support data inputting to save time I need practitioner analysis to reflect consistent good practice expectations and practice standards I need practitioners to reflect and be proactive in their approach to recording data so it's more about recording the important information I need teams to understand and implement what best practice looks like to support consistency I need to measure service to identify opportunities for improvement I need to measure service to report on progress 70 DfE Project 2A: User research into social worker inputted data to CMS Appendix three: Missing Chapters report Missing Chapters Project A collaboration with peer researchers exploring children in care and care leavers’ understanding and experience of accessing social care records 71 1. Introduction The Missing Chapters project forms part of the wider ‘Recording with Purpose, Reducing the Burden’ user research which explores the recording of information by social work teams in relation to care-experienced children and young people. The Department for Education commissioned Essex County Council and delivery partners Camden Council, Croydon Council, Sutton Council and Anglia Ruskin University to deliver the user research in 2023. Essex County Council recruited care- experienced peer researchers to collaborate with the Essex Children in Care Council to place the voices of those directly impacted at the forefront of the research. Grounded in participatory methodologies, this project has empowered care-experienced individuals as co-researchers, advocates, and experts in their own lives. The need for social care records is multi-faceted, providing a detailed documentation of a child’s journey through their life in care and providing an essential platform to share information and safeguard children