Agenda and minutes

Venue: Herefordshire Council Offices, Plough Lane, Hereford, HR4 0LE

Contact: Samantha Gregory, Democratic Services Officer 

Link: Watch this meeting live on the Herefordshire Council Youtube Channel

Items
No. Item

38.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

To receive any apologies for absence.

Minutes:

There were apologies from Councillor Powell.

39.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

To receive declarations of interests in respect of Table A, Table B or Other Interests from members of the committee in respect of items on the agenda.

Minutes:

None.

40.

MINUTES pdf icon PDF 829 KB

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 28 November 2024. 

 

 

Minutes:

Resolved:       That the minutes of the meeting held on 28 November 2024 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairperson.

 

 

41.

Questions from members of the public

To receive questions from members of the public.

 

Minutes:

No questions were received from members of the public.

42.

Questions from councillors

To receive questions from councillors.

 

Minutes:

No questions were received from Councillors for the meeting.

43.

Reports from Scrutiny Committees

No scrutiny reports have been received.

Minutes:

There were no reports from scrutiny committees for consideration at this meeting.

44.

Corporate Parenting Strategy pdf icon PDF 298 KB

To approve the corporate parenting strategy 2025-2027.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Leader of the Council introduced the report. It was highlighted that the strategy is raising awareness of an important responsibility that all members of the council hold.  It was noted that this is a multi-agency document and strategy, and all partners will play their role in contributing to the delivery of this strategy. Whilst the legal requirement to be a corporate parent remains with the council (within the Children and Social Work Act 2017), it was confirmed that the Government have plans to widen responsibilities to all government departments and relevant bodies. 

 

The corporate parenting strategy sets out the seven corporate parenting principles which local authorities must have regard to when considering looking after looked after children and care experienced young people. The open letter from Herefordshire’s children and young people requested that the council consider how it will care and support them to achieve their aspirations.  The open letter also highlighted that they want the council to keep to their promises as corporate parents, and the council can do this by doing all that it can to ensure the children have the best chances in life and by treating them as their own children. 

 

It was noted that the Corporate Parenting Board worked hard to create the strategy, and the council is fully supportive of the strategy and of its role as a corporate parent. 

 

Cabinet members discussed the report and it was noted that the plan was clear and well thought out.  Particularly, the open letter from the care experienced young people highlighted that their voices had been heard and it was important to continue listening and responding to them. It was also highlighted that Herefordshire’s care experienced young people had achieved attainment 8 scores, which was above the national average and 92% of care leaves were in suitable accommodation.  It was noted that having the strategy helps supports the positive direction of reunification as 30 children had already been reunited with their families, with the care order being discharged in 2023/24, and this can only be taken as positive. 

 

Group leaders gave the views of their groups. The report was welcomed and it was noted how important it was for all parties and partners to fully engage with it.  Also, the inclusion of children’s experiences in the strategy was positive. The commitment in the strategy to follow the recommendations of the ‘The Cass Report’ was also positive.

 

A query was raised regarding how the council will ensure it continues to deliver against the content of the strategy and continue to gather the voice of the children.  It was also raised if the response to the young people could have been drafted in a more natural less formal style.  Also, for appendices to have titles on their documents itself. 

 

In response to the points and questions raised it was confirmed that the council will ensure that there is monitoring against all the achievable outcomes, and these will be built into the work plan.  The process will involve  ...  view the full minutes text for item 44.

45.

Ofsted Monitoring Visit Feedback pdf icon PDF 307 KB

To share the feedback letter from Ofsted following their fifth Monitoring Visit conducted on 22 - 23 October 2024

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Leader of the Council introduced the report.  The key points were highlighted, notably that the focus was on children at risk of extra familial abuse in the forms of exploitation and the visit reviewed the whole service, including the get safe team.  It was found by Ofsted that children at risk of extra familial harm in Herefordshire benefited from a committed specialist team which reduced the risk to many of these vulnerable children.  They found that the get safe team worked effectively to reduce risks from children and young people and their work was timely and well structured. 

 

Ofsted recognised that staff formed trusting relationships with children and the quality of these relationships served as a positive foundation to reduce the risk to many children.

 

Regarding early help support and identification of risk, Ofsted found that there was a range of early help services available and for most children their needs and risks were promptly identified.  In MASH these systems enabled the service to undertake prompt screening and allocation, through close work with targeted early help there was a coordinated approach to support children. 

 

Regarding partnership working, Ofsted found that external partnership collaboration helped to protect vulnerable children through targeted interventions. Multi Agency Child Exploitation (MACE) meetings were held for all children identified as experiencing exploitation and Ofsted Families Partnership meetings provided a structured and multidisciplinary analysis, which led to reliable decisions about next steps.  Ofsted noted that children and families were encouraged to attend MACE meetings which they noted increased their understanding and ownership of any planned intervention. Ofsted asked the council to consider how initial information from meetings could be more productive, and if parental and the young person’s consent were obtained, if better engagement could be achieved.  It was confirmed that the service will take this into consideration.  However, it was acknowledged that some meetings required only agencies to be present. 

 

Ofsted identified that children were engaged in their assessments and their plans. However, Ofsted noted that some of the plans presented as formulaic and would benefit from better use of the child's own words. It was confirmed that work was underway to provide more tailored plans, to reflect the verbal account that was given.

 

It was highlighted that Ofsted found that the child and family assessments received in other parts of the service had improved in their quality.  Ofsted noted that these assessments were detailed and reflected the child’s overarching need with an exploration of the risks to the child.  Ofsted found the quality of these assessments led to effective protection, action and support.  However, Ofsted found a small number of children with complex needs and who were in care had experienced placement disruption.  This was causing delay and disruption in their needs being met and understood.  It was confirmed that in response the service was undertaking a senior management led case review for each case, which will provide critical reflection challenge to ensure the council is identifying managing and minimising the risks.  The reviews  ...  view the full minutes text for item 45.