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O. & M.
A review of the Health and Welfare Department was carried out by the London Boroughs
Management Services Unit, in compliance with a quinquennial programme of study agreed with
constituent London Boroughs, during the period 14th August to 14th October, 1967.
The report which was divided into 3 volumes was received by the local authority during
May 1968. Volumes 2 and 3 deal separately with the Children's and Health and Welfare Departments,
whereas volume I recommends an integrated organisation for the Social Services.
The reports which were accepted as working documents were subjected to detailed
examination in the departments concerned and were discussed by the members and officers
during the year. The Borough subsequently requested assistance in implementing the Organisation
and Methods reports and an officer from the unit was assigned to this task during the
period 30th January, 1969 until 12th September, 1969. His assignment was to discuss the faults,
identify the problems and plan a programme of implementation.
It is fair to say that the report generally was not accepted as a true picture of the
department's work at the time of the review, and certainly by now it was considerably out of
date.
Following this a number of modifications have been made both to the original recommendations
and to the top structure of the department. These are that the lines of responsibility
to the Medical Officer of Health should be channelled through three heads who will have
functional responsibilities covering the whole department. The Deputy Medical Officer of
Health, the Chief Social Services Officer and the Chief Administrative Officer. The Chief
Social Services Officer is not to be appointed at present so, in themeantime, the Principal
Social Worker will carry out some of these responsibilities and the Chief Welfare Officer in
her new advisory role will continue to perform others. It has been decided not to proceed with
the appointment of a Principal Mental Health Social Worker or the Assistant Chief Welfare
Officer (Administration).
The aim has been to produce more expeditious decision making and executive action
and formal procedures have been introduced in order that staff involvement at a proper level is
maintained and professional advice between different sections flows properly. To improve the
flow of information and communications within what is a large and scattered department,
regular meetings are convened with all types of staff participating. In order to assist clarification
of roles job descriptions have been issued covering the key posts in the department.
However, such is the complexity and interrelatedness of different aspects of Health and Welfare
that these cannot be exhaustive and there must always be mutual support and advice between
different members of the team.
So far as the administrative staff based in the central office are concerned, two
administrative posts and four clerical posts have been dis-established. This small reduction
in staff must be viewed against a backcloth of a constantly changing scene. I refer here to
increasing demands for services and a plethora of reports and investigations, all suggesting
change. The net result viewed at this distance looks small but this should not diguise the
considerable upheaval and unrest and the effect upon morale of staff which is still apparent.
The general theme of the report was decentralisation and the desirability of providing a
central administration and support of both the personal health and combined social service to
ensure that professional and technical staff can apply maximum effort to their various fields
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