GOOD so far but could be better is the verdict of a report into social services in Blackburn with Darwen.

The review highlighted a number of key strengths in the council's social services department but called for greater consistency in standards.

The report, by the Audit Commission and the Social Services Inspectorate, said the department was serving "some people" well and described the prospect for improvement as "promising".

Key strengths included:

Good initial response times.

A service satisfying most people.

Efficiency savings made as the service was improved.

Good communication with staff and unions.

Links with outside bodies such as health trusts.

Coun Sue Reid, executive member for social services, said the report had come at the right time to show how far the department had come and what needed to be done.

She said: "When we took over social services in 1998 we were under no illusion as to the size of the task ahead."

She said improving the services within a tight budget needed "some really hard decisions", and added: "This review recognises the courage this took and shows just how far we have come in a short time towards meeting our aim of quality social services." But the report also highlighted a number of areas which need improving. These included working with the Asian-heritage community to improve the range of and take-up of services by them.

And it said there was a need for the department to make it clearer who can receive services, and for those services to be monitored to ensure they were of the right quality.

Conservative spokeswoman Coun Maureen McGarvey said all parties had worked hard to improve the department.

She said: "I am pleased with the outcome of this joint review, which shows just how far we have come since unitary status when services inherited from the County were very poor."

Picture: Review team assistant director David Ashcroft, left, with lead reviewer David Jones, Sue Reid and director of social services Ken Foote