Agenda and draft minutes

The Scrutiny Officer invited nominations for Chair of the Education and Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee for the 2024/25 municipal year. Cllr Waine proposed Cllr Simpson and Cllr Smith seconded the nomination.

With no other nominations and no objections, Cllr Simpson was ELECTED Chair for 2024/25.

Having taken the Chair, Cllr Simpson invited nominations for Deputy Chair of the Education and Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee for the 2024/25 municipal year. Cllr Smith proposed Cllr Hannaby and Cllr Bennett seconded the nomination.

With no other nominations and no objections, Cllr Hannaby was ELECTED Deputy Chair for 2024/25.

To receive any apologies for absence and temporary appointments.

Apologies were received from Cllr Corkin, Cllr Graham (substituted by Cllr Bennett), and Cllr Povolotsky.

Apologies were also received from co-optees Fraser Long and Toby Long, who attended the meeting virtually as guests on the Chair.

See guidance note on the back page.

There were none.

The Committee is recommended to APPROVE the minutes of the meeting held on 20 May 2024 as a true and accurate record and to receive information arising from them.

The Committee AGREED the minutes of the meeting held on 20 May 2024 as a true and accurate record.

Members requested the following ACTION having approved the minutes from the previous meeting:

·       Officers work with Members of the Committee reviewing educational data to ensure the information sought by Cllrs Elphinstone and Waine was supplied to the Committee.

Members of the public who wish to speak at this meeting can attend the meeting in person or ‘virtually’ through an online connection. 

To facilitate ‘hybrid’ meetings we are asking that requests to speak or present a petition are submitted by no later than 9am four working days before the meeting i.e., 9am on 16 July 2024.  Requests to speak should be sent to the Scrutiny Officer at scrutiny@oxfordshire.gov.uk.

If you are speaking ‘virtually’, you may submit a written statement of your presentation to ensure that your views are taken into account. A written copy of your statement can be provided no later than 9am 2 working days before the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.

The Committee heard from four speakers who spoke to the work programme and raised issues related to Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) provision and home to school transport.

Claire Brenner, representing the Oxfordshire SEND Parent Action Group, asked the Committee to increase its scrutiny of the SEND improvement process and the metrics used to measure it. Additionally, she pointed out the issues with the tribunal process and the slow pace of appeal resolutions. She recommended that the Local Area Partnership begin tracking the number of appeals registered and the time from its registration to the case resolution.

Melody Drinkwater, a parent of a child with SEND, shared her personal experience of the SEND system. She voiced serious reservations regarding the protracted nature of the tribunal proceedings and the harm it had inflicted on her child and others. Additionally, she articulated the challenges faced while dealing with the SEND framework in Oxfordshire.

Katie Nellist, a young person with SEND, suggested a number of topics for the Committee to consider. She also urged the committee to engage with the Youth Forum to incorporate their advice and recommendations, addressing the issue of lacking young co-optees.

Ella Buckingham spoke about her experience of having been a young person with SEND without education for over a year owing to the Council's failure to provide her with a school place. She urged the committee to review the SEND admissions process, especially for those with a disability, to prevent further cases of discrimination and injustice.

The Chair thanked the speakers for their contributions and assured them that their views would be taken into account when members considered the Committee's work plan.

The Committee requested an update on the People Overview & Scrutiny Committee’s Home to School Transport Working Group report which was submitted in March 2023.  The Committee also requested information on home to school transport more generally, including the spare seats scheme.

Cllr Kate Gregory, Cabinet Member for SEND Improvement, Cllr John Howson, Cabinet Member for Children, Education & Young People’s Services, and Lisa Lyons, Director of Children’s Services, have been invited to present the report. Andrew Richards, Operational Manager (Service Planning Supported Transport), and Philip Earnshaw, Operational Manager (Contracted and Fleet Supported Transport) have been also been invited to attend.

The Committee is asked to consider the report and raise any questions, and to AGREE any recommendations it wishes to make to Cabinet arising therefrom.

Report to follow.

The Committee had asked for an update on the report from the People Overview & Scrutiny Committee’s Home to School Transport Working Group that was presented in March 2023. They also sought information about the broader home to school transport system, including details of the spare seats scheme.

Cllr John Howson, Cabinet Member for Children, Education, and Young People’s Services, and Lisa Lyons, Director of Children’s Services, and Kate Reynolds, Deputy Director of Education, attended to present the report. Stephen Chandler, Executive Director of People and Transformation, Philip Earnshaw, Operational Manager (Contracted and Fleet Supported Transport), and Andrew Richards, Operational Manager (Service Planning Supported Transport) were invited to attend to answer questions.

The Deputy Director of Education presented the report and provided an overview of the challenges and measures taken regarding home to school transport. The Deputy Director emphasized the need for policy review and the implementation of a transformation programme to address service performance and cost issues.

The Cabinet Member for Children, Education, and Young People’s Services provided some additional information on the spare seats scheme and the recent decision by Cabinet to increase the charges by 20% for 2024/25.

The Committee discussed the report and raised the following concerns and suggestions:

·       Members raised concerns about the potential for areas of Home to School Transport issue being overlooked as they sat within different service areas of the Council. It was mentioned that the upcoming Cabinet item on sustainable school transport was assigned to the Cabinet member for Transport, Home to School Transport but this report fell under the purview of the Cabinet member for Children, Education, and Young People Services. Members were concerned that this made the question of funding for Home to School Transport even more complex.

The Operational Manager (Contracted and Fleet Supported Transport) assured the Committee that school transport and public transport teams collaborate closely. Moreover, the optimal outcome would be that investment in school transport also helped to maintain a public bus service. The Deputy Director also made assurances that officers representing the sustainable school strategy will also be on the School Transport Board.

The Committee advocated for a holistic strategy in considering Home to School Transport, which encompassed the expected use of private vehicles. It was essential that approaches to public transport aligned with broader transport and environmental objectives and strategies.

·       The Committee enquired about the impact on the budget and quality of service due to targets aiming for a £1.6m cost reduction amidst rising industry costs. The Cabinet Member notified the Committee that a projected budget shortfall existed and initiatives to reduce expenses were being implemented. It was also mentioned that there would be an increase in fees by 20% for the Spare Seats Scheme to compensate for the costs.

·       The Committee stressed the need for a school transportation system that served everyone, particularly children from remote rural areas and those who were neurodivergent, SEND, or have EHCPs.

The Cabinet Member clarified that Oxfordshire, like most County Councils, adopted a policy favouring the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2624.

The Committee is recommended to NOTE the progress of previous recommendations and actions arising from previous meetings, having raised any questions on the contents.

The Committee NOTED the progress of previous recommendations and actions arising from previous meetings.

The Committee is recommended to AGREE its work programme for forthcoming meetings,  taking account of the Cabinet Forward Plan and of the Budget Management Monitoring Report.

The Committee resolved to AGREE the proposed forward work plan, having taken account of the Cabinet Forward Plan and the Budget Management Monitoring Report, subject to taking account of the following.

·       The concerns raised by the public speakers were recognized and will be incorporated into the future work plan of the Committee.

·       The Committee agreed to the Director of Children’s Services request that, rather than reporting simply on an Update on working arising from the Priority Action Plan, the Committee should receive a comprehensive overview detailing ongoing work related to SEND and children’s services.

·        

·       It was noted that a monthly report on SEND was submitted to informal cabinet, and a detailed report of the progress made over the previous year was scheduled to be presented to the Committee in September.

·       The Director of Children’s Services advised the Committee on the challenges encountered in efforts to appoint two young persons as co-optees to the committee. The Director outlined several obstacles that both the Council and potential youth candidates must overcome, such as ensuring safeguarding and representation issues. However, the achievements of the Youth Forum were acknowledged and commended by both the Chair and the Committee.

Attached is the Cabinet response to the Education and Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee report on 23 April 2024. The Committee is asked to NOTE the response.

The Committee NOTED the Cabinet response to the Education and Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee report on 23 April 2024.