Agenda and minutes

Venue: County Hall, Chichester, PO19 1RQ

Contact: Ann Little on 033 022 22654  Email:  ann.little@westsussex.gov.uk

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Items
No. Item

43.

Declarations of Interests

Members and officers must declare any pecuniary or personalinterest in any business on the agenda. They should also make declarations at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting. Consideration should be given to leaving the meeting if the nature of the interest warrants it.  If in doubt please contact Democratic Services before the meeting.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

43.1     In accordance with the County Council’s code of conduct the following declarations were made:

 

43.2     Mr Lloyd declared a personal interest as the Chair of Governors at Thomas Beckett Junior School under agenda item no 5.

 

43.3     Cllr Smith declared a personal interest as parent of two children registered as young carers under agenda item no 6.

 

43.4     Cllr Linehan declared a personal interest as the parent of a child with an EHCP under agenda item 7.

 

43.5     Cllr Cherry declared a personal interest as the Chair of Governors of the Burgess Hill Academy under agenda item no 7.

44.

Urgent Matters

Items not on the agenda which the Chairman of the meeting is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency by reason of special circumstances, including cases where the Committee needs to be informed of budgetary or performance issues affecting matters within its terms of reference, which have emerged since the publication of the agenda.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

44.1     No urgent matters were raised.

45.

Minutes of the last meeting of the Committee pdf icon PDF 79 KB

The Committee is asked to agree the minutes of the meeting held on 18 January 2023 (cream paper).

Additional documents:

Minutes:

45.1     Resolved – that the minutes of the meeting held on 18 January 2023 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

46.

Responses to Recommendations pdf icon PDF 91 KB

The Committee is asked to note the responses to recommendations made at the previous meetings of the Committee.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

46.1     The Committee noted the responses to the recommendations provided from recent meetings.

 

46.2     Targets for EHCP assessments - The Chairman asked about the progress of the plan with milestones in relation to Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) assessments.  The response was that there was an action plan aiming to get EHCPs back to a pattern of completion within a 20-week deadline that it was in draft form, and it was being revised as part of a broader raft of actions.  The Chairman asked that this item remain on the Recommendation Tracker and that the action plan be shared with members when available.  A Member was also keen to highlight that they felt the minutes did not express as strongly the concern about the lack of ambition with the existing target as was raised in the meeting.  Concern still remained that in the effort to move from 6% of assessments to 100% part of that could rely on de-escalating demand as this risks encouraging a perverse incentive.  The Chairman highlighted to officers that it was hoped that there would be mention in the action plan on this matter.

 

46.3     Adult Community Education – Learners unable to complete courses – Mr Wagstaff updated that some learners had come forward to the County Council.  The service was working with the administrators to obtain information on others unable to complete their courses.  The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) had said they were happy with the actions taken and there would be no effect on the funding for the grant next year which would give students the opportunity to continue their courses. 

47.

Review of primary age pupil provision across Worthing and Durrington Areas: Publication of Statutory Notices pdf icon PDF 58 KB

Report by Assistant Director Education and Skills

 

The Committee is asked to carry out pre-decision scrutiny of the proposals to reduce surplus primary school places in the Worthing and Durrington area.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

47.1     The Cabinet Member for Learning and Skills, Cllr N Jupp, introduced the report highlighting that the reason for reviewing pupil provision across Worthing and Durrington, had been as a response to an approach from schools in the areas asking the local authority to lead on this work as it impacted a range of schools.  The County Council had led a well organised consultation which received a good level of responses and the recommendations in the decision report reflected the outcome and wishes of communities and schools.

 

47.2     The Assistant Director of Education and Skills reported that this work had been a piece of engagement, for over a year, with schools to model up solutions and proposals.  The consultation had run from November 2022 to January 2023 and had two parts. Firstly, work on the Pupil Admission Numbers (PAN) which needed to be done by the end of January 2023 to implement by September 2024, and on capital reduction of temporary classrooms and investment of capital into SEND provision within the locality of schools.  Secondly, potential work around three schools, two infants and a junior school, to find a more co-ordinated approach. The paper talked through how conclusions were drawn, and the aim would be for the Cabinet Member to take the key decision following consideration of any comments or suggestions by the scrutiny committee, in order to proceed to statutory notices in due course.

 

47.3     The Committee heard from Cllrs Smith and Baxter, as local Members for the three schools being considered for reorganisation, and they highlighted that:

 

47.4     Both Members supported the proposals being put forward around the three schools, particularly leaving Springfield as an standalone infant school.

 

47.5     The service should have involved local members sooner in the process so that they could help officers understand the needs of respondents in their areas.

 

47.6     The consultation had not been user-friendly, had only been provided online and had not been easy to find on the website.  There had been no translated or printed versions.  Future consultations needed to be inclusive and open to all residents. 

 

47.7     There had been no support for the community in completing the consultation document.  Schools had offered support for parents.

 

47.8     The questions in the consultation document were not clear and often there was no option to add comments.  There had also been no option to continue with the status quo.  The survey questions did not fully reflect the information in the consultation booklet.

 

47.9     Whilst it was good to have an additional 21 SEND places at Chesswood, should there be more aspiration for more places at Whytemead Primary or Downsbrook Junior School, which was a larger school site?

 

47.10  The sensitivity and timing of communications with schools as changes are implemented needed improvement e.g. not sending just before school close at the end of term, or at busy times of the year.

 

47.11  In future the service needed to involve local members more and earlier in the process.

 

47.12  The new governing  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47.

48.

Support for Young Carers pdf icon PDF 125 KB

Report by Assistant Director Education and Skills.

 

The Committee are asked to assess the County Council’s responsibilities for young carers, the impact being a young carer has on young people and how these are being addressed.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

48.1     The Cabinet Member for Learning and Skills, Cllr N Jupp, introduced the report highlighting that this service had joined Education and Skills in summer 2022 and it was a good time to hear what was being done and what was planned for the future. 

 

48.2     The Committee heard from Ms Pope, Deputy CEO of Carers Support.  Carers Support works under a contract with the County Council and has about 30,000 registered adult, friend and family carers, 327 of which are young adults aged 18-24 years.  The last 12 months had seen a 34% increase in the number of carers coming forward. 

 

48.3     Carers Support work with young carers transitioning into the adult services through the ‘My Futures’ project, working with 16–19-year-olds, introducing them to the adult carer service before they move over to their support.  Carers Support had also been involved in setting up the Young Carers Partnership with local Sussex clubs and the Young Carer Team (YCT) to bring some additional support to young carers, particularly on the respite support, peer support and opportunities to meet other young carers.  The group had met to discuss lots of themes impacting young carers including the cost of living and mental health. 

 

48.4     Young carer groups had stopped during the pandemic but were now building back up, however many young carers faced challenges in attending groups either because travel was difficult or caring roles had become more complex and more intensive. 

 

48.5     As a voluntary sector group/charity Carers Support could gain access to grant funding to support some of the residential and peer activities as well as fundraising for work with 11–16-year-olds. A current focus was a campaign aimed at giving young carers back their childhood. Holiday activities for young carers from 7-11-years of age are also run by Carer Support.  A primary care project was underway trying to raise awareness with GPs of the support routes for young carers. 

 

48.6     Work was also underway with the University of Chichester as many young carers struggled balancing their caring role with progressing into further education, especially if it meant moving away from the family environment. 

 

48.7     Members of the Committee asked questions and a summary of those questions and answers follows.

 

48.8     The YCT are working on building up data on disadvantaged, BAME, etc, carers for incorporating into future reports. 

 

48.9     Due to the 43% increase in referrals, the assessment of a young carer could take about three months to get them allocated to a worker.  Every case is triaged on entry to ensure there were no safeguarding issues and identify if the young carer/family had support from other agencies.  From 1 April 2023 the YCT would have access to additional financial resources to employ key workers to undertake assessments.  Refusal to assess was very rare.  Self-referrals mostly came from older teenagers, particularly as they moved on in education, and it was felt young children were often not aware that what they did at home was anything other than normal.  Members felt  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48.

49.

Performance and Resources Report 2022-23 - Quarter 3 - October-December 2022 pdf icon PDF 73 KB

Report by Director of Finance and Support Services.

 

The Committee is asked to examine the Council’s corporate performance, finance, savings delivery and business performance for the services within the remit of this Committee for the period October to December 2022.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

49.1     The Committee considered the Performance and Resources Report for Quarter 3 which covered October-December 2022.

 

Children and Young People

 

49.2     The Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Cllr Russell, introduced the report highlighting that much of the improvement journey had become business as usual for the service whilst it waited for the anticipated full Ofsted inspection.  The Cabinet Member felt things were moving in the right direction whilst acknowledging that there were still challenges, e.g. placement sufficiency, for which a recovery plan was in place; recruitment and retention, which was improving now that the social workers from overseas were being onboarded.  A correction was highlighted on page 19, paragraph 31, second bullet point should read Orchard House not Cissbury Lodge.

 

49.3     Members of the Committee made comments and asked questions and a summary of those questions and answers follows.

 

49.4     KPI 1 - Percentage of referrals to Children’s Social Care within 12 months of the previous referral – A very close eye was kept on re-referrals with the Performance Board reviewing data and issues raised being investigated and reported back.  Looking at information monthly could be misleading as one large family could cause a spike in numbers.  It would be better to look at figures as a rolling total. Our benchmark level is on par with statistical neighbours.  All trends and spikes are investigated to under what had happened, why and how to learn from these experiences. 

 

49.5     KPI 2 – Percentage of Early Help Plans closed with outcomes met - Whilst there had been a struggle to recruit to Early Help, most posts had now been appointed to.  Where families were waiting to access an allocated worker there was a robust system in place, whereby a manager had contact with the family on a regular basis to review the situation and prioritise action if needed.  Information on timescales was held and could be shared with the Committee.

 

49.6     KPI 9 – Positive outcomes on child protection in 12 months – A positive outcome was a family stepping down within 12 months of being on a Child Protection Plan, this could be due to the child becoming looked after, which could be in the best interests of the child but is not always viewed as a positive.  A more beneficial way would be to look at the number of children subject to child protection plans for 2 years plus which was at 1%, which was very good compared to statistical neighbours and the south-east.

 

49.7     KPI 7 – Stability of children looked after placements – The restructure of the Commissioning Service had helped with stability of placements; a lower figure was better for children and we compared well with statistical neighbours.  Work was in process to look at the best use of resources for appropriate placements including a campaign to recruit more in-house foster carers.

 

49.8     External Residential Placements – The process when a child became known to the authority was to first look for a placement in-house,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 49.

50.

Work Programme Planning and Possible Items for Future Scrutiny pdf icon PDF 120 KB

The Committee is asked to agree its draft work programme (Appendix A) in accordance with the scrutiny checklist attached (Appendix B) and highlight any further possible items for future scrutiny.

 

The Committee is also asked to review the Forward Plan entries relevant to its remit (Appendix C) and consider whether it wishes to enquire about any of the forthcoming decisions within its portfolio.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

50.1     Resolved – That the Committee agreed the draft work programme prepared by the Business Planning Group following their meeting on 1 February 2023.

51.

Requests for Call-In

There have been no requests for call-in to the Scrutiny Committee within its constitutional remit since the date of the last meeting.  The Director of Law and Assurance will report any requests since the publication of the agenda papers.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

51.1     There had been no request for call-in to the Scrutiny Committee within its constitutional remit since the date of the last meeting.

52.

Date of Next Meeting

The next meeting of the Committee will be held on 7 June 2023 at 10.30 am at County Hall, Chichester.  Probable agenda items include:

 

·       Early Help Service – review of new model

·       Performance and Resources Report 2022-23 – Quarter 4

 

Any member wishing to place an item on the agenda for the meeting must notify the Director of Law and Assurance by 24 May 2023.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

52.1     The next meeting would be held on 7 June 2023 at 10.30am.