Ministers today welcomed a report from Scotland's Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) which looks in detail at how social work services have been performing for local people during the last four years.

Improving Social Work in Scotland is based on the findings of social work services performance inspections, between 2005 and 2009, in all local authority areas.

It provides the most comprehensive picture of what is happening in that field to support vulnerable groups such as children and older people, while also looking at the work undertaken to manage offenders.

It shows that people's satisfaction with services was high, that inspections found many examples of good practice, partnership working and leadership, and that where recommendations were made, in the vast majority of cases these were acted upon.

Leadership in particular is identified as critical to good performance, having an impact both on people who use services and staff morale. Joint working and the delivery of joined up health and social care support and services is also important. However, it also calls for further improvement in these and other key areas and highlights the challenge of meeting the continuing rising demand for services when resources are tight.

Children's Minister Adam Ingram said:

"This report shows that the majority of people using social services and their carers value this support and the difference it makes to their lives, and that our robust inspection regime is helping to drive forward improvements. Clearly, however, there is further work to be done to ensure that wherever people live they get the highest possible standard of care and support. This report will provide a baseline for councils to look at performance and consider how they can improve services by building on current successes while tackling any shortcomings.

"One of the findings is that there is a lack of demonstrable association between levels of expenditure and performance. At time when central and local government are facing severe financial constraints as a result of cuts from the UK Government, this highlights the need to ensure that finite resources are used as effectively as they can be.

"Strong leadership is evident in those areas that have performed well. Efforts also need to continue to develop this and strong partnerships with other services, such as health, to maximise help for those who need it and to create more innovative solutions for improving the lives of children, families and communities."

Public Health Minister Shona Robison said:

"What's important is that people of all ages who rely on council services get the care they need and deserve, and despite funding cuts imposed by the UK Government we are increasing funding for local government and its share of the total budget. It is for councils to manage their own budgets according to local needs and priorities - and for the first time we have allowed them to keep their own efficiency savings to re-invest in frontline services.

"We know that a major shift in the balance of care from institutions to people's own homes is not easy for councils to achieve in isolation. That's why we are supporting them through the Shifting the Balance of Care Improvement framework - which brings together councils and health boards to make sure they can work together to make this happen efficiently."

Minister for Community Safety Fergus Ewing said:

"I welcome the recognition that MAPPA and Integrated Case Management arrangements are improving the management of risk of offending. The challenge for everyone is to help ensure that good local practice becomes good national practice."