To receive apologies for absence

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Paul Andrews, Councillor Kath Hey and Nicola Kinson.

To receive details of members nominated to attend the meeting in place of a member of the committee.

Councillor Graham Andrews acted as a substitute for Councillor Paul Andrews.

Councillor John Hardwick acted as a substitute for the Herefordshire Independents vacancy on the committee.

To receive declarations of interest in respect of Schedule 1, Schedule 2 or Other Interests from members of the committee in respect of items on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting on 16 September 2019.

The minutes of the meeting held on 16 September 2019 were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chairperson.

To receive any written questions from members of the public.

Deadline for receipt of questions is 5:00pm on Tuesday 19 November 2019.

Accepted questions and answers will be published as a supplement prior to the meeting. Please submit questions to: councillorservices@herefordshire.gov.uk. 

The questions and supplementary questions received from members of the public are attached at the appendix.

To receive any written questions from members of the council.

Deadline for receipt of questions is 5:00pm on Tuesday 19 November 2019.

Accepted questions and answers will be published as a supplement prior to the meeting. Please submit questions to: councillorservices@herefordshire.gov.uk. 

There were no questions from members of the Council.

To review the budget and corporate plan proposals for 2020/21 relating to the remit of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee.

The committee considered a report by the Leader of the council which outlined the draft budget and corporate plan proposals for 2020/21. The chief finance officer (CFO) introduced the report and provided the presentation attached to the agenda. The CFO explained the process to be followed in developing the budget which would see it return to the January meeting of the committee and explained the themes contained in the corporate plan. He explained that a proposed pooled budget for social care would cover adults and children and would allow the council to determine where spending should be committed in future to meet pressures. The capital investment priorities in the children and families directorate were outlined.

The director children and families (DCF) explained that the budget was set in the context of the new children and young people’s plan and the priorities contained within the plan. Work on the priories from the plan was undertaken with a range of partners who were also looking at financial constraints and issues as well as what more could be done. Within the Council the education, development and skills strategy had been included from the last three year period which contains different areas currently being worked on including early years settings, schools, colleges and other partners; some of this relates directly to the capital budget including the school investment strategy. The safeguarding family support development plan which is a one year plan within the service of the different areas being worked on which prioritised that work which could be done at an earlier stage to prevent children becoming looked after to continue to seek to address the high level of looked after children in Herefordshire. Proposals in the budget included the improvement of practice around social work practice and retention and recruitment. The current pressures consisted on placement costs, corporate contingency was in place to address where there was need for additional spend on children services however a lot of work was undertaken to attempt to keep costs within budget. There were a number of pressures including county lines which the council was working closely with the police and it was an area where the needs of children were having to be met to ensure they were safe. Supported accommodation costs had increased particularly with respect to care leavers; the council had acquired additional duties recently and were responsible for care leavers up to the age of 25. One of the proposals was to develop services to meet need earlier including edge of care to increase support for families and children who need to be cared for outside of the family. The services sought to work with families and carers to return children to the family network as appropriate; work had been ongoing with Staffordshire to learn about practice in edge of care work but cabinet had agreed some funding to support the development of the service. 

The cabinet member children and families explained that investment was targeted in those areas where it was required.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.

To provide an update concerning efforts to reduce the number of looked after children (LAC)

The committee received a report from the director children and families concerning an update on reducing the number of looked after children (LAC). The Assistant Director Safeguarding & Family Support introduced the report and explained that work to reduce the numbers of LAC included: pursuing special guardianship orders (SGOs) where appropriate; identifying children at risk of becoming looked after at an earlier stage and working with families; seeking to revoke care orders where children were living at home; ensuring that pre-proceedings work was robust; that the alternatives to care panel was sufficiently challenging; the introduction of signs of safety; and ongoing work with other local authority areas to improve processes and systems.

The committee raised those comments below in the debate that followed:

·         The outcomes for the 80 children identified in 2017 as potentially suitable for SGOs or reunification was queried. The ADS&FS explained that during 2017 there was not a tracker to keep a record of the progress of children. A tracker was now in existence which would record the progress of the 49 children currently identified as suitable for SGO or reunification.

·         It was queried whether the review of children that had become looked after between August – October 2019 had included an assessment of early help offered. The ADS&FS explained that all options were discussed at the alternatives to care panel to attempt to keep children with their families. During pre-proceedings arrangements there was an examination of all work undertaken with children at risk of becoming looked after children.

·         The timescales involved in the provision of early help was queried. The ADS&FS explained that early help was an approach which had seen the amount of assessments increase steadily. In some settings, such as schools, where a need was identified the provision of early help could be undertaken very quickly.

·         The distinction between edge of care and early help was queried. The cabinet member for children and families explained the different approaches; edge of care worked with children who were in care or on the cusp of becoming looked after children. Early help was undertaken at a prior stage to work with children and families to divert from care those at risk of becoming looked after children. Members of the committee were encouraged to attend a meeting of the alternative to care panel and the corporate parenting panel and also to visit the MASH.

RESOLVED: That the committee:

·         Recognises the work that has been undertaken and the progress made in implementing systems to reduce the numbers of looked after children; and

·         Asks that a report is submitted to a meeting in 12 months times which provides a breakdown of the progress made in regard of the 49 children identified for SGOs or reunification.

To review progress against the improvement plan produced in response to the Ofsted Inspection of Local Authority Children’s Services (ILACS) inspection judgement of June 2018 and the subsequent Safeguarding and Family Support division improvement plan 2019 / 2020.

The committee received a report from the ADS&FS concerning progress against the safeguarding and family support improvement plan 2019/20. The ADS&FS introduced the report and explained that the challenges presented in the report consisted of the recruitment of social workers and timeliness of visits. A significant amount of work had been undertaken in the recruitment of social workers which had resulted in the appointment recently of a principal social worker who had made appointments to three posts in the social work academy. The timeliness of visits was judged against a high and aspirational target; social workers often had to prioritise urgent and severe cases which affected timeliness results. The DCF explained that the self-assessments for each of the areas in children and families would be circulated after the meeting.

The committee raised the points below in the debate that followed:

·         It was queried whether the risk assessments relating to the potential for child exploitation had been brought up to date. The ADS&FS confirmed that this work had been completed.

·         The boost in social worker numbers was welcomed but it was noted that the indicator in the report was showing as a downward direction of travel. The ADS&FS explained that recruitment to some teams had been successful but if remained very difficult to make appointments to teams such as the child protection and court teams.

·         It was queried whether there was concern regarding the 16+ team. The ADS&FS and DCF explained that a number of staff on the team were leaving but there would be a concerted effort to recruit replacements.

RESOLVED: That the committee notes the report and the improvements made since the previous quarter.

To review the attached work programme for 2019/20

The committee considered a report by the democratic services officer which provided the latest version of the work programme 2019/20; an amended scoping document for the peer on peer abuse in schools spotlight review; and the recommendation tracker.

The Chairperson of the committee explained the changes to the work programme as contained in the report. She also explained the amendment to the scoping document which sought to ensure the voice of the child was heard and explained she would read a statement at the spotlight review with the agreement of the author and family.

RESOLVED: That the committee:

·         Agrees the updated version of the work programme; and

·         Approves the amended terms of the reference for the peer on peer abuse in schools spotlight review scoping document subject to the inclusion of reference to a statement to be read aloud if permission was granted.  

The committee is asked to note the date of the next meeting on 14 January 2020, 1.00 p.m.

The next meeting of the committee was scheduled for 2.00 p.m. on 14 January 2020. The start time for the meeting would be confirmed in due course.