To receive apologies for absence.

None

To receive details of any Members nominated to attend the meeting in place of a Member of the Committee.

None.

To receive any declarations of interest by Members in respect of items on the Agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 12 December 2016.

With reference to the item on the engagement and consultation process for the redesign of primary care services, it was noted that an update wasexpected, and the Clinical Commissioning Group would be asked to provide this update at the next meeting on 27 February.

Members were also asked to note that a visit to Addaction in Leominster was being arranged for Thursday 23 February 2017 prior to their attending the meeting on 27 February.

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the meeting of 12 December 2016 be agreed as a correct record and signed by the chairman.

To consider suggestions from members of the public on issues the committee could scrutinise in the future.

(There will be no discussion of the issue at the time when the matter is raised.  Consideration will be given to whether it should form part of the committee’s work programme when compared with other competing priorities.)

No suggestions were received.

To note questions received from the public and the items to which they relate.

(Questions are welcomed for consideration at a scrutiny committee meeting so long as the question is directly related to an item listed on the agenda.  If you have a question you would like to ask then please submit it no later than two working days before the meeting to the committee officer.  This will help to ensure that an answer can be provided at the meeting). 

No questions were received.

To provide an overview of performance of the Herefordshire safeguarding boards in order to provide assurance.

Independent chairs, Sally Halls (Herefordshire Safeguarding Children Board (HSCB)) and Ivan Powell (Herefordshire Safeguarding Adults Board (HSAB)), were welcomed to the meeting.

Herefordshire Safeguarding Children Board

The chair of HSCB presented the annual report. It was noted that this report was for the year 2015-16 and the report for 2016-17 would be available in the autumn.  The report showed progress against four priority areas which were determined by an Ofsted inspection report.

The priorities were:

·         to be an effective change agent for children and young people

·         to improve response to child sexual exploitation and missing children

·         to support increased resilience for children and young people and their families

·         to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people

Progress had been made in the majority of areas, supported by a joint business manager for both safeguarding boards and the community safety partnership.  

With regard to priority 2, child sexual exploitation, a strategy and delivery plan was signed off, including a risk assessment toolkit and clearer pathways for responding to concerns.  There was close monitoring of delivery to inform a refresh of the strategy which was to be approved this week with plans to develop strategic communications across West Mercia, putting more focus on preventing further offending and continuing to promote understanding to keep children safe.

It was noted that a needs assessment had highlighted a new area of incidences of sexual offences against children which needed greater understanding and which was disproportionately higher than the rest of West Mercia.  Discussion took place on this point and it was clarified that there was a high level of reporting of sexual abuse within families in Herefordshire where people in the county were more confident to come forward to report.

For priority 3, it was identified that there were too many children in the system unnecessarily and this had been rebalanced in a number of ways:

·         clear leadership from the head of service in safeguarding and review

·         revised thresholds of need and agreed expectations at each level

·         focused work with schools

·         earlier engagement with children and families

The number of referrals and child protection plans were at a more appropriate level at the same time as balancing risk with supporting children to feel safer at home. There was greater emphasis on supporting professionals to carry out common assessments and to identify needs earlier, with lead professionals identified for co-ordinating activity for children’s needs.  

A review of the multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH) was commissioned and members sought reassurance that this area was working more effectively. It was explained that there was more stability within children’s services and together with revisions to the thresholds of care, there was a firm foundation for decision making.   There were also better way of working that enabled more support for schools. Clearer policies about referrals to MASH had reduced inappropriate contacts and there was confidence that the system was rebalancing.  Assurance was given that assessments remained fair and appropriate within this context and this was being monitored. The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 133.