot. How you all doing out there?

Wilt

We have photos somewhere of the twin towers before and after 9/11 but in their absence (the portfolio runs into hundreds of thousands) I offer this picture in remembrance of the victims – a day of infamy that Wilt watched live on TV and was sat, open mouthed in front of the TV in disbelief. for days.

Whatever Wilt felt, which was considerable distress, was only a miniscule of a miniscule of the emotional distress of his relatives/friends in New York who looked on in horror from across the river.

This scene is at Arlington Cemetery in Washington – befitting we believe of our sentiments on this sad anniversary – therein are at rest heroes of freedom.

And what was Calleja doing at the time? Complaining of course, and since. That kind of puts her in perspective, does it not? TWAT.

Wilt

From BBC News

This BBC article caught my eye due to the rather unusual sea rescue of a wheelie bin – what a plonker.

You can just imagine the unnamed fellow saying, ‘see you later darling – I am going to retrieve the bin.’ And the reply ‘yes dear.’

Several hours later he ends up in hospital – it’s like something out of a Monty Python sketch.

It also caught my eye because of the location, Red Wharf Bay on Anglesey – one of Salty Dog’s favourite locations. The little village/anchorage has a wonderful beach, a pub (very important to Salty Dog) and a little cafe. The pub grub, be warned, is expensive and overpriced although tasty. The cafe on the other hand is reasonably priced and equally tasty grub can be had.

If you prefer, take a picnic – we gather you can dump your leftovers in a local wheelie bin now understood to be tethered to the sea wall.

There is nothing else there, not even a shop and the hotel up on the hill where we once stayed closed several years ago – that was before we bought our own north Wales abode.

When the tide is out you can walk for miles and Salty Dog gets to play in the pools left behind by the receding sea. Plan your walk carefully, cos when that tide returns it does so at greater pace than many can run.

Wilt

Wilt Portfolio

In case you had not noticed (for which you could be forgiven) Wilt is back in the UK – he is off again Monday flying out to a warmer climate much against his better wishes, but the client demands it.

Wilt just hopes the return flight on Tuesday evening is not interrupted or delayed, as the following day he is off to Egypt on his sojourn.

Anyway, Wilt has been in a bit of a quandary for a couple of days, deciding whether or not to appeal a Court matter in which he acts as a Guardian – he is still in a quandary over it. Serious stuff is at stake. A real head in the hands affair.

However, Wilt will search his conscience a little further before arriving at a decision.

In the mean time Wilt was listening to the BBC Radio 4 Six O’clock News tonight which reported that in Australia the Catholic Church is to ban certain bespoke musical renditions from funerals in favour of more sombre music as the coffin disappears behind those curtains.

Among the banned musical choices hitherto used in Australian funerals is Queen’s ‘Another Bites The Dust.’

Fucking brilliant Australian humour – me thinks Wilt will have that song at his funeral.

Another, welcomed, falling off the office chair in a fit of laughter moment. How do these BBC folk keep themsewlves from laughing when reporting this stuff? Now my head hurts having landed not very softly on the carpet.

Wilt

From the Wilt Portfolio

It would appear CAFCASS are protesting against fair comment, not by simply protesting but by referring the matter to the GSCC. See the Blog post here from Allan Norman (of Celtic Knot).

The question not posed by Norman however is how the matter managed to get from the GSCC conduct team, through a Preliminary Proceedings hearing and finally onto a full Conduct hearing? The GSCC officers could have knocked the complaint on the head as an obvious malicious complaint, attempting to silence not only Charles Place but indeed post a warning to others who might disagree with CAFCASS.

So, although the GSCC tribunal Committee might have done the right thing (and they did), there is no analysis of how it got before the Committee in the first place. What were the GSCC officers up to bringing this matter before them?
How much wasted resources and thousands of pounds were spent on this wasteful exercise, and really was an admonishment necessary given as Norman observes:

“One irony of this case is that the social worker concerned remains employed by CAFCASS apparently carrying out “valuable work for us to a good standard” according to its chief executive. Misconduct is defined as conduct which calls into question suitability to remain on the register. CAFCASS did not even believe it called into question his competence or suitability to be employed by them, so why bring the complaint?”

A similar question, Allan, applies to the GSCC officers.

It just goes to show that the GSCC are still a very dysfunctional organisation incapable of deciding what role it fulfils.

Wilt