Case Study: Children’s Commissioner (N Ireland)


Customer

The Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People(NICCY) was appointed in October 2003 under the Commissioner for Children and Young People (Northern Ireland) Order 2003.

The Commissioner is responsible for promoting and safeguarding the rights of children and young people in Northern Ireland. The Commissioner also has a remit to investigate complaints from children and young people and their carers about the services they receive or the way they are treated. In some cases, the Commissioner can help by taking cases to court and provide funding for legal assistance.


Business Issues

NICCY needed a system to support their organisation. Their key requirements were:

  • A system that allows case officers to examine and understand the whole of a case (enquiry or complaint) in one place, including all incoming and outgoing documentation
  • A system that allows management information, reports and statistics to be generated automatically
  • A system that tracks cases, diarises tasks and targets and alerts staff when deadlines are approaching
  • A system that makes it easy for non-secretarial and professional staff to generate letters and reports by use of templates and automatic addressing etc
  • A system that tracks legal aid spending
  • A very secure system that protects extremely sensitive data concerning children
  • A system that would enable the Commissioner to demonstrate objectivity, independence and public accountability

CAS solution

CAS worked closely with NICCY staff to tailor a solution to the specific needs of the organisation. The system includes drop-down lists of:

  • NICCY Objectives e.g. Improve access to public services, Improve CYP input to policy making
  • Priority Areas e.g. Bullying, Road safety, Implementing UNCRC etc

This is useful to relate cases to NICCY’s objectives and aid management reporting. There is a special section to record and track legal aid cases and the funding given. The equal opportunities monitoring feature has been extended to conform to Section 75 legislation in Northern Ireland. Functionality to support work in the area of Participation was added in 2007.

CAS tailored the system to the specific needs of the NICCY, trained users and implemented the project using PRINCE2 methodology. CAS currently provides application support


Benefits

  • A system that safely stores all enquiry and complaint data in one location for ease of access to information
  • A system which users find easy to use and supports staff in their work
  • Reminders and alerts that ensure timely provision of information and communications with NICCY service users
  • A secure system that protects the privacy of children and young people
  • Quick and easy analysis of data to provide information on trends to management and feedback to service providers on service improvement
  • A system that is flexible to meet the changing circumstances of a new organisation

"It is one of the few IT systems I’ve seen implemented seamlessly, on time and with no hitches. CHAS has proven to be an incredibly helpful management tool." commented Barney McNeany, Chief Executive Officer for the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People.


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