Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillors Barbara Brown, Chris Mills, Penny-Anne O’Donnell and Jill Simpson-Vince, as well as Phil Johnson, Co-optee.

Michael Cowland, CEO of The Diocese of Coventry MAT confirmed that St Michael’s Church of England Academy is part of the Multi Academy Trust that he works for.  The children’s centres that are part of Item 6 on the agenda include St Michael’s.

The minutes were approved as a true and accurate record. 

There were no matters arising.

None.

Up to 30 minutes of the meeting are available for members of the Children & Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee to put questions to the Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Education and Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Children & Families.

The work programme attached lists any briefings circulated to the Committee since the last meeting and any items listed in the Council’s Forward Plan for decision by Cabinet or individual Cabinet Portfolio Holders over the coming months.

None.

Cabinet Portfolio Holders and Assistant Directors are invited to provide any updates they have on issues within the remit of the Committee.

Councillor Kam Kaur, Portfolio Holder for Education confirmed that a lot of work has been carried out in relation to Early Education and Childcare places and encouraging families to apply.  Councillor Kaur was happy to report that there has been an encouraging up take of places, with figures reaching 68%.  It was noted that the national figure is 63%.

In relation to the Early Years Integrated Delivery Plan, it was confirmed that work was continues across the council, and with external partners.  It was also confirmed that there will be a briefing presented to the Committee at a future date.

The Committee noted that in partnership with the Department of Education, the Delivering Better Value plan has now been agreed.  Work is progressing well, and plans are in place.  The High Needs capital fund has been allocated and an agreement is in place to prioritise resource provisions

The Committee noted that real progress is happening across the education services and should be celebrated.

Councillor Sue Markham, Portfolio Holder for Children & Families confirmed that OFSTED had recently published a report on regional adoption agencies – ACE is the regional adoption agency for Warwickshire.  It was the first range of inspections since agencies were introduced in 2017.  The inspection reported strong practices in Warwickshire.  There is still a desperate need for adoption placements, especially for sibling groups and children with additional needs. 

The Portfolio Holder for Children & Families to provide a verbal update on the work of the Corporate Parenting Panel.

To include an update from the Children in Care Council and other forums.

Councillor Sue Markham, Portfolio Holder for Children and Families confirmed the launch of the foster carer booklet, adding that the views and opinions of children were sought for the content of the booklet.  The launch event was very impactful with the speeches made by representatives from the Children in Care Council.

The Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) football team continues to do well.  The team meet on a Sunday and up to 35 young people attend, it’s very popular.  The Committee noted that funding has been secured to send two young people on a coaching qualification course.

The Committee hears about the “Wrong Size Fits All” short film which has been produced by Impact and covers the topic of SEND.  The film shows the needs of the SEND children in educational settings.  Councillor Markham recommended that all elected members view this film

It was confirmed that elections for the Youth Council had recently taken place.  The first elections were back in 2008 and these were the first elections since 2020, due to the pandemic.  It was noted that 66 young people stood for election and every secondary school pupil in Warwickshire was invited to vote – and there were votes from each of the schools, with a good spread across the county.  There is also a group called Friends of the Youth Council made up of young people who stood but weren’t elected.  This is an online group who support the main Youth Council.

It was agreed that the update in relation to the Virtual School shared at the last meeting of the Corporate Parenting Panel would be shared with the committee.

Councillor Justin Kerridge asked if it would be possible for the committee to receive a briefing note in relation to the fostering and adoption process at the council in relation to the process in the private sector.  It was agreed that the Annual Adoption Report and the ACE Annual Report would be circulated to committee members ahead of a briefing note.

There is no performance information to be reported at this meeting.

The next performance report will be presented at the committee meeting on the 18th June and that will include the end of the current quarter performance information.

The Power BI Portal live and be viewed at any point.  Refreshed data is available at the end of each month where possible (some data is updated quarterly or annually). 

There was no performance information reported at this meeting.

The next performance report will be presented at the committee meeting on the 18th June and that will include the end of the current quarter performance information.

The Power BI Portal live and be viewed at any point.  Refreshed data is available at the end of each month where possible (some data is updated quarterly or annually).

The item was presented by Ali Cole, Head of Children and All Age Disabilities Commissioning and Rob Sabin, Commissioning Manager (Children and Families).

It was confirmed that Children and Family Centres Service has 14 locations across the county with two providers.  The service delivers direct support through the centres with a wide range support such as child development, speech and language support, financial support, health and wellbeing, mental health.

It was confirmed that in 2023 over 16,000 families received support (it was noted that there are approximately 700,000 families across Warwickshire). 

In relation to performance information, it was confirmed that there are KPIs, and all are in line with the targets except the Outreach target for 5 to 19-year-olds.  It was noted that this target was not yet met but was improving.

It was confirmed that the focus moving forward would be to identify more families, and to ensure the best use of buildings including opening hours.  The aim would also include gaining a better understanding of buildings in the communities that could be used.  Another key focus for the team would be the integration of services and making best use of all assets.  Further integration in early years intervention is one example of where officers are focusing some of their work.

It was noted by the Committee that it is crucial that there is an understanding that there are differences across the county but that this can include the creation of a standardised approach.  There is a new governance structure and cross-party working group in place.

It was confirmed that there will also be a more effective use of data that will allow officers to effectively demonstrate the impact of the service.  There will also be a focus on the development of the workforce, and a review of the current skills within the workforce.  This will look at the 5- to 19-year-old range and how to meet the more complex needs of some of the families worked with.  Feedback received from some parents highlighted that many of them felt excluded once their child turned 6 years old.  The Committee noted that feedback from parents will be a key part of any future reviews of the service.

Confirmation was given that the current contract runs until August 2027 and that next year, work will start on developing the best options for the service delivery model post 2025.  There are currently three options, which will be presented to Cabinet in 2026 –

·         Extend the current contract for a further year. There can be no further extensions beyond August 2028.

·         Reprocure the service and invite tenders from the market.

·         Deliver the service as an ‘in-house’ model managed and delivered by the Council.

Following a question in relation to how the service plans to get to where they want to be, it was confirmed that this will primarily be achieved through the continued development of the workforce and looking at where the centres are currently based, and where they are needed.

It was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The report was presented by Marina Kitchen, Head of Service: Early Help & Targeted Support and Dave Jones, Service Manager - Targeted Support Team.  The report was in relation to the Targeted Youth Support Offer and included information in relation to the Offer to Schools.

A summary of the Targeted Youth Support work was given to the Committee confirming that the service works with 11 to 18 years olds and can only be delivered with the young person’s consent.

Recent introductions to the service and the support it can offer includes service delivery in the evenings, at weekends and at settlement hotels.  The service is currently staffed at its highest capacity for 8 years.

It was confirmed that currently, demand for the service is high and that is proving to be a challenge.  At the time of the meeting the waiting list for support was 180 children and young people, but this number is increasing.  Anyone who calls the service looking for support is put through a triage process and will be signposted to other services for support while waiting for one-to-one support from the council.  Following a question in relation to the triage process, it was confirmed that any one who is identified as needing immediate support will be prioritised.  Those whose needs could be better met sooner, and potentially more appropriately, will be signposted to other options.

The recruitment of qualified youth support workers has been particularly difficult; the last role took four campaigns before successfully recruiting.  It was noted that this is a national issue and not just a Warwickshire issues.  There are three vacancies currently.  It was confirmed that there is a degree apprentice programme in place which is a positive step.

The Committee received positive confirmation that the young people must agree to accept a referral.  It might be recommended to the, but ultimately, the decision is theirs.  A youth worker will contact the young person directly and explain the full process to them; it is also exploratory work for the youth worker who may be able to identify alternative solutions.  Youth Workers must be seen as non-confrontational.

Following a discussion in relation to graduate recruitment, it was confirmed that up until 6 or 7 years ago, there was very little investment in youth and community service.  The National Youth Agency recommended a Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) qualification for Youth and Community Workers.  John Coleman, Director of Children & Families Service confirmed that “growing our own” youth workers is the best way forward for the council and that the team has been making links with universities to ensure the qualifications are made available to people.  It will be a long-term project, and the council will only employ JNC qualified workers (not all authorities do).

In relation to funding support, it was confirmed that four years ago, there were bigger grants available that helped to kick start programmes, develop existing projects and create policies and procedures. The council continues to support and monitor the spending of funding to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

Up to date work programme to be presented to the Committee.

Items from the Forward Plan relevant to the remit of the Committee to be noted.

Councillor Kam Kaur, Portfolio Holder for Education confirmed that the Education Strategy would be presented to the Committee, before going on to Cabinet and Council.

The Committee noted and agreed that updated work programme and items on the Forward Plan relevant to the remit of the Committee.

The Chair asked that if members of the Committee had any requests for topics to be added to the work programme for future meetings, they should contact Helen Barnsley, Senior Democratic Services Officer.

None.

The next meeting will be held on 18^th June 2024.

The meeting will be held at Shire Hall, Warwick.

The next meeting will be held on 18 June 2024.

The meeting will be held at Shire Hall, Warwick.