Meeting documents

Children's Services Scrutiny Committee
Thursday, 3 November 2005

CH031105-agenda

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CHILDREN’S SERVICES SCRUTINY COMMITTEE - 3 NOVEMBER 2005

ADDENDA

Item

5. Preparation for ‘Select Committee style’ investigation for Achieving Education for Children with Learning Disabilities

Members are asked to note the following amendments to the report CH5:

    • Paragraph 4. ‘Children with a moderate to severe learning disability would attend a specialist school, rather than mainstream education.’ This is incorrect. Some children with moderate to severe learning disabilities attend mainstream school.
    • Paragraph 8. This paragraph refers to the delegation of the SEN budget to schools. This is incorrect. Consultation is currently underway on proposals to delegate the statementing budget.
    • Paragraph 8. This paragraph does not make clear that the proposals to delegate the statementing budget refer only to mainstream schools.

6. Evaluation of use of School Premises for Community Purposes Scrutiny Review ("Room at School")

Members are asked to note that it has not been possible for officers in the Learning & Culture Directorate to brief the Cabinet Member for Schools Improvement on the progress in implementing the 29 actions outlined in Annex 1 to the report CH6 in time for this meeting.

The Chairman has therefore agreed that the Committee will consider the 29 actions contained in Annex 1 and prepare specific questions on the Review and ask officers to report back on progress at the meeting in February 2006.

7. Scrutiny Review: Gifted Children

Members are asked to note that Councillor Melinda Tilley should appear on the face of the agenda as a member of the Lead Member Review Group.

8. Tracking Scrutiny Items

The following report back on advice by this Committee to the Cabinet was omitted from the agenda:

    • Stability of Placements for Children Looked After Scrutiny Review

On 19 July 2005, the Cabinet considered the Scrutiny Review of Stability of Placements for Children Looked After. The Cabinet resoled to endorse the response of the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People as follows:.

1. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to improve the current Family Placements Service Fostering & Adoption Recruitment Strategy. The key to achieving placement stability is to recruit more new foster carers. This will require:

  • Increased budget provision for recruitment and marketing to a level commensurate with other authorities.

Response: Budget provision for recruitment and marketing has already been increased from £20,000 to £40,000 in the past few weeks.

  • Developing the current recruitment strategy to target specific categories of foster care need.

Response: This is already being done. We are looking at targeting older children for whom there is a particular shortfall.

  • Promoting diversity in the attributes required of new foster carers.

Response: We are always aiming for diversity in our recruitment. The increased budget provision will assist with this.

  • Promoting better initial inquiry and contact systems for potential recruits, eg one telephone contact and an administrative (rather than social worker) team.

Response: I agree with this recommendation. We are planning to put in an Invest to Save Bid in order to recruit one member of staff, who will act as the first point of contact.

  • Introducing attractive cash incentives for successful, including "word of mouth", recruitment of carers.

Response: This will also be part of the Invest to Save Bid. This will ask for up to £200 worth of incentives for the first 20 new carers. It is hoped that the Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee will be able to monitor the success of this initiative once it has been implemented.

2. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

    • Support the continuation of training for foster carers;

Response: Training for foster carers will be ongoing. We need to conduct a survey of existing and new foster carers to ascertain their needs.

    • Introduce bonuses for the skills acquired with experience and incremental pay scales for length of service, to improve retention.

Response: There is insufficient information at present in order to put new pay scales forward. A report will be produced and the Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee may wish to look at it.

3. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

  • Consider putting emergency short term assessment arrangements in place that allow time to establish the child’s needs in order that the appropriate placement is made, which should reduce the likelihood of placement breakdowns;

Response: This has been proposed as part of the Invest to Save Bid.

  • Develop multi-agency working between Social & Health Care, Health and Education, and central record keeping to enable the Authority to track the child’s movements and monitor its performance on the stability of placements.

Response: I agree we must do this.

4. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to improve the support for the children and the foster carers, ensure that it is provided promptly when it is needed, and improve the retention, consistency and caseload among social workers by, eg:

  • Adequate respite for the carers;

Response: Increased budget provision will make providing respite care easier. Through the Invest to Save Bid, we are looking at funding 2 new members of staff, who will assist new foster carers get through the early stages of the recruitment process.

    • More breaks similar to the Hill End project for the children;

Response: This is a good idea. We will need to consult with the children first for their views.

    • "Ready for Practice" investment for the Social Workers.

Response: I have asked for a report on this matter.

  1. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to ensure that children are fully consulted and involved by their social workers in placement decisions.

    2. Response: I will follow this up.

  2. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to increase "Supported Lodging" arrangements for young people leaving care and to ensure adequate and appropriate housing to meet their needs.

Response: I am a great advocate of Supported Lodging and will ask officers to look into this. The Leaving Care Team have recently designed a new accommodation strategy. This needs to be looked at. The Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee may wish to look at the strategy.

7. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to consider the capacity within the current foster care payment and reward arrangements to allow for any benefits associated with being an employee of the County Council to be extended to full time foster parents, including eg:

  • The Literacy Programme;

  • Discounted Leisure Services;

  • Employed Carers.

Response: We should look at this with other stakeholders through the Children and Young People’s Plan.

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