GOVERNMENT inspectors are to carry out checks in the New Year to ensure Lancashire County Council's social services department is not failing young people.

Today, the councillor in charge of the department said he was confident that the review would show that young people in Lancashire were getting a better service.

Lancashire County Council is one of a number of local authorities to be included in a national programme of inspections of children's services by the Social Services Inspectorate.

The Inspectorate wants to build a clear picture of the performance of departments across the country, and has selected a number to look at.

In the Inspectorate's annual report published last month, Lancashire County Council was told it was doing well but had a great deal of room to improve.

One of the areas of concern was figures which revealed just 11 per cent of youngsters on the Child Protection Register -- those deemed to be at risk of physical, sexual or emotional abuse or neglect -- were being visited once every six weeks by social workers. Government targets demand all are seen on time.

Those figures covered the year to April 2001, and more recent figures have shown that since then the number visited on time has risen to more than 80 per cent.

A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: the inspectors would "look at how we work with other agencies, how we deliver our services and whether they meet the demands of the public. The results will be published, with copies also going to MPs and councillors."