Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, County Offices, Newland, Lincoln LN1 1YL. View directions

Contact: Tom Crofts  Democratic Services Officer

Media

Items
No. Item

10.

Apologies for Absence / Replacement Members

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Alex Sayer.

11.

Declarations of Members' Interest

Minutes:

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

12.

Minutes of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee meeting held on 17 June 2022 pdf icon PDF 483 KB

Minutes:

RESOLVED:

 

That the minutes of the meeting held on 17 June 2022 be confirmed and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

13.

Announcements by the Chairman, Executive Councillor for Children's Services, Community Safety and Procurement and Chief Officers

Minutes:

There were no anouncements.

14.

Government White Papers on Levelling Up the United Kingdom and Opportunity for all: strong schools with great teachers for your child pdf icon PDF 893 KB

(To receive a report from Matt Spoors, Head of Service – School Standards, which updates the Committee on the Government’s policy white papers Levelling Up the United Kingdom and Opportunity for all: strong schools with great teachers for your child 2022)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report by Matt Spoors, Head of Service – School Standards, on the Government’s White Papers on Levelling Up. The following matters were highlighted:

 

·   No timescale had been set by the Government for the implementation of the White Papers, as yet.

·   The White Paper instructed the following:

o   That all schools ensure 90% of pupils achieve expected standards in reading, writing and maths – which meant a 25% increase for schools in Lincolnshire.

o   A 0.5% increase on pupils achieving a grade 5 for secondary schools.

o   All schools to become Multi Academy Trusts (MATs) by 2030.

o   50 local authorities had been designated as education investment areas, which included Lincolnshire.

·   In order to achieve new expectations, the following was to be developed:

o   The creation of new professional teaching qualifications.

o   Pay uplifts for teachers.

o   OAK National Academy – a new arms-length curriculum body.

o   A new attendance programme.

o   Funding for tutoring programmes and educational endowments.

·   The reorganisation of all schools into MATs was the key priority of the White Papers.

·   Although Lincolnshire was behind the national standard, the gap was being closed, in part due to the Council’s investment into Family Hubs and the Supporting Families Programme.

 

In response to questions raised by the Committee, the following points were confirmed:

 

·   Small faith schools and grammar schools presented a challenge in academisation.

·   Local authorities were to facilitate academisation with no additional resourcing.

·   There was a lack of clarity regarding the consideration of outcomes for children in the move towards academisation. It was concerning that academisation was not necessarily a move based entirely on ensuring better outcomes.

·   Lincolnshire was closing the performance gap with the national standard in that the national standard had dropped but Lincolnshire schools had not dropped as much.

·   Many special schools had already become academies and were better placed to weather and disruption caused by further academisation.

·    New teaching qualifications were available to any teacher, with some specifically tailored to senior leadership. The ongoing qualification route into teaching remained unchanged.

·   Local authorities were not permitted to run academy trusts.

·   The Council was looking into how to ensure that no school was left behind in the academisation process, with a focus on small rural schools.

 

Members felt that academisation was a one size fits all approach which did not necessarily prioritise outcomes for children.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1. That the report and comments be noted.

2. That a further report be brought to a future meeting of the Committee once more information is released and the implications for Lincolnshire are known.

 

15.

Schools' Standards in Lincolnshire pdf icon PDF 1 MB

(To receive a report from Matt Spoors, Head of Service – School Standards, which updates the Committee on standards within the sector led system with a specific focus on Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND), Pupils with English as an Additional Language (EAL), and Disadvantaged pupils along with school type)

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report by Matt Spoors, Head of Service – School Standards, on standards within the sector led system as previously requested by the Committee on 3 March 2022. The following matters were highlighted:

 

·   The report represented data from 2019, pre-pandemic.

·   Pupils identified as autistic and/or having behavioural/social/emotional difficulties were the largest representation with the category of SEND. Data also showed that SEND pupils had higher levels of achievement in a mainstream setting. However, the data was not considered statistically significant.

·   The level of household disadvantage was the strongest driver of attainment and progress for children overall.

·   Pupils with English as an additional language achieved higher attainment than native English speakers. This gap also widened as pupils got older.

·   Performance was also driven by the particular school.

 

In response to questions raised by the Committee, the following points were confirmed:

 

·   Local authorities were to become champions rather than drivers regarding school improvements under academisation, and the school improvements grant was to be cut to zero.

·   The Government and Academy Trusts were now the sole drivers educational policy. Local Authorities still had a part to play in scrutinising and recommending matters to these parties.

·    The Council still had expertise and data to help and influence partners. The Council could pursue non-statutory duties regarding schools to have a greater influence in decisions. However, there was no additional resourcing available to support this.

·   The Council and the Committee were to become ‘intelligent influencers’.

·   The Council had established a close working relationship with schools over the years, which would endure.

·   Multi Academy Trusts (MATs) did not yet have league tables, and standards tools and reporting were under review.

·   The Government’s definition of a strong MAT was based upon strong financial standards and policies.

 

Members were concerned by the motivation for academisation and the roll of the Committee going forward. Members felt that the performance of male working-class children was an area that needed closer attention to ensure that the correct type of support was in place.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1. That the report assured the Committee on the issues highlighted.

2. That the Committee’s comments be noted.

16.

Service Level Performance against the Corporate Performance Framework - Quarter 4 pdf icon PDF 429 KB

(To receive a report from Laura Bonner, Head of Service (East Lindsey Locality), which summarises the Service Level Performance against the Corporate Performance Framework for Quarter 4)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report by Laura Bonner, Head of Service – East Lindsey Locality, on Quarter 4 performance for Tier 2 Service Level Performance measures in relation to Children's Services. The following matters were highlighted:

 

·   There were 10 measures reported at Quarter 4. Reasons for performance outcomes were explained with direct reference to the report.

·   3 measures did not meet their target.

·   2 measures exceeded their target.

·   5 measures achieved their target.

·   Performance was still being greatly impacted by the past years’ pandemic public health measures.

 

In response to questions raised by the Committee, the following points were confirmed:

 

·   The Council continued to make representations to make reporting more timely regarding the two year lag in juvenile reoffending data.

·   Data pertaining to children in care were all considered Lincolnshire Children.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1. That the report and comments be noted.

2. That the Committee was satisfied with performance.

3. That the Committee receive a briefing in relation to points raised.

17.

Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee Work Programme pdf icon PDF 462 KB

(To receive a report from Kiara Chatziioannou, 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)

Minutes:

The Committee considered its work programme, to ensure that scrutiny activity was focused where it could be of greatest benefit.

 

It was noted that water fluoridation had also been discussed at the Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire.

 

RESOLVED:

 

That the work programme be agreed subject to the inclusion of the amendments mentioned above.

18.

Consideration of Exempt Information

Minutes:

RESOLVED:        

 

That in accordance with Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that if they were present they could be a disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Section 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.

19.

Expansion of St Lawrence Academy, Horncastle

(To receive an exempt report from Dave Pennington, Head of Property Development, Eileen McMorrow, Programme Manager – SEND Strategy, and Tina Shaw, Senior Project Manager – Corporate Property, which invites the Committee to consider a report on the expansion of St Lawrence Academy, Horncastle, which is being presented to the Leader of the Council (Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning) for a decision between 27 and 29 July 2022)

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the exempt report.

 

The Committee raised a number of questions which were answered by the Officers present.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1. That the Committee support the recommendations to the Leader of the Council as set out in the report.

2. That the Committee’s comments be passed on to the Leader of the Council in relation to this item.

20.

Residential Estates Expansion Programme - Children's Home Louth

(To receive a report from Dave Pennington, Head of Property Development, and Wendy Lanes, Project Manager – Corporate Property, which invites the Committee to consider a report on the Residential Estates Expansion Programme - Children's Home Louth, which is being presented to the Leader of the Council (Executive Councillor for Resources, Communications and Commissioning) for a decision between 1 and 22 September 2022)

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the exempt report.

 

The Committee raised a number of questions which were answered by the Officers present.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1. That the Committee support the recommendations to the Leader of the Council as set out in the report.

2. That the Committee’s comments be passed on to the Leader of the Council in relation to this item.

 

 
 
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