BOURNEMOUTH Social Services' performance has been given a one-star rating by inspectors for the second year in a row.

Inspectors for The Commission for Social Care Inspection said, however, that children's services and adults' services in Bourne-mouth now have "promising prospects".

Ratings are awarded from 0 - the worst - to three, the best rating which can be achieved.

The CSCI concluded that both Bournemouth children's services and adult services were serving some people well.

Last year the same commission rated prospects for improvement in Children's Services as "uncertain" and gave it a one-star rating.

The latest results were welcomed by director of social services Pam Donnellan, who said the real aim was to "turn our promising prospects into good services for most".

She said: "In addition I am expecting positive results from our recent inspection of older people's services, due to be published next year.

"Many of our performance indicators have improved for the third year in a row and I am confident we will be judged as serving most people well in the near future, giving us a better opportunity to gain a two-star rating.

"The real aim is to serve people well and turn our promising prospects into good services for most, not just some of the people who need our support."

Cllr Bill Mason, cabinet member for caring for people at Bourne-mouth Borough Council, said that things were "moving in the right direction".

He added: "We have had a complete overhaul and a modernisation programme has been going on for the last two years.

"There have been changes in children's social services and how they work, such as the way that children on the child protection register are monitored."

He added that the reason the council had not achieved a higher rating was partly because Bournemouth is grouped with Cornwall and Plymouth.

This means that Bournemouth is faced with meeting "unrealistic expectations", he claimed.

First published: November 18