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Notice of Meeting
Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee
Tuesday 22 May 2007 at 10.00 am
at County Hall, Oxford
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What does this Committee review or scrutinise?
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Services
for children, young people and families; preventative services;
child protection; family support, educational policy; youth service;
youth justice
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Primary
& secondary schools; special education; pupil services; school
transport;
·
Conduct
of best value reviews as specified in Paragraph 9 of Schedule 2
to the Functions Regulations
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For more information about this Committee please contact:
Chairman
- Councillor Mrs Anda Fitzgerald O’Connor
E.Mail: anda.fitzgerald@oxfordshire.gov.uk
Committee
Officer - Kath Coldwell, Tel: (01865)
815902
E.Mail: Kath.Coldwell@Oxfordshire.gov.uk
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Tony Cloke
Assistant Head of Service (Democratic)
About the County Council
The Oxfordshire County Council is
made up of 74 councillors who are democratically elected every four years.
The Council provides a range of services to Oxfordshire’s 630,000 residents.
These include:
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libraries
and museums
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·
trading
standards
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·
waste
management
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Each year the Council manages £0.8
billion of public money in providing these services. Most decisions are taken
by a Cabinet of 10 Councillors, which makes decisions about service priorities
and spending. Some decisions will now be delegated to individual members
of the Cabinet.
About Scrutiny
Scrutiny
is about:
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Providing a challenge to the Cabinet
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Examining how well the Cabinet and the Authority are performing
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Influencing the Cabinet on decisions that affect local people
·
Helping the Cabinet to develop Council policies
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Representing the community in Council decision making
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Promoting joined up working across the authority’s work
Scrutiny is NOT about:
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Making day to day service decisions
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Investigating individual complaints.
Five
Scrutiny committees ‘scrutinise’ or review and challenge decisions made
by the Cabinet or the appropriate Cabinet Member and help it develop Council
policies. There are Scrutiny Committees for:
·
Corporate Governance
·
Children’s Services
·
Environment & Economy
·
Community Safety
·
Social & Community Services
There is also a Joint Health Overview
& Scrutiny Committee which brings together councillors
from the County and the five district councils in Oxfordshire to scrutinise
health issues.
The
Committee meets up to 6 times a year or more. It develops a work programme,
which lists the issues it plans to investigate. These investigations can
include whole committee investigations undertaken during the meeting,
or reviews by a panel of members doing research and talking to lots of
people outside of the meeting. Once an investigation is completed the
Committee provides its advice to the Cabinet, the full Council or other
scrutiny committees. Meetings are open to the public and all reports are
available to the public unless exempt or confidential, when the items
would be considered in closed session.
AGENDA
1.
Election of Chairman for the Current
Council Year
2.
Election of Deputy Chairman for the
Current Council Year
3.
Apologies for Absence and Temporary
Appointments
4.
Declarations of Interest
– see guidance note
5.
Minutes
To approve the minutes of the meeting
held on 27 February 2007 (CH5) and
to note for information any matters arising on them.
6.
Speaking to or Petitioning the Committee
7.
Draft Report: Effective Communication
to Parents of Children with SEN
(See also Addenda)
10:15
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Background
Information:
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Why
has it been included?
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To enable Members of the Committee
to offer any advice on how to improve the draft Review Report, in
order to assist with the production of the final report.
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How
is the Committee going to deal with it?
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Members of the Review Group will
talk to the draft Review Report, highlighting the key findings and
recommendations in the Report. The Committee will then be asked
to evaluate the response, paying particular regard to whether the
Review has achieved its objectives and if the findings and conclusions
follow from the evidence.
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Work
to be done prior to the meeting:
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Members of the Committee are asked
to consider the report attached at CH7 (download
as .doc file), in preparation for the discussion.
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8.
Final
Scrutiny Review Report: Healthy Schools
10:35
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Background
Information:
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How
is the Committee going to deal with it?
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Members of the Review Group will
talk to the Review Report, highlighting the key findings and recommendations
in the Report. The Committee will then be asked to evaluate the
response, paying particular regard to whether the Review has achieved
its objectives and if the findings and conclusions follow from the
evidence.
The Scrutiny Committee is
RECOMMENDED by members of the Lead Member Review Group to agree
the report as submitted to this meeting, or amend the report by
consensus to enable it to be submitted to the Cabinet
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Who
is going to take part in this piece of work?
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All Members of this Committee.
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Work
to be done prior to the meeting:
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Members are asked to consider the
report attached at CH8 (download as
.doc file), in preparation for the discussion.
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Documents
Members should bring to the meeting:
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None.
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9.
Draft
Scrutiny Review Report: Workforce Remodelling, Planning, Preparation and
Assessment
11:05
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Background
Information:
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Why
has it been included?
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To enable Members of the Committee
to offer any advice on how to improve the draft Review Report, in
order to assist with the production of the final report.
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How
is the Committee going to deal with it?
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Members of the Review Group will
talk to the draft Review Report, highlighting the key findings and
recommendations in the Report. The Committee will then be asked
to evaluate the response, paying particular regard to whether the
Review has achieved its objectives and if the findings and conclusions
follow from the evidence.
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Work
to be done prior to the meeting:
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Members of the Committee are asked
to consider the report attached at CH9(b) (download
as .doc file), in preparation for the discussion.
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Documents
Members should bring to the meeting:
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None.
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10.
Full
Time Admission for Reception Aged Four Year Olds
(See also Addenda)
12:05
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Background
Information:
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Oxfordshire schools are funded to offer half-time places
for children from the September after their fourth birthday until
the term after their fifth birthday, when the funding becomes full
time. The current position of part-time admission generates an increasing
number of complaints from parents on the grounds of quality and
equity. Many other authorities now offer full time education from
the beginning of the reception year.
Oxfordshire County Council has undertaken a cost benefit
analysis on proposals to change the current admission arrangements
to offer full time education to all reception aged pupils. As part
of this process the council commissioned an independent survey of
the views of parents on this issue. It has also undertaken full
consultation with other stakeholders such as schools and private,
voluntary and independent early years settings.
As the consultation is not concluded at the time of writing
this report for Scrutiny, an update of headline results and officers'
likely recommendations to Cabinet will be reported verbally at this
meeting.
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Why
has it been included?
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To enable Members of the Committee to provide comment
to the Cabinet on the admission proposals.
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Who
is going to take part in this piece of work?
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The Cabinet Member for Schools' Improvement, together with
Ms Annie Davy (Head of Early Years & Childcare) have been invited
before the Committee in order to answer any questions which Members
of the Committee may wish to ask.
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Work
to be done prior to the meeting:
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Members of the Committee are asked to consider the attached
report (CH10).
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11.
Children
& Young People’s Plan (CYPP): Review of Year One
12:25
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Why
has it been included?
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To enable Members of the Committee
to:
(a)
comment
on the draft document Oxfordshire’s Children & Young People’s
Plan: Review of Year One prior to Cabinet consideration on 20 June;
and
(b)
consider
setting up a task group to work with officers to review implementation
of the Children & Young People’s Plan over the coming year and
feed into the review of Year 2 of the Plan in 2008.
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Who
is going to take part in this piece of work?
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The Cabinet Member for Children,
Young People & Families together with Ms Gillian Tee (Head of
Children & Young People's Service) have been invited before
the Committee in order to answer any questions which Members of
the Committee may wish to ask.
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Work
to be done prior to the meeting:
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Members of the Committee are asked
to consider the attached report (CH11).
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12.
Nomination
for Scrutiny Evaluation: Charging in Schools
12:55
The Committee is asked to nominate a Councillor to track progress regarding
the Charging in Schools Investigation and lead on evaluating this item
at this Committee’s July meeting.
13.
Scrutiny
Work Programme
12:55
To review/update this Committee’s
Work Programme (CH13) (download as
.doc file).
Members of the Committee are invited
to suggest topics for possible inclusion in their future work programme
and to allocate a priority order to them (high/medium/low).
14.
Tracking
Scrutiny Items
13:05
Report back on advice by this Committee to the Cabinet or
Council.
15.
Forward
Plan
13:05
The Committee is asked to suggest items from the current Forward
Plan on which it may wish to have an opportunity to offer advice to the
Cabinet before any decision is taken.
(Please bring along to the meeting the latest copy of the
Forward Plan which, at the time of writing covers May 2007 to August 2007).
(Members are asked to contact the Chairman, Deputy Chairman
and/or the Committee Officer at least 3 days before the meeting should
they wish to raise an item on the Forward Plan for possible consideration)
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