Agenda and minutes

Venue: Committee Room One, County Offices, Newland, Lincoln LN1 1YL

Contact: Andrea Brown  Democratic Services Officer

Items
No. Item

74.

Apologies for Absence / Replacement Members

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Mrs J Brockway, R Hunter-Clarke and R Wootten.

 

Apologies were also received from Mr C V Miller (Parent Representative Added Member) and Dr E van der Zee (Parent Representative Added Member).

 

Councillor T M Trollope-Bellew was in attendance as replacement member for Councillor R Wootten, who was attending a civic function in his capacity as Chairman of the Council.

 

75.

Declarations of Members' Interests

Minutes:

No declarations of Members' interests were made at this stage of proceedings.

 

76.

Minutes of the meeting of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee held on 13 February 2014 pdf icon PDF 421 KB

Minutes:

The Chairman proposed two amendments to the minutes, as follows:-

 

To correct a typographical error in paragraph seven, second to last sentence being amended to read 'Public Health'; and not Public Help; and

 

To provide further detail on page eight, bullet point two, reference to Page 118 being  amended to read: 'It was noted that worklessness not only put a strain on resources because of direct costs relating to benefit payments, but that there was also considerable loss of revenue from the lack of tax and National Insurance contributions.'

 

RESOLVED

           

That the minutes of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee held on 13 February 2014 be agreed and signed by the Chairman as a correct record, subject to the amendments noted above.

77.

Families Working Together pdf icon PDF 546 KB

(To receive a report from Jo Kavanagh, Head of Service Families Working Together and Lincoln and West Lindsey, which provides the Committee with an update on the progress of Lincolnshire's response to the Troubled Families Programme)

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report of the Executive Director of Children's Services, which provided an update on the progress of Lincolnshire's response to the Troubled Families' Programme and invited the Committee to consider and comment on the contents of the report.

 

Jo Kavanagh, Head of Service – Families Working Together, introduced the report and referred members to papers tabled which provided further updated information to that provided in the published report and relevant issues were highlighted.

 

During discussion the following points were noted:-

·         Feedback received from the Executive Support Councillor for Children's Services following attendance at the launch of the Housing Strategy was positive.  The key discussion points at the launch had focussed positively about the journey, prior to the launch, over the previous 18 months and the collaborative working across relevant teams.  The national speaker had suggested that Lincolnshire was a leading figure in this particular area.

·         58 referrals to the service had been made so far. Of those referrals, 41% had returned home, 29% were in supported accommodation, 15% stayed with parents, as the cases had been resolved immediately, and a small proportion were staying with friends through "Friends Arrangements".

·         The target for working with people to find a resolution was in the region of eight weeks, however Families Working Together would remain involved with the family until other provision had been arranged.

·         Although not noted in the report, as the information provided was at the request of the Department for Communities, it was confirmed that traveller families and ethnic minorities were also able to access these services, and have done.  It was agreed to provide a breakdown of groups accessing services to members following the meeting.

·         Members requested details of case studies to provide information regarding good practice and how frontline workers deal with such cases.  It was confirmed that case studies were available and these would be circulated outside the meeting. An invitation was also extended to those members who would like to see the process first hand.

·         No specific guidance had been received from the Families Working Together programme about how to apportion the funding.  As Lincolnshire wanted a different approach, a larger proportion of families meeting the criteria now have access to a range of other services. 

·         Shared learning was undertaken through secondments between teams.  For example, the Youth Offending Service had a huge proportion of their caseload linked to Families Working Together therefore four members of their staff were seconded to the FWT team in order to strengthen links.

·         Any claims made were now subjected to detailed scrutiny by the DLC and the team currently had 36 claims being scrutinised.  In addition to this external audit, internal scrutiny arrangements were also in place to ensure compliance.

·         Families in need were supported whether a funding/monetary claim could be made or not. 

·         All staff were trained in safeguarding issues and all families linked to safeguarding could be provided with help should that be requested.  Information sharing was clear in localities due to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 77.

78.

Performance - Quarter 3 2013/14 pdf icon PDF 381 KB

(To receive a report from Stuart Carlton, Assistant Director of Children's Services, which provides key performance information for Quarter 3 2013/14 that is relevant to the work of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

At this point of the meeting, the Chairman took the opportunity, on behalf of the Committee, to welcome Sally Savage to Lincolnshire County Council in her position as Assistant Director of Children's Services.

 

Consideration was given to a report of the Executive Director of Children's Services which provided key performance information for Quarter 3 2013/14 relevant to the work of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee.

 

Stuart Carlton, Assistant Director of Children's Services, introduced the report and circulated a further update in relation to Performance Indicator NI068 which provided detail regarding the percentage of referrals to children's social care going on to an initial assessment.  The figure included details about the number of assessments completed as a result of referrals.   It was reported that the national indicator would be phased out by the end of the year as it was no longer required.

 

During discussion, the following points were noted:-

·       PI 2023SC (Page 28) – it was difficult to manage Child Protection Plans with a target as this was determined by the number of referrals received which could vary considerably on a monthly basis.  Additionally, a child protection conference which includes a number of siblings could also increase the figures.  It was felt to be useful to have a target figure as a benchmark but noted that this was an indicator which was regularly debated.

·       Despite the number of complaints received in schools being included within the report, it was noted that these were for the school to deal with directly.  However, should a complaint relate to a specific member of staff and their suitability to work with children, the Local Authority would look at the issues raised through Children's Services as the Department was required to employ a Local Authority Designated Officer to oversee this function.  If found that any member of staff had acted inappropriately, the case would be investigated fully.

·       Child Protection Plans were complex and, although it would appear that a child had been removed from a plan and then put back on, in some cases, the child had moved out of county for the period where they were subject to a plan from another local authority. It was acknowledged that work was ongoing to develop ways to ensure consistent and accurate reporting of this indicator.

·       Sally Savage, Assistant Director of Children's Services, had been appointed predominantly to work with Clinical Commissioning Groups and Public Health to ensure there was an overarching senior position in the authority responsible for children's commissioning, bringing together the local authority, public health and the Clinical Commissioning Groups.

·       Common themes for referral were neglect and domestic abuse/violence issues rather than anything specifically unique to Lincolnshire although Members acknowledged that these reasons do vary over time.

·       Two compliments to the Scrutiny Committee had been reported and officers were asked to provide the detail of those compliments, if possible.

·       A suggestion was made that the Committee may be able to, in some way, support the complaints process.  Advice was given that the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 78.

79.

Lincolnshire Safeguarding Boards Scrutiny Sub-Group Update pdf icon PDF 84 KB

(To receive a report from Councillor Ron Oxby, Chairman of the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Boards Scrutiny Sub-Group, which provides the Committee with an overview of the activities of the Sub-Group)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chairman of the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Boards Scrutiny Sub-Group, Councillor Ron Oxby, provided an update on the progress of the Sub-Group.

 

Having met on 29th January 2014, Councillor Oxby had been elected as the Chairman of the Sub-group as Councillor Pat O'Connor was unable to continue as he was no longer a member of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee.

 

A presentation had been received relating to the changes of the Ofsted inspection framework, following which ten questions were agreed to form the basis for scrutinising the work of the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) and the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Adult Board.  Each meeting of the Sub-Group would consider two or three of those questions to assess the performance of the two boards.

 

Andy Morris, newly appointed LSCB Business Manager, also attended the meeting and highlighted the the LSCB had been carrying out an internal review of children's safeguarding and had discovered certain processes around auditing of serious incidents required further attention.  Having revised its business plan, the LSCB had also created a performance framework which the Sub-Group also considered, as noted in the minutes.

 

The next meeting of the Scrutiny Sub-Group was scheduled for 30th April where it would be considering the outcomes from a recent serious case review, an item of Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) and the first three questions from the Ofsted Framework:-

 

1.   Can you provide evidence that you coordinate the work of partners in helping, protecting and caring for children and adults in Lincolnshire?

2.   What are the mechanisms in place to monitor the effectiveness of your arrangements?

3.   How do you know the multi-agency training in safeguarding is effective?

 

During discussion, it was confirmed that the issue requiring further attention was in relation to auditing.  It was explained that under the new Ofsted framework, Safeguarding Boards were expected to undertake their own audits in addition to those already taking place.  As a result, a process was ongoing to appoint an audit officer to undertake this requirement.

 

RESOLVED

That the verbal update provided, in addition to the draft minutes of the

meeting of the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Boards Scrutiny Sub-Group, held on

29th January 2014, be noted.

80.

Solutions 4 - Officer and Member Feedback

(To receive a presentation from Dave Thompson, Solutions 4 Manager, on Solutions 4 and the Committee will have the opportunity to provide verbal feedback from visits undertaken to Solutions 4 providers)

Minutes:

Dave Thompson, Solutions 4 Manager, gave a presentation to the Committee which detailed the transition of the Lincolnshire Teaching and Learning Centre (LTLC) from Lincolnshire County Council as an independent maintained school and had been undertaken in a way to ensure that LCC could meet its statutory duties for children not in full time education. 

 

The presentation also asked Members to consider the role of Solutions 4 in meeting the needs of pupils excluded or at risk of exclusion in Key Stage 4.

 

During discussion, the following points were noted:-

·       It was reported that there were currently 400 "other authority" Looked After Children in Lincolnshire, some of which were looked after by Solutions 4.

·       The referring authority was now being challenged as a child would not be accepted into the county without the appropriate funding being apportioned to the child in relation to higher need SEN.

·       Funding was received from Central Government based on the October count.

·       The Local Authority was not in a position to refuse a child in to the county but there was a responsibility to have the relevant health and education plans in place.  Legislation which would include this had not yet been finalised so discussions with other authorities was being held tentatively at present.

·       If a child was resident in Lincolnshire, even if they were from out-of-county, but placed with foster carers for example, the local authority was legally obliged to provide an education for that child although element 3 funding for SEN would be for the placing authority.

 

The Chairman invited Committee Members, who had visited Solutions 4 facilities, to update the Committee with their experiences.

·       Councillor Mrs Ransome advised that she had visited two centres and had been impressed with both.  Bridge House was found to be academically orientated while Opportune Engineers were more "hands on".  Staff and children had embraced her and were enthusiastic in telling her what they do at the centre.  Councillor Mrs Ransome asked the Committee to note her concern about the short notice of the notification that funding had been received.  It was felt that the security of staff in these centres was essential as to lose them would be detrimental to the children.

·       Added Member, Mr Rudman, had visited the Gelder school and found it to be outstanding despite some of the pupils having been excluded from more than one establishment within the county.  Mr Rudman had been made to feel very welcome and had been provided with some background details of the pupils, some of which were from difficult families.  It was stressed that the centre tried to provide a safe environment for the pupils and then look at the education element.

·       Councillor Churchill visited Opportune Engineers and stressed that these children are challenging but have the ability to succeed.  The issue for this centre was that the funding was not available to heat the building and it appeared that there was considerably less spent on the upkeep of these facilities.  Councillor Churchill advised that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 80.

81.

Take-up of early education for less advantaged 2 year olds in Lincolnshire pdf icon PDF 191 KB

(To receive a report from Geraldine O'Neill, Lead Consultant (Early Years Entitlement), which provides the Committee with a comprehensive overview of the take up of free early education places for two year olds in Lincolnshire)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report of the Executive Director of Children's Services, which provided the Committee with a comprehensive overview of the take up of free early education places for two year olds in Lincolnshire.

 

Debbie Barnes, Executive Director of Children's Services, introduced the report on behalf of Geraldine O'Neill, Lead Consultant (EYE).

 

During discussion, the following points were noted:-

·       The hourly cost of Early Years Providers had been agreed by a working party in consultation with the voluntary and maintained sectors to work out the average voluntary charge.  This is something continually under review via the Lincolnshire School's Forum and is an issue which continues to be refined.

·       An individually assessed approach to providers was taken and, through risk assessment, decisions could be taken to move children should a provider prove unsuitable following that assessment.

·       There was an inclusion fund so that, for example, an 18 month old child with a significant disability was accessing a pre-school, this would be dealt with by the Birth to Five Service through a similar process to statementing although this was not formal or statutory. 

·       Looked After Children (LAC) numbers were low and work was ongoing to monitor the access for these children in relation to funded child care.

·       Regarding geographical spread, in rural areas, child care remained a challenge but work was ongoing with childminders to provide better support and to help them become registered to provide early education.

·       Funding was available for 40% but there was a commitment to increase that figure.  The other 60% would be for the parents to decide if they want to pay for it, although as soon as the child has their third birthday they would be eligible for 15 hours free.  Vulnerable children were given priority and it was expected, depending on additional funding, that there would be a waiting list.

·       Details regarding the number of providers available in Lincoln would be provided after the meeting, following a concern that there appeared to be considerably less providers in comparison to other areas in the county.  It was thought that places were taken by paying parents which could mean the additional funding may not be required.

·       Birth to five used to provide ratings as did Ofsted and the County Council only funded places if the Council was satisfied with the quality of the provision, Ofsted had removed that ability. Previously, the local authority had the ability to remove a childcare provision but this had now changed.

·       Following a query regarding the inclusion of traveller and ethnic minority families, all two year olds within the county were logged with the Participation Worker who would discuss the offer within families.

·       It was suggested to hold a workshop around this item, possibly through Councillor Development. It was confirmed that Geraldine would be happy to take questions outside the meeting.

 

RESOLVED

 

          That the report be noted.

82.

Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee Work Programme 2014 pdf icon PDF 87 KB

(To receive a report from Tracy Johnson, Scrutiny Officer, which provides the Committee with an opportunity to consider its Work Programme)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

A report by the Scrutiny Officer was considered, which provided the Committee with an opportunity to consider its work programme for the coming year.

 

There were no amendments to the published work programme, although Members were asked to note a potential report for the September meeting relating to a proposal for a new primary academy in North Hykeham (submission to Secretary of State of results and evaluation process to identify an operator), which was yet to be confirmed.

 

A SEND reform project, which was a council priority project, had formed a stakeholder group to inform, engage and help co produce the reforms set out in the Children's Bill Draft Code of Practice.  The Stakeholder Group had requested two representatives from the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee to sit on that group.  The group met on a monthly basis, usually at Grantham College, the next meeting being scheduled for 18th March 2014 at 10.30am.

 

Councillor J R Hicks advised he would represent the Committee on this group.  No other volunteers were identified but further information would be circulated to the Committee to give those not present the opportunity to volunteer.

 

RESOLVED

 

That the Work Programme, as set out at Appendix A, be agreed.

83.

CONSIDERATION OF EXEMPT INFORMATION

In accordance with Section 100 (A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, this agenda item has not been circulated to the press and public on the grounds that it is considered to contain exempt information as defined in paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.  The press and public may be excluded from the meeting of the consideration of this item of business.

Minutes:

RESOLVED

 

That, in accordance with Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act

1972, the public and press be excluded from the meeting on the grounds that

the following item of business contained exempt information as defined in

Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as

amended

84.

Leaving Care - Commissioning Review

(To receive a report from Linda Graham, Commissioning Officer, which invites the Committee to consider the Leaving Care Commissioning Review exempt report, prior to the report being considered by the Executive on 1 April 2014)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report of the Executive Director of Children's Services.

 

Andrew McLean, Head of Service – Children's Commissioning, and Linda Graham, Commissioning Officer, introduced the report, explaining the details behind the content of the report.

 

RESOLVED

 

1. That the report be noted.

2. That the recommendations to the Executive be supported.

 

 
 
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