Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:18 pm on 6 November 2018.
Cabinet Secretary, you will no doubt agree that the way in which complaints are handled by public bodies is vitally important to people's faith in any system. You'll also be aware that under stage 2 of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, local authorities appoint independent investigating officers to look at complaints against the local authority. What is apparent however is that, even though independent investigating officers perform a statutory public service, they are not subject to any professional regulatory standards. Social workers are; doctors are; nursers are, but these independent investigating officers are not subject to any professional regulatory standards. There is currently no national register of investigators. I understand that some even have no social care practice experience either, which came as a bit of a surprise to me, to say the least. I'd therefore be grateful if the Minister for social services would agree to bring forward a statement on the role of independent investigating officers. I would ask that the statement look at whether we need to establish specific standards for investigators, registration and training, and what role a professional body could play in this. These investigators are an integral element of the social care community in Wales, but they are largely hidden from practice development staff and policy makers. I would be grateful if the Minister would commit to starting to change all this.