Dudley’s safeguarding team has seen a 300 per cent increase in referrals over the last decade, according to a new report.

The alarming statistic was revealed at November’s meeting of Dudley Council’s Adult Social Care Select Committee by Dudley Safeguarding People Partnership.

In 2023/24, the authority had received 7,153 concerns compared with 1,713 in 2014/15; however, councillors on the committee were told the rise may be due to staff in other services misidentifying peoples’ problems as a safeguarding issue.

DSPP chair and independent scrutineer, Vicky Buchanan, said: “That does show increased awareness but we probably do need to do some work to make sure the right referrals are coming through at the right level.”

Dudley is performing well in preventing homelessness but the report found other areas of concern. Domestic abuse rates at 41 crimes per 1,000 people are higher in the borough than the national rate of 30.6 or the West Midlands region (35.1).

Life expectancy in Dudley is broadly similar to the national figure at 78.6 years for men and 82.9 years for women but in the borough’s deprived areas it drops by nine years.

The committee was also told self-neglect enquiries have increased and are the highest proportion of all safeguarding concerns with hoarding being a form of the issue.

A report from Christine Conway, Dudley’s head of adult safeguarding, said: “It’s widely estimated that between two to five per cent of the population may have symptoms of a hoarding disorder. 

“It is estimated that only five per cent of hoarders come to the attention of statutory agencies.

“Based on the 2021 census, Dudley has approximately 135,000 households; therefore, potentially, there could be between 2,700 to 6,750 households affected by hoarding to some degree.”

In her report from the DSPP, Ms Buchanan said: “There is always much to do to ensure we continuously improve our safeguarding practice.

“I am confident that Dudley’s Safeguarding Partnership will rise to the challenge, and our practitioners will continue to work tirelessly to ensure our vulnerable adults are safeguarded.”