Agenda item

To receive a presentation from the Shadow Committee on work being undertaken.

The presentation provided an overview of the participation in recent activities involving care leavers and cared for children.  Key points included:

• My Voice (Children in Care Council) had relocated its sessions to the Monks Coppenhall Family Hub.

• New Ambassadors had joined the team to work alongside the existing Ambassadors in supporting care experienced young people.
• A Local Review Event was held in November 2025.  Young people provided feedback, which indicated that:
  • Improvements had been made in the post?21 offer, access to support, and communication between housing services and care leavers.
  • There was a preference for professionals to meet young people in youth?friendly spaces rather than adult environments.
  • There was a desire for practical information packs and opportunities to learn independent living skills within hubs.
• Ambassador Workstreams:

·         Work was currently taking place to develop a housing manual and improving accessibility of information in multiple languages.

·         Improved ways to gather views from groups often missed, including young parents, unaccompanied asylum?seeking children, and those living out of area, was being sought.

·         New independent living packs for care leaver hubs were being produced.

• Care Leaver Survey Results:
  • There had been 49 respondents, which equated to 8.4% of the population. 
  • Overall results were positive in the following areas:
    • Support received: 7.9/10
    • Feeling safe at home: 8.5/10
    • Involvement in decisions: 7.9/10
    • Readiness for education/ employment/ training/ apprenticeships: 7.5/10.
  • Lower?scoring areas included:
    • Usefulness of pathway plans: 6.3/10
    • Readiness to live independently: 6.7/10
    • Ability to see family/friends: 6.9/10
    • Budgeting: 7.1/10.
  • A notable gap was identified between physical health (7.6/10) and mental health (6.8/10), which suggested a need for improved mental health support for care leavers.

• Activities and Engagement:
  • Young people had taken part in activities including go?karting, cooking, and crafts.
  • Work was ongoing to develop pen profiles for professionals, following young peoples’ requests for parity and transparency.
  • Young people met with the Director of Children’s Services and had contributed to projects including the experience passport with the Virtual School, and children’s guides.
  • An activity day involving 13 participants had taken place during February half?term.  Councillor Crane, who attended the event, also provided positive feedback to the committee.

• In terms of next steps, these were outlined as follows:
  • To explore recognising the ‘care experience’ as a protected characteristic within Council policy.
  • To implement changes based on survey findings, including developing one?minute guides on pathway plans.
  • To continue co?production of the cared for children survey and progress bespoke projects with young people, such as pen profiles and experience passports.

The committee commented on the following matters:

• Ways of increasing survey participation.
• Low uptake of Personal Advisor (PA) support.

• Improving lower?scoring service areas.  Officers confirmed that work was underway across health, housing, and education partners to address identified areas for improvement.

• The implementation of pen profiles for all professionals working with care experienced young people.  Members emphasised the importance of pen profiles for all professionals and corporate parents, noting that this would help young people feel more at ease when meeting unfamiliar adults. The committee agreed that all Councillors, not only those on the committee, should be approachable and recognisable to cared for children and care leavers.  Officers indicated that pen profiles had already been drafted and circulated for use across the service.

• The 6.9/10 rating on the care leaver survey relating to young people’s ability to see family and friends.  Officers advised that this figure could have been influenced by the inclusion of 16-17?year?olds whose circumstances and contact arrangements may have differed.  Officers committed to exploring this area further.
• Transport barriers and the importance of ensuring that lack of travel options was not preventing young people from maintaining social connections.  It was noted that care leavers now received bus tickets to support mobility, though gaps remained in areas with limited public transport.

Members thanked the Care Leaver Ambassadors for their contributions to the meeting and acknowledged the importance of their work and experiences.

RESOLVED:

That the update from the Cheshire East Shadow Cared for Children and Care Leavers Committee be noted.