Monmouthshire County Council Adult Services Improvement Check: CIW findings published

Care Inspectorate Wales conducted an Improvement Check of Monmouthshire County Council's Adult Services. The inspection assessed progress across the four principles of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014: People, Prevention, Well-being and Partnership.

The council has made progress in a number of areas identified at previous inspections, but further improvement is required before practice can be considered consistent and sustainable.

What's working well

The council's Information, Advice and Assistance service now provides effective early triage, helping direct people to the right support quickly.

An improved preventative ethos runs across services, with reablement and integrated social care and therapy teams helping people remain at home and avoid unnecessary escalation.

Assessment waiting times have reduced, and assistive technology use is growing, supporting hospital discharge and independence.

The workforce remains committed and resilient, with strong relationship-based practice helping people feel listened to and involved in their care.

Safeguarding responsiveness has improved, with 92% of enquiries completed within timescales in 2025/26. 

Strategic partnerships are well established, with most stakeholders (94%) understanding their roles and many (78%) reporting effective collaborative working.

Areas for improvement

Care and support planning remains inconsistent. Although assessments often capture people's views, this doesn't reliably translate into clear, measurable, outcome-focused plans. Consideration and recording of advocacy also need improvement.

Timely access to preventative and community-based support is not yet consistent, with workforce and market capacity pressures limiting flexibility.

Quality assurance frameworks require strengthening, as learning is not systematically captured or shared across the service.

Safeguarding practice needs more robust written analysis and clearer application of the Wales Safeguarding Procedures.

Contingency planning is largely absent from assessments and care planning, and professional curiosity is inconsistent.

Despite strong strategic partnerships, follow-through of agreed multi-agency actions, particularly around hospital discharge, is not yet reliable.

Next steps

CIW expects Monmouthshire County Council to act on all areas identified for improvement and will monitor progress through ongoing performance review activity. The council has also been asked to share examples of positive practice with other local authorities to support continuous improvement across Wales.