Agenda and draft minutes

Venue: The Oculus, Buckinghamshire Council, Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury HP19 8FF. View directions

Contact: Katie Dover 

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Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for Absence

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Apologies were received from Councillors Kayani, Summers and Ward; and from co-optees Zoe Williams and Tony Wilson. Councillor Stuchbury was attending as a substitute for Councillor Kayani.

2.

Declarations of Interest

For Committee Members to declare any personal or disclosable pecuniary interests.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillors Bates, Darby, Osibogun and Turner declared an interest as a school governor in Buckinghamshire.

3.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 266 KB

That the minutes of the meeting held on 5th September 2024 be confirmed as a correct record.  Action log attached.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting of the committee held on   5th September 2024 were agreed as a correct record.

 

The Director of Education and Inclusion updated the committee on items 57 and 58 of the action addendum to the minutes. In relation to reporting on children not in education, employment or training, the department were looking at centralising the reporting system.  In quarter two there was an increase of children in these categories. Conversations were being held with employers to maximise the opportunities and internships available. Career work was undertaken with young people in year 11 to avoid missing these opportunities.

 

 

4.

Public Questions

Public Questions is an opportunity for people who live, work or study in Buckinghamshire to put a question to a Select Committee. The Committee will hear from members of the public who have submitted questions in advance relating to items on the agenda. The Cabinet Member, relevant key partners and responsible officers will be invited to respond.

 

Further information on how to register can be found here: https://www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/your-council/get-involved-with-council-decisions/select-committees/

Additional documents:

Minutes:

It was noted that no public questions had been received and that prior to becoming a substitute Member of the committee, Councillor Stuchbury had submitted a question which would be put at the relevant item.

5.

Buckinghamshire Safeguarding Partnership Annual Review of Effectiveness Report 2023-2024 pdf icon PDF 142 KB

For the Committee to note the content of the Buckinghamshire Safeguarding Partnership Annual Review of Effectiveness report for 2023-2024.

 

Contributors:

Cllr Anita Cranmer, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Children’s Services

Walter McCulloch, Independent Chair

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Cranmer introduced the annual report of the Safeguarding Children Partnership  and Walter McCulloch, the independent chair of the Partnership Board.

 

Mr McCulloch presented the report, acknowledging the graphics team’s assistance and it was noted that the report was an important part of the governance of the Board. He noted that the priorities of the board were:

-          The collective front door through the multi-agency safeguarding hub which operates well to ensure the other areas can undertake good follow-up actions. A deep dive challenge had been carried out during the year, resulting in the formation of a strategic oversight group for the MASH. In terms of challenges, there had been an increase in children’s safeguarding issues coming into the Thames Valley Police and an I.T. issue at the South Central Ambulance Service to contend with.

-          Developing the Partnership; this had worked well this year with the aim of making it is as effective as it could be

-          The voice of those with lived experience is prominent and influential in the Partnership’s work and this year the Partnership had systematically begun to listen to this

-          Learning from case reviews was ensuring that practice develops and is more effective.

 

The Joint Targeted Area Inspection acknowledged the growing strength of the Partnership and the focus on the front door but that there is more to do. It was noted that it was important to have a common data set to work with across partners.

The sub-groups’ chairing arrangements should reflect the partners breadth of contribution. The Child Death Overview Sub Group work was nearly up to date, having caught up on most of the outstanding work.  The multi-agency training was a real strength, hearing from individuals with personal testimony. The National Guidance “Working Together to Safeguard Children  2023” was enacted in the final quarter of the report and placed additional clearer responsibilities on the Chief Executives of ICB and Council and the Chief Constable of the TVP to be sure of their safeguarding responsibilities. Also to publish the new requirements and publish to the Department of Education by end of December. The Chairman of the Partnership would become the Director of Children’s Services whist the current Chair would become the Independent Scrutineer of the Partnership.

 

In response to Members’ questions it was noted that:

-          The creation of a common data set amongst partners would help improve actioning issues. Qualitative assessment could be developed from this.

-          In the JTAI the Partnership undertook multi-agency audits looking at effectiveness of work, this was central to improvements and would continue. These had improved this year as had the learning from them which had been fed back to partners. As Independent Scrutineer in 2025, Mr McCulloch would look to see that learning from case reviews  would be followed up.

-          Personal testimony of lived experience would become more systematic which would also inform improvements

Action: Walter McCulloch to show how this would be embedded in future plans

-          Practice standards were embedded  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.

Buckinghamshire Youth Justice Plan 2024-2025 pdf icon PDF 169 KB

The purpose of this item is to present the Buckinghamshire Youth Justice Plan for 2024-2025.  The Committee is asked to note the plan which was adopted by council on 18th September 2024.

 

Contributors:

Cllr Anita Cranmer, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Children’s Services

John Macilwraith, Corporate Director for Children’s Services

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Cranmer introduced the Youth Justice Plan 2024-2025 and Ms Aman Sekhon-Gill, the Assistant Director of Quality Assurance and Standards.

 

Ms Aman Sekhon-Gill noted that the plan detailed what had been achieved in the previous year as well as the priorities for the forthcoming year which were: to reduce repeat offenders, reducing the numbers of young people in custody and reducing first time entrants into the system. The plan also detailed areas where the team think creatively when working with young people. Appendix B listed interventions for children and young people and gave an oversight of the youth justice system. Routes into the system could be statutory via court; via an out of court disposal where there is a lower level of offences and finally via voluntary engagement via the Youth Justice and Support Team (YJST)for those at risk of offending. The latter included projects in school and the government funded Turnaround Project.

It was noted that children and young people in the youth justice system often have a mental health issue or a learning need. Those in the youth justice system often had poor access to support services for these, and interventions focussed on a “child first” approach, treating children as children and recognising their individual needs. Intervention levels varied determined by the assessment done and could be anything from daily to twice a fortnight but in any situation building the relationship with the child was considered paramount.

 

The plans for a child could be delivered in a multi-agency way including the parents.

 

In response to Councillors’ questions the following points were raised:

-          The Youth Justice and Support Team were reliant on other agencies to identify the signs of concern about a child for example youth workers encouraging children to access CAMHS intervention

-          Through the training offered by the Safeguarding Children Partnership Board and the exploitation work the team are constantly raising awareness of the signs of concern to ensure children are identified as soon as possible.

-          The YJST  work alongside voluntary agencies to deliver support services and triaging would take place to assess the best interventions for a particular child.

-          There is an Education Officer within the YJST team focussing on the best options for a particular child which could be for example, an apprenticeship, with the priority being that they are engaged in some type of educational setting to improve their outcomes in the future.

-          The Youth Justice Board oversees the work of the YJST team and education is represented on the board. The YJST reports on performance on a monthly basis to the Board to assess how to improve the system.

-          A speech and language specialist screens all children entering the system and the team works closely with teachers, for example providing training on exploitation and the restorative justice three day course is available for schools. Strategic and operational work in education is strong. Children are tracked back into education.

-          The plan is submitted to the Youth Justice Board  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

7.

SEND and Inclusion Strategy 2025-2030 pdf icon PDF 163 KB

The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Inclusion Strategy 2025-2030 is the key document underpinning the improvement and transformation of the support and services provided for children and young people with SEND and their families in Buckinghamshire.  The strategy is currently out to consultation.

 

Contributors:

Cllr Anita Cranmer. Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Children’s Services

Michael Jarrett, Service Director, Education and Inclusion

Caroline Marriott, Head of Integrated SEND

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The item was introduced by the Cabinet Member for Children’s and Education Services.

 

Michael Jarrett, Service Director, Education and Inclusion, made the following key points:

·       The SEND Inclusion Strategy 2025–2030 was a place-based strategy which incorporated the council, health partners, parents, children and other stakeholders in its production. It set out what the Council would like to see for children and young people with SEND for the years 2025 to 2030.

·       Over many years, there had been several challenges in SEND provision, notably financial constraints. The challenging financial context would continue and there was a need to consider SEND provision in the county. The views of children and young people were placed at the centre of the strategy. Children and young people with SEND were already at a disadvantage and it was crucial to level the playing field for them both in education and wider opportunities.

·       The Strategy would be under consultation until 1st December 2024 and had attracted a high response so far, and further responses were welcomed. Several online events had been held to explain the strategy to stakeholders and these had been well attended.

·       A SEND Partnership Board is very active and includes parents.

 

The strategy includes four key priority areas:

1)      Early support

2)      Educational provision

3)      Focus on high support needs (previously known as “complex needs”)

4)      Preparation for adulthood

 

·       The Council Leader had written to Bridget Phillipson MP, the Secretary of State for Education about funding SEND provision and had received a reply which acknowledged the financial challenges. Subsequently, increased spending on SEND provision had been announced in the Budget of 18th September 2024. Despite this, significant financial challenges remained but service provision remained the central focus.

 

In response to Councillors’ questions several points were raised and responded to as follows:

 

·       Members expressed a concern at the two-year wait to receive a diagnosis of autism. The Service Director, Education and Inclusion explained that 7,000 children had an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP) in the county and a further 890 children were awaiting an assessment for an EHCP. There were 9,200 children in schools who were receiving SEND support. Assessment waiting times were an area of focus and interventions had been put in place to support children on the waiting list. A Member noted a family who were waiting for an assessment but had not been offered interim support and the Service Director, Education and Inclusion offered to discuss this case outside of the meeting.

Action: Member/Service Director, Education and Inclusion

·       Since the announcement that VAT would be added to private school fees, 120 parents had requested places at state schools in the county, this amounted to 5.2% of in-year admissions.

·       There were contracts with providers to offer as many short respite breaks as possible. These benefitted children with SEND and their families. The Service Director, Education and Inclusion offered to provide more detail on the offering and the level of take-up.

Action: Service Director, Education and Inclusion

·       Many pupils with  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

8.

Work Programme and draft scoping document for school exclusions review pdf icon PDF 65 KB

For the Committee to discuss the items on the work programme and to agree the draft scoping document for the school exclusions review.

 

Contributors:

Committee Members

Katie Dover, Senior Scrutiny Officer

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Senior Scrutiny Officer introduced the work programme to the Select Committee.

In response the following points were made:

-          The Children’s Services budget would be reviewed as part of the budget scrutiny process in January and February 2025.

-          Performance Monitoring reports would be reported to the Select Committee on a regular basis, the next one for quarter two would be reported to the January meeting of the committee.

-          The scoping document for the school exclusions review was agreed.

-          The Councillor briefing on “how educational attainment is measured” would now be held on 3rd December at 4.30 p.m.

-          Councillor Hussein suggested that the committee look at the school capacity issue.

9.

Date of Next Meeting

The next meeting is due to take place on Thursday 30th January 2025.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The next meeting of the Select Committee will be held on Thursday 30th January at 2.00 p.m.in The Oculus at The Gateway.