Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor W H Gray.

Apologies for absence were also received from Councillor Mrs P A Bradwell OBE (Executive Councillor for Children's Services, Community Safety and Procurement).

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

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee meeting held on 15 October 2021 be agreed and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

The Chairman informed the Committee of the passing of Councillor B Adams who was the former Vice Chairman of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee between 17 May 2013 and 15 May 2015 and continued to be a member of this Committee until April 2017. The Committee held a minute’s silence in honour of Councillor Adams.

(To receive a report from Andy Cook, Head of Service - Future4Me/Youth Offending, which provides the Committee with the key findings of the evaluation of the Joint Diversionary Panel undertaken by Dr Sue Bond-Taylor from the University of Lincoln)

(To receive a report from Tara Jones, Head of Service – Children in Care Transformation, which invites the Committee to consider and comment on a report on the business case for the use of £1.5m of allocated Council capital funding from the Residential Children's Home Capital Programme to invest in two new children's homes in Lincolnshire, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Children’s Services, Community Safety and Procurement between 22 and 30 November 2021)

The Committee considered a report which set out the business case for the use of £1.5m of allocated Council capital funding from the Residential Children's Home Capital Programme to invest in two new children's homes in Lincolnshire, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Children’s Services, Community Safety and Procurement between 22 and 30 November 2021. 

The Committee considered the report, and during the discussion the following comments were noted:-

• The two new children’s homes would provide additional capacity to place children in care within Lincolnshire and deliver a forecasted annual saving of £0.561m by reducing the number of out of county placements which were very costly for the Council.
• The Committee was pleased with the very low rate of return on investment of 2.67 years for the £1.5m capital cost for the two new children’s homesas this was a lot shorter than the usual rate of return on investments.
• The benefits of children in care being placed in accommodation within Lincolnshire was recognised as this enabled these young people to maintain contact with friends and families.
• Some out of county placements would still be required where specialist accommodation was needed.
• There were several young people placed in out of county placements during the Covid-19 pandemic due to a shortage of placements within Lincolnshire. Consideration was being given to how to carefully transition these young people back into Lincolnshire accommodation when they were now settled in their current placements. These young people were being closely monitored by Children’s Services.
• The proposed two new children’s homes were the first stage for increasing in county placements, and it was hoped that a third new children’s home could be developed in the future.
• The number of children in care would start to decrease as the family courts begin to consider more cases.
• Several factors were taken into consideration when deciding the location of children’s homes. These included demographics, criminality in the area, access to education including post 16, access to public transport, and whether high quality staff could be recruited in the area to ensure stability of staff in the children’s homes. Ofsted would ensure that these factors were taken into account. It was confirmed that Ofsted was satisfied with the proposed locations for the two new children’s homes.

RESOLVED

1. That the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee unanimously agreed to support the recommendations to the Executive Councillor for Children’s Services, Community Safety and Procurement as detailed in the report.

2. That the comments listed above be passed on to the Executive Councillor in relation to this item.

(To receive a report and presentation from Matthew Stapleton, Senior Project Manager - Corporate Property, which invites the Committee to consider and comment on the relocation of Lincolnshire County Council’s existing short breaks home to a location on the St. Francis Special School site in Lincoln, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property between 23 and 30 November 2021)

The Committee considered a report which invited them to consider and comment on the relocation of Lincolnshire County Council’s existing short breaks home to a location on the St. Francis Special School site in Lincoln, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property between 23 and 30 November 2021.

The Committee considered the report, and during the discussion the following comments were noted:-

•            The Committee was reassured that the risks to the supply chain had been fully assessed and that the costs compared well to the BCIS benchmarking, demonstrating good value for money for the project.

•            It was expected that children would be first placed in the new children’s home at St Catherine’s in September 2022. Concern was raised that this would coincide with the new academic school year, and it was suggested that the children should be moved into the new children’s home before September. It was confirmed that this could not be guaranteed to happen as the remodelling works may not have been completed by then due to the current supply issues. Careful planning would be undertaken when moving children into the children’s home to ensure that they did not change schools at the same time to allow them time to settle into their new placement first.

RESOLVED

1. That the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee unanimously agreed to support the recommendations to the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property as detailed in the report.

2. That the comments listed above be passed on to the Executive Councillors in relation to this item.

(To receive a report from Matthew Stapleton, Senior Project Manager - Corporate Property, which invites the Committee to consider and comment on the procurement of the expansion and remodelling to Spalding Academy, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property between 23 and 30 November 2021)

The Committee considered a report which invited them to consider and comment on the procurement of the expansion and remodelling to Spalding Academy, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property between 23 and 30 November 2021.

The Committee considered the report, and during the discussion the following comments were noted:-

• The total allocated project budget of £3.5m was set two years ago with Children’s Services. However, the recent volatility in the supply chain had seen the price constantly changing, and as a result it was decided that an actual price would be sought through the tendering process, and the pre-tender estimate was now £3.67m. The tenders for the contract were due back in the next couple of weeks.
• The South Lincs Academy Trust (SLAT) was congratulated for taking the school from being significantly under-subscribed to being popular and now over-subscribed.

RESOLVED

1. That the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee unanimously agreed to support the recommendations to the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property as detailed in the report.

2. That the comments listed above be passed on to the Executive Councillors in relation to this item.

(To receive a report from Matthew Stapleton, Senior Project Manager - Corporate Property, which invites the Committee to consider and comment on the procurement of the expansion and remodelling to expansion and remodelling to Stamford Welland Academy, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property between 23 and 30 November 2021)

The Committee considered a report which invited them to consider and comment on the procurement of the expansion and remodelling to expansion and remodelling to Stamford Welland Academy, prior to a decision being taken by the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property between 23 and 30 November 2021.

The Committee considered the report, and during the discussion the following comments were noted:-

• There was a need to balance the costs to maximise the number of places available while being as cost effective and environmentally sustainable as possible. The aim was to make all schools sustainable, but this had to be balanced against the need to maximise school places within the funding available.
• The Council’s policy regarding the installation of solar panels on the Council’s own buildings did not apply as the academy trust was responsible for the school building. The Executive Director – Children’s Services agreed to write to Lincolnshire academies asking them to seek funding from the Department for Education for the green agenda to enable them to become more environmentally sustainable.
• The potential for a sixth form at the academy was separate to this project. To have a sixth form, the academy would have to demonstrate that there was a need for a sixth form for at least 200 pupils.
• The risks for each project were carefully considered and costed, and were mitigated as much as possible.

RESOLVED

1. That the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee unanimously agreed to support the recommendations to the Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning and the Executive Councillor for People Management, Legal and Corporate Property as detailed in the report.

2. That the comments listed above be passed on to the Executive Councillors in relation to this item.

(To receive a report from Jo Kavanagh, Assistant Director – Early Help, which summarises for the Committee the Service Level Performance against the Corporate Performance Framework for Quarter 2, for measures that are above or below the target range) 

Consideration was given to a report which summarised the Service Level Performance against the Corporate Performance Framework for Quarter 2. The report only summarised those measures which were either above or below the target range.

Members were provided with the opportunity to ask questions to the officers present in relation to the information contained within the report and some of the points raised during discussion included the following:

• Members noted the increase in the average days for children to move to an adopted family from quarter one, 397 days, to quarter two, 455 days, while the target remained at 400, and asked if there was any flexibility in targeting. Officers advised that a number of children had recently moved through the court systems, which had been delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic, prolonging the time it had taken before being found an adopted home. As time progressed, the average days were expected to decrease.
• Members’ disappointment in the unavailability of the Youth Justice Board statistics was noted.
• Referencing the increase of children in care participating in learning, as of October 2021, to reach the threshold within the tolerance range, Members asked what measures were being undertaken to ensure the remaining young people were encouraged to participate too. Officers appreciated that, while the opportunities for learning may be good for those in the tolerance range, it was essential that all children in care were offered the opportunity to learn. The tolerance thresholds within the reports were determined by the Council and could be amended throughout the year if it was felt necessary. Members were advised about an upcoming proposal for virtual schools, through a grant of approximately £900 per child, to tailor bespoke learning and support packages. Further detail of this would be brought back to the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee.
• Members sought clarity on why the rate of child protection plans had reduced in quarter two. Officers advised that a number of children were put on a child protection plan during the Covid-19 pandemic due to the significant change in circumstances they faced. As the service moved beyond the Covid-19 challenges, a number of child protection plans were ceased. However, it was noted that, while child protection plans were subject to targets, any child who was considered to require one would be put on a plan regardless of the Council position within its targets.

RESOLVED

That the Committee’s satisfaction with the performance of the measures, that were either above or below the target range, and the comments made in relation to the performance measures be noted.

(To receive a report from Tracy Johnson, Senior Scrutiny Officer, which enables the Committee to consider and comment on the contents of its work programme to ensure that its scrutiny activity is focused where it can be of greatest benefit)

The Committee considered a report from Tracy Johnson, Senior Scrutiny Officer, which invited members to consider and comment on the content of its work programme, to ensure that scrutiny activity was focused where it could be of greatest benefit.

It was noted that an amendment to the 14 January 2022 agenda was made, with the Pre-Decision Scrutiny item for the expansion of St Lawrence School, Horncastle being deferred until the 17 June 2022 or 22 July 2022 meeting to allow for further work on the scheme.

In addition, the Committee would be considering the Council’s budget proposals for Children’s Services prior to its consideration at the Executive and subsequently Council in February 2022.

RESOLVED

        That the work programme be agreed as amended.