The generalist, often ‘broad not deep', role of a chief executive brings particular challenges in understanding the performance of complex services. Even more so when that complex service is children and young people, where the risks are high and the cost of failure dramatic.

Many of us have thought we had our eye on the ball only to find Ofsted takes a very different view, or a single case exposes systemic problems. If we cannot look everywhere, but need to look somewhere, where is the chief executive's starting point? These are my top five suggestions: