ABSTRACT
The new organisational structure covered some two hundred thousand staff in nearly two hundred local authorities. Threats of violence from dissatisfied clients contributed to the development of a fortress mentality in some social services departments unable to confront unmet need. The implementation of the Children Act is being monitored annually by the Department of Health. The upheaval had included removing a tier of management at the civic centre; redundancies and redeployment of senior staff, and the resignation of the social services director in protest about the dilution of provision. The Children Act did not require management changes but expected clarification of local authorities’ lead responsibility, emphasising also the rights of parents to be informed and to participate. Concern that parents might confuse the register of disabled children with the child protection register, and about confidential material, influenced the decision that the registration process should be voluntary and that service provision should not be dependent on it.
