Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED

That Councillor Gill Merry be appointed Chairman of the Committee.

RESOLVED

That Councillor Dorothy Flude be appointed Vice-Chairman of the Committee.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors L Durham, M Grant and O Hunter.

To provide an opportunity for Members and Officers to declare any disclosable pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests in any item on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 2 May 2017.

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the meeting held on 2 May 2017 be approved as a correct record.

To consider the attached terms of reference for the Committee and whether any amendments are required. The terms of reference were previously approved in June 2016 when it was also agreed that they be reviewed annually.

Consideration was given to the Terms of Reference for the Committee and whether any amendments were required.  It was agreed that the establishment of the Shadow Board of Young People and the Committees interaction with it should be added.

RESOLVED

That the involvement of the Shadow Board of Young People be added to the Terms of Reference of the Committee, and they be considered further at the next meeting of the Committee.

To consider the above report.

Members considered this report on cared for children and young people’s participation covering their right to be heard in all decision making processes including court hearings.  At present the Children’s Society is commissioned by the Council to provide a Children’s Rights and Participation Service and they work closely with the Council and its partner agencies to provide advocacy and independent visitor services, and on participation with children and young people. 

Representatives from the Children’s Society, and from the Permanence and Through Care Team, attended the meeting to introduce the Advocacy and Independent Visitor Annual Report 2016 and to answer Members questions. Members were particularly interested in work associated with early pregnancies, preparations to assist in the transition to independent living, the arrangements to involve children in care outside the area and how to keep track of children who no longer wished to engage with the services provided once they were over 18 years of age.

In addition the report included overall service priorities around participation for the current year, and details of the range of ways in which children and young people are engaged in decisions which affect them.

RESOLVED

That the report be noted.

To consider an update on Corporate Parenting.

Consideration was given to an update on national and local developments in relation to cared for children and young people, and care leavers as follows:

National Developments

Children and Social Work Act

Local Developments

Regional Adoption Agency

Fostering Collaboration

Fostering Care Fortnight

New Head of Service for Cared for Children

It was agreed that a further report on the Children and Social Work Act be considered when it was enacted. 

RESOLVED

That the report be noted and a further report on the Children and Social Work Act be considered at a future meeting of the Committee.

To consider the Corporate Parenting Operational Group Scorecard.

The Committee considered the scorecard showing results for the last quarter of 2016/17 in comparison with the rest of that year.  An explanation was given of reasons for statistical differences across the year.

The success of young people around education, employment and training was accredited in part to appointment of a Job Coach who has been helping care leavers with such things as CV writing, applications and interview techniques.  

In response to a question concerning the stability of placements, and differences in certain cohorts, it was agreed that this be the subject of a deep dive in the future. 

RESOLVED

That the report be noted and that the influence of cohorts be the subject of a future deep dive by the Committee, linked with placement sufficiency.

To consider the Corporate Parenting Committee Forward Plan 2017-18.

RESOLVED

That approval be given to the Forward Plan for the coming year with the addition of the following items agreed earlier in the meeting:

1.    Terms of Reference and the involvement of the Shadow Board of Young People

2.    The Children and Social Work Act

3.      Placement stability and cohort analysis in a future deep dive around placement sufficiency

To receive a verbal update from Gill Betton, Head of Service, Children’s Development and Partnerships.

The Committee received an update following the last meeting of the Shadow Board for Young People.  As part of a round table session the representatives had put forward various requests for what they most wanted; these would now be assessed in accordance with the Council’s duties of care and safeguarding, and in the light of what would be appropriate for various age groups and circumstances taking into account legal and court restrictions which might be in place.

RESOLVED

That the update be noted and that following more detailed assessment of the requests by Officers there be further discussion with the Shadow Board of what was possible taking into account what was age appropriate and also acceptable in the light of any individual and/or court restrictions which might be in place.