Unannounced inspections of local child protection services could be radically widened in scope to embrace the work of health, police and criminal justice agencies, government watchdogs have suggested.

Currently, the regulator Ofsted is the only agency with powers to conduct unannounced child protection inspections covering local authorities – but its remit does not extend to wider public bodies. Under proposals for multi-agency inspections, visiting teams would carry out inspections over a two-week period, and review the work of all local services – focusing on how effectively authorities work together to identify and protect vulnerable children.