The impact of audit and feedback to support safeguarding compliance
Public sector organisations in the UK, including safeguarding boards and schools, face unique challenges when it comes to regulatory requirements and improving outcomes. However, the cycle of audit and feedback has emerged as a formidable catalyst for change.
An online auditing solution can play a crucial role in streamlining and enhancing the audit process for organisations, whilst being efficient, customisable, and insightful. Here’s how it can help support behaviour change and improve safeguarding practices:
Efficiency and accessibility: An audit system can make the audit process more efficient by allowing auditors to access and review documents, records, and policies remotely, seamlessly accessing documents, records, and policies with just a few clicks. Staff, spread across various locations, contribute their crucial documentation and evidence with ease. An action plan can be generated within the system which can be exported into an Excel document, equipping staff with the ability to review, amend, or update the plan throughout the year, ultimately simplifying the identification of safeguarding and developmental needs at the end of the year.
Real-time data: The online system furnishes real-time data during audits, allowing auditors to gain immediate access to compliance issues and imperative calls for behaviour change. The feedback mechanism operates with swiftness and precision, ensuring timely corrective actions are not just a distant aspiration but an everyday reality.
Consistency and standardisation: Audit systems provide standardised checklists and templates, ensuring that all organisations are evaluated against the same criteria. This consistency is critical for fair assessments and facilitates behaviour change by addressing issues uniformly across different entities.
Scalability: Audits for a multitude of organisations are streamlined within an audit system, and administrators can effectively monitor and assess numerous entities with minimal additional effort. Moreover, convenient access to comparison reports ensures that managing expansion becomes effortlessly efficient.
Centralised data storage: Audit responses are consolidated into a single location, simplifying access to past audits and easing the process of tracking progress. The capacity to compare past and present results empowers organisations to monitor their evolution and fine-tune their practices effectively.
Automated alerts and reminders: Online systems can generate automated alerts and reminders for upcoming audits, follow-up actions, and deadlines. This prompts organisations to prepare for audits and take the necessary actions to address identified issues through proactive measures.
Data analytics and reporting: The system’s analytical ability is a strategic advantage. It not only collects data but also provides insightful observations. This enables a deep dive into audit results, facilitating the identification of recurring issues. Consequently, organisations can align their efforts with precision, prioritising areas for improvement.
User-friendly interfaces: Technical hurdles become a thing of the past. User-friendly interfaces and dashboards have been meticulously designed to empower all stakeholders. Staff, auditors, and organisations at large find themselves seamlessly engaged and genuinely invested in the pursuit of improved practices.
The Phew Audit System empowers organisations to make data-driven decisions and drive meaningful change. It is purpose-built for supporting safeguarding teams with conducting any type of local or regional audit, including Section 11 and Section 175. It is a transparent system that’s easy to use and accessible to all levels of computer competency. Proven to save time and money, it’s an online-based system that allows respondents to be emailed their required audit, along with all follow-up communications, including reminders and confirmations.
Questions within the system are not prescriptive, they can be tailored accordingly. Multiple question formats are available and sector-specific questions can be restricted by respondents’ organisation type. ‘Stop and Save’ functionality offers users more flexibility to complete the survey questions at their own pace before submitting the final version.
Jon Needham, Director of Safeguarding at Oasis Community Learning, told us: “The Phew Audit System has revolutionised our approach to safeguarding and governance oversight. Thanks to this streamlined solution, we’ve centralised our auditing operations, which has in turn made data processing efficient and reduced administrative burdens.
“The system is incredibly accessible and its user-friendly interface has been well-received. Having access to standardised data enables us to track progress and make informed decisions. The system’s ability to generate actionable plans in Excel format has simplified our processes and helped us readily identify and address safeguarding and developmental needs.”
Would you like to find out more about Phew’s Audit System? We can provide a free demo at your convenience, so please get in touch at hello@phew.org.uk as we would be happy to arrange this.