A NEW senior director has been appointed at Worcestershire County Council to oversee its children's services.

After months of searching bosses at County Hall have made former social care chief Catherine Driscoll the director for children, families and communities.

Mrs Driscoll's appointment to the high-profile job, which carries a minimum pay grade of £112,998, follows the departure of Gail Quinton in September last year, who left for an executive director's role at Coventry City Council.

She has over 30 years public sector experience in the NHS, higher education, the voluntary sector and local government, and is a former head of adult social care at County Hall.

She said: "I am delighted to be returning to Worcestershire in this new and exciting role.

"This is an excellent opportunity to focus on what will really make a different to our communities, supporting the vision for world class Worcestershire.

"It is a real privilege for me to have this leadership role in the county that I love."

The Conservative leadership has welcomed the move, which comes after a lengthy search for the right candidate.

Councillor John Campion, cabinet member for children and families said: "Continuing to strengthen and improve our services for children, families and communities is of great importance to the council.

"I'm confident that Catherine's vast experience and knowledge will have a positive effect on our services and I look forward to working with her to drive these improvements."

She will replace the current interim director Simon White, who has been with the authority since last autumn.

As your Worcester News first revealed last year, the number of children put into care in the county has rocketed more than 30 per cent since 2009, from 530 to around 716 today.

Since 2010 the county council has upped its budget for children's placements by £10.4 million to cope - but is forecasting it to overspill by another £5.8 million in this financial year.

The placements are expected to cost taxpayers around £35.2 million for 2015/16, a record high, following a 1.9 per cent rise in council tax back in April to help fund it.

A new strategy to target earlier interventions and refer more people to different options, rather than opting for a formal social worker assessment, is being launched to try and drive it down.

The director's wide range of responsibilities also includes schools, of which 89 per cent across Worcestershire are rated good or outstanding by Ofsted, the best ever figure for the county.