Agenda item

Report by Assistant Director of Education and Skills.

The Committee is asked to consider the proposed Education and Learning Strategy 2023-25 ahead of its endorsement by the Cabinet Member for Learning and Skills.

38.1     The Cabinet Member for Learning and Skills, Cllr N Jupp, introduced the report highlighting that this was an exciting piece of work which would impact on the future prospects of all children.  Cllr Jupp welcomed the recommendations made by the CYPSSC Task and Finish Group, which had looked at the draft strategy and made some recommendations.  During the last year the lack of Government definitive policy guidance meant that the strategy would be a dynamic on-line document which could be reviewed and updated in the light of any future changes and areas could come back to the Committee for comment and discussion as required.

38.2     Members of the Committee thanked officers for the work done and made comments and asked questions, a summary of those questions and answers follows.

38.3     It was recognised that the word ‘upon’ needed adding to the end of the sentence in paragraph 25 of the Strategy and that the strategies referred to in paragraph 26 of the Strategy (both on page 43 of the agenda pack) would be in the Children’s First Strategy Plan.

38.4     There was no mental health strategy, but the service did have action plans as well as a mental health team.  Additionally, all social workers received mental health training.  The inaugural meeting of a Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Board, which had recently been set up across schools, and involving health partners, would take place in March 2023.

Theme 1

38.5     Aspirations on the performance of all young people were built into the plan but also via the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in the Council Plan.  The County Council’s performance was in line with statistical neighbours which Members were pleased to hear but did not feel was reflected in the report.

38.6     Workstream 2 - During the Covid pandemic some early years settings were open to Key Stages 1 and 2 pupils.  A number of independent early years settings had since either failed Ofsted inspections or ceased trading due to financial pressures.  A peer review of early years had been undertaken by the Local Government Association and the findings report was awaited.  The outcome of the review would help shape the early years strategy and the support of early years provision, recognising this as a priority area of focus.  The wording of the workstream would be expanded, including the addition of metrics and KPIs, to reflect this with more detail.  Action: The Assistant Director agreed to provide the figures of the number of early years settings in the county both before and after the pandemic. 

38.7     The workstream monitoring reports would be reviewed on a quarterly basis by the Education and Learning Strategy Partnership Board.  Action: The Assistant Director (Education and Skills) agreed to share quarterly monitoring reports with the Committee.

38.8     Workstream 3 – Work would be undertaken on ensuring smooth transitionswith some investment in early years staff to offer support, but also for transitions from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3 and from Key Stage 4 to post-16 provision.

38.9     Committee Members were keen to know if there were any up-to-date figures for school readiness and how they might have informed the strategy and so that the Committee could know what the starting point was for children.  Action: The Assistant Director (Education and Skills) confirmed that the most recent figures available were from Summer 2022 and agreed to share them with Members. 

38.10  Workstream 4 – Committee Members asked that the wording be expanded to include reference to differentiation and adaptive teaching within both the workstream and KPI.

Theme 2

38.11  Workstream 1 – Research had been undertaken on primary school outcomes on how disadvantaged pupils were doing and it had shown some anomalies.  It was possible to raise attainment for disadvantaged young people but often a gap remained as other pupil attainment also rose.  It was important that disadvantaged pupils reached thresholds which allowed them to take advantage of other opportunities.  Action: More information be provided to Committee Members on the current position and the barriers to improvement.

38.12  Workstream 2 – The metrics for this workstream is based on the information already available on young people not in education, employment or training (NEET).  Work would need to be done on how to gather information on the other groups of children mentioned, where there is no existing national data mechanism.

38.13  Workstream 3 – The numbers of parents electing to home educate their children had risen in West Sussex as it had nationally.  West Sussex also had 21 children return to schools in the Autumn term.  Where officers are concerned with the arrangements for the most challenging of cases, they could transfer pupils to the Children Missing Education Register (CMER) where the local authority had more statutory powers to help.

Theme 3

38.14  Workstream 2 – Members raised concern that the performance target for the number of EHCPs delivered within 20 weeks was at 49% when this was a statutory duty.  It was acknowledged that in 2019 the County Council had been achieving 70% of assessments in time (compared to the national average of 60%).  Since then, there had been a 70% increase in the requests for EHCPs in West Sussex, which combined with difficulties securing educational psychologists to undertake the assessments and pressures on the NHS delaying health assessments, had caused outstanding cases numbers to rise.  However, the average time taken to complete an assessment had reduced.  Resources such as advice lines were being put in place to help parents before an EHCP assessment might be needed.  It was agreed that the target could be set at the highest level but there would need to be a set of milestones to be achieved over a period of time to achieve that level.

Theme 4

38.15  Under item 40 that the word ‘pedagogies’ be replaced with ‘teaching and learning approaches’.

Theme 5

38.16  Workstream 1 – Committee Members asked that the wish to use potential surplus primary places to support the requirement for increased special needs places be reflected into this workstream.

38.17  The Cabinet Member for Learning and Skills, Cllr N Jupp, thanked the Committee for their compliments about the report and for the points made.

38.18  Resolved – That the Committee:

1.   Thanks officers for the huge amount of work undertaken in producing a comprehensive and thorough Strategy and welcomes that the comments from the CYPSSC Task and Finish Group have been incorporated.

2.   Recognises that KPIs and targets for all workstreams will be added to the workstream delivery document as work progresses and that this is important so the performance and delivery of the strategy can be monitored. 

3.   Asks that the service ensures that the KPIs and targets in the workstream delivery document are ambitious enough to meet the aspirations as set out in the strategy.  In particular, the workstream for EHCP timelessness and asks that milestones are included.

4.   Asks that the quarterly performance of the Strategy delivery is shared with the Committee through the Business Planning Group.

5.   Would welcome exploration of further measures and targets for raising attainment for other groups of children and young people. 

6.   Requests that Workstream 4 in Theme 1 is amended to include reference to adaptive teaching. 

7.   Asks officers to consider including in Theme 5 the aspiration to create more SEND places in mainstream schools. 

8.   Requests to see the current figures around school readiness to assess if there any areas for future scrutiny.