Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council signs new data sharing contract

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council has signed a contract with Capita One to improve integration between its computer systems and simplify data sharing across children’s services. 
 
The council has purchased the solution and as part of a wider transformation strategy, existing youth and youth offending systems will be replaced by Capita’s One Youth solution, enabling the council to save an estimated £100,000 annually in IT maintenance and support costs. 
 
Ian Coxon, assistant director of Business Support and Information at Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council, said: “One of the key aims of this project is to give social workers the tools they need to access information securely on the move so they can maximise their contact time with families. 
 
“Capita has been chosen as a strategic partner as they have the expertise to support this ambitious transformation. One Social Care will enable secure and efficient information sharing across teams working with children and help reshape our services.” 
 
One Social Care will allow practitioners using a tablet or smartphone will be able to access all the information required to assess the needs of children and their families efficiently when they are visiting a child’s home or any other location. 
 
The social worker with the appropriate authorisation will be able to see all the different teams working with a child, plus up-to-date school information, such as details of their attendance and achievement. It is hoped that having a more complete and accessible picture of a child’s circumstances, will save practitioners around 10 hours per week in administration and enable them to make more informed decisions about the support a child or family might need. 
 
The software will also provide senior leaders with a dashboard of information to help them manage caseloads efficiently across teams and monitor the impact of the support put in place to improve outcomes for children and families.   
 
Mark Raeburn, managing director at Capita One, commented: “Social care is in the midst of an evolution and as part of this, local authorities are looking at what tools they need to support vulnerable children and families in the years to come. Stockton-on-Tees is among the leading lights in the transformation of children’s services and we are delighted to be part of this.”