Agenda item

10.15

The Committee will be joined by Noreen Collins, Deputy Director for Children's Social Care and YOS, as well as Teresa Rogers, Service Manager for Fostering and Adoption, for a presentation on adoption and fostering in Oxfordshire followed by a Q&A session. (CH5a) (CH5b)

Teresa Rogers, Service Manager for Adoption and Fostering (TR), delivered a presentation on the adoption service. This included a summary of activities undertaken by the service in 2011/12, the outcomes of a recent inspection of the service, and an update on the implications of the new Adoption Action Plan.

Members asked whether additional pressure was also being placed on the courts to speed up the adoption process, given that expectations were rising for the service.

TR responded by saying that the service was working closely with courts through regular meetings to ensure expediency on both sides.

The committee agreed that Cllr Louise Chapman, Cabinet Member for Children and the Voluntary Sector, should be asked to write to central government asking whether expectations would rise for the courts as they had done for the service.

Members went on to express concern at the setting of aggressive targets for the service, emphasising that new measures should not be allowed to compromise the quality of placements.

TR recognised this danger, but said she was confident that Oxfordshire would score well against the proposed measures once they were introduced.

Members also asked how the service had been performing in terms of its recruitment of carers, knowing that in previous years numbers had been excellent.

TR responded by saying that the service had continued to perform well, with sufficient numbers of people coming forward to adopt.

TR then delivered a presentation on the fostering service, which provided the committee with a summary of activities undertaken by the service in 2011/12, the outcomes of a recent inspection, and objectives for the service in 2012/13.

The committee discussed the negative impact moving a child to a new foster placement often has on their educational attainment, particularly when the child experiences a string of unsuccessful placements. Members asked whether we could learn any lessons here from the national picture.

TR responded that Oxfordshire compares favourably in terms of placement stability when compared to other counties. She added that the service was committed to tackling this issue through the use of virtual schools, and that performance was being monitored closely.

The committee asked for comparative data, especially for statistical neighbours.

Further questions focused on how the service worked with the independent sector.

TR said that the service worked closely with the independent sector, with failed placements in the sector always returning to the service before moving on to another home.

The committee expressed concerns that considerations relating to a potential carers lifestyle should not prevent too many placements from being approved. Members emphasised that the primary aim is to meet a child’s needs, and that policy on matters concerning lifestyle (e.g. smoking) ought to be applied sensibly.

TR responded by saying that such considerations are weighed up carefully by medical advisors, and that there have been very few cases where approval has not been given on these grounds.

The committee agreed that the corporate parenting panel be asked to explore the matter further.

The committee finished by praising the many achievements of both the adoption and fostering services. Members noted the positive results of both inspections, and said that whilst there was undoubtedly more work to be done, the reports were testament to the hard work undertaken by the officers and volunteers within each service.