This report details findings from a qualitative study of Chief Social Work Officer (CSWO) perceptions, and CSWO and local authority approaches, to the use of secure care in Scotland.
The study, conducted through in-depth interviews with 21 out of 32 local authorities, was an examination of how the role and responsibilities of CSWOs in relation to secure care are translated in practice.
It was undertaken to further explore some of the questions which were raised about decision making, risk thresholds and routes into and on from secure care, by a scoping study undertaken by CYCJ in 2015. It also complements the work of the secure care national project, which reported on key messages and calls for action in November 2016.