Child protection chiefs in Dundee and Angus are refusing to name officials who were absent from key meetings 271 times in two years.
A transparency row erupted as new figures exposed shocking attendance rates for child protection committees across Tayside.
An investigation by The Courier in September had raised “urgent questions” about the absence record at Perth & Kinross.
Our freedom of information requests have now revealed an “extremely concerning” attendance rate at Dundee and Angus as well.
Double the national rate
The region’s absences are double the level we found in other parts of Scotland.
The Dundee and Angus groups were criticised for insisting the names of committee members must be kept secret – despite most other committees making them public.
MSPs urged the authorities involved to “own up” and offer reassurances to the youngsters they serve.
The membership is usually between 18 and 25 officials, including senior police officers, council social work and education bosses, NHS managers and representatives from charities and schools.
Most of the meetings are believed to have been held virtually during the pandemic.
Absence levels across Tayside and Fife
Since January 2020, there have been 166 “apologies” given at Dundee child protection committee meetings, 158 at Perth & Kinross, 109 at Fife and 106 at Angus.
The average number of absences at the Perth & Kinross committee in the period was 11 per meeting, while in Dundee it was almost 10 and in Angus it was nearly nine.
The authorities in Tayside blamed the coronavirus pandemic.
But our inquiries revealed the average number of absences at the Aberdeenshire and Moray committees in the same period was about three per meeting.
In Highland it was under five, in Argyll and Bute the average was six, and in Fife it was below seven.
We calculated an absence rate of 43% for both Perth & Kinross and Dundee in the period, followed by 38% in Angus, 31% in Fife, 26% in Argyll and Bute, 21% in Highland, 17% in Aberdeenshire and 16% in Moray.
Secrecy in Dundee and Angus
Dundee and Angus committees also faced a transparency row after the local authorities refused to put names to the attendance records of its members.
Angus claimed that naming those below the rank of chief officer would breach data protection rules.
But other authorities freely disclosed full details. Perth & Kinross routinely publishes meeting minutes, including the names of those who attended and those who sent apologies.
Dundee City Council chief executive Greg Colgan said that by asking for the names of the members The Courier had “misunderstood” the way it worked.
He said the committee was made up of a number of representative organisations and “it is quite common for different people to represent different organisations from time to time”.
Mr Colgan said some members were not senior officers or politicians, and the nature of their work is sensitive.
“Public naming of attendees is not necessary or appropriate or in the public interest,” he added.
How many meetings were missed?
The details that were released suggests one NHS Tayside representative missed all 17 Dundee meetings in the period.
Two others only attended one, another missed 14 and one sent apologies to 13 in a row.
Local politicians condemned the lack of transparency.
Scottish Conservative North East MSP Tess White said: “It is extremely concerning to see such a high rate of absence at these crucial committees in both Dundee and Angus councils.
“Our young people suffered greatly during the Covid pandemic so attending these meetings will have played a key role in ensuring the right support was being delivered to them.”
Former Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie, the MSP for North East Fife, said the absences suggest a lack of priority.
“I am also concerned about the reluctance of some local authorities to say who is sitting on child protection committees as well as how often they attended,” the MSP said.
What did the committee chiefs say?
A spokesman for Dundee child protection committee said attendance was affected by pressures associated with the pandemic response.
“However, it should be noted that during this period as well as substantive CPC meetings an executive group of the CPC met regularly, at the mid-way point between each CPC meeting,” he said.
“Senior officers also attended meetings of the chief officers group and chief officers executive group.
“Minutes of the CPC are circulated to all members in a timely manner to allow key information to be shared appropriately and actions taken forward.”
A recent external inspection concluded “strategic leadership and committee functioning was good”, he added.
An Angus Council spokeswoman said the chair of the local committee was “satisfied” that at each meeting there is “adequate representation from all disciplines”.
She added: “Absence of some representatives at meetings has in some cases been as a result of Covid and the pressures this placed on other services at the time, resulting in attendees having to attend other urgent business elsewhere.
“During this period, the frequency of meetings was also stepped up, to ensure that representatives were able to attend as many meetings as they could and child protection business was given priority at this time.
“Business relating to child protection also takes place outwith this meeting and the chair has no concerns regarding the engagement of attendees and those working in the service.”
