Agenda item

The Executive Councillor for Adult Care, Health and Children's Services reported that the authority was currently undergoing an Ofsted inspection, and it was noted that this was the third visit to Lincolnshire of the year.  Members were advised that this time the inspectors were looking at early help social care. 

It was reported that it had recently been announced that the University of Lincoln had been successful in its bid to become an Institute of Technology.  The bid had been made by the University and local further education colleges with the support of the Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership.  The Institute would focus on developing technical skills for the agri-food, manufacturing, engineering and digital industries.  It had been agreed that, due to the rural nature of the county, Lincolnshire would have seven sites which would be based in colleges around the county, including North Lincolnshire.  Members were advised that a report would be made to the Committee when more information was available.  The Executive Councillor and Interim Director for Education were keen to get schools involved at an early stage to encourage those students that may be looking for a more technical career path.  It was highlighted that there had been 112 bids submitted and only 12 areas selected, so for Lincolnshire to be one of those areas was very positive.

One member commented that they had advocated for a long time that there should be a move away from the focus on degree level learning as a lot of students were likely to benefit from a more practical approach.  If this was a move back to people gaining technical qualifications then this was positive.  There was a need to get across to schools and colleges that there were other qualifications and career paths than going to university.

Members were advised that the post 16 and post 19 landscape was evolving, and not all of the information about the different options was getting through to parents, and this was perhaps where the council could be supportive.  There were now so many diverse opportunities for young people.

It was reported that a network of careers hubs was being established, and the Council was working with the Local Enterprise Partnership on this.  A report would be brought back to the Committee on this in due course.

The Executive Support Councillor for Children's Services reported that there would be a paper submitted to the Council Meeting on 17 May 2019 in relation to the Corporate Parenting Sub-Group, proposing a name change to the Corporate Parenting Panel, and an increase in the frequency of meetings to six per year.  It was also reported that the meetings would also be open to the public.

The role of visiting members was discussed, and it was noted that there would be an update session for visiting members after the close of the meeting.  Any members who wished to visit a children's home in their area would be welcomed and it was suggested that they should either arrange it with their local visiting member or the appropriate officer.