Agenda and draft minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, The Council House, Freet Street, Oldbury, B69 3DB

Contact: Democratic Services 

Items
No. Item

1/21

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Hughes; as well as co-opted members K Kujawa-Sogbesan and C Ward-Lewis.

2/21

Declarations of Interest

Members to declare any interests in matters to be discussed at the meeting.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest made.

3/21

Minutes pdf icon PDF 402 KB

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 2 August 2021 as a correct record

Minutes:

Resolved that the minutes of the meeting held on the 2 August were agreed as a correct record.

4/21

Additional Items of Business

To determine whether there are any additional items of business to be considered as a  matter of urgency.

Minutes:

There were no additional items of business to consider however a statement was issued on the recent action taken by Birmingham City Council to terminate its contract with North Birmingham Travel following issues relating to DBS checks. The Executive Director of Children’s Services informed the Board that both an internal and external review into Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Transport contracts was underway and would be reporting to the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee. A joint Scrutiny Review was also being undertaken reviewing models and best practice going forward. The Cabinet had agreed 21 July to continue with current SEND Transport arrangements. The Board was informed that further details had been sought from drivers where required. The Service was progressing with arrangements for the start of the new term conscious that parents needed that reassurance.

 

The Board was informed that while there was a media interest in the decision by Birmingham City Council to terminate the contract with North Birmingham Travel in response to the issues around DBS arrangements. The process for checking DBSs within Sandwell was different; checks were conducted in-house and the Leader of the Council had instructed that all DBSs should be re-checked to provide additional assurances.

5/21

Sandwell Children’s Trust Annual Review pdf icon PDF 317 KB

Members to comment on and note the Sandwell Children’s Trust Annual Review

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chief Executive of Sandwell Children’s Trust delivered a presentation to the Board emphasising the work of the Trust over the previous twelve months, the impact of the pandemic on the Trust and the work of the Trust going forward.

 

The full Ofsted inspection in 2017 on the Service had found it to be inadequate. There had since been multiple visits and inspections, most recently an assurance visit in early-March 2021 and a fostering regulatory inspection in July 2021. A full inspection was expected in late-2021/early-2022.

 

The key areas of focus over the previous twelve months had been the response to the pandemic. The issues and challenges dealt with by the Trust had mirrored those faced by Local Authorities nationally. A priority over this time was keeping children safe and there was a strong emphasis on seeing children face-to-face and ensuring their wellbeing. A very close partnership with the Local Authority was an important aspect of meeting the challenges as was building strong working relationships between senior colleagues.

 

It was reported that maintaining and recruiting staff continued to be a focus for the Trust. There had been a drive to communicate the ’12 Reasons’ to work in Sandwell. The pandemic had meant this had remained a challenge but there had been a small increase in permeant social workers and a decrease in agency staff. The Care Service had been impacted hardest with a range of measures taken to mitigate against this. Overall there had been stability of staff across the Trust throughout the year.

 

The key headlines stemming from current practice were that face-to-face visits had continued throughout the pandemic and were increasing incrementally, for a virtual visit to taken place a valid reason was required. It was noted that improvements were required in the quality of assessments. Short and long-term placements for looked after children continued to improve, with key issues identified as permanency planning and implementing pathway plans. The March Ofsted assurance visit concluded that no child was at risk of harm and the Trust had had a good response to the pandemic. There remained areas for improvement notably in child protection planning and intervention.

 

The response of the Trust to the pandemic had included continuous evaluation along with oversight externally by the Department for Education. Sandwell had been disproportionally affected during the pandemic, and the leadership team had managed to deal with emerging situations and enable business continuity across the Trust to continue.

 

Focusing on the future, Six Strategic Priorities had been developed as part of the Transformation Programme. The priorities were: People, Practice, Partnerships, Prevention, Meeting Need and Measuring Progress, and Striving for Excellence. These priorities would seek to strengthen staff recruitment and retention, strengthen services for vulnerable children and allow for permanency planning. They would also look to ensure interventions at the right point with an emphasis on Early Help and prevention, as well as allowing for the right plan for children to be developed ensuring quality of care and value for money. Overall the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5/21

6/21

Regional Adoption Agency Monitoring Annual Report pdf icon PDF 319 KB

Members to comment on and note the Regional Adoption Agency Monitoring Annual Report

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Executive Director of Children’s Services presented the Regional Adoption Agency Monitoring Annual Report.

 

The service had now been in place for two years. The service was crated following a reorganisation of adoption agencies nationally which saw the merger of local authority managed agencies into regional ones. In the case of Sandwell, it merged with the other Black Country councils of Dudley, Walsall and Wolverhampton. The purpose of the merger was to allow for greater regional working that would be able to look across a wider geographical area.

 

The first year had been very busy with a now stable workforce and noticeable results. The current year had seen an increase of 24% in children being placed and adoption support had been reaching adopters based on targeted assessments of need.

 

The performance of Sandwell was emphasised in delivering results for children:-

 

-        There had been 35 Sandwell children placed in the last 12 months (124 children in total across the agency).

-        The numbers placed in previous years had been 41 – 2019 and 36 – 2020.

-        Since its inception 100 Sandwell children had been placed.

-        Inter-agency usage was at 56% (70% for Sandwell) meaning places were being found across the Black Country.

-        Getting children into the right places as soon as possible ensured they are not moved around the system and resulted in better outcomes for the children.

 

When it came to adopters in Sandwell it was noted that:

-        There had been 51 adopters approved in the first year of the agency with 69 in the second.

-        There had been increased enquires and interest in adoption during the pandemic but low conversion rates.

-        There was a priority to reduce the inter-agency usage in the third year.

-        Registrations of interest had increased by almost a third in the second year.

-        There had been a joined-up communication campaign between regional agencies, there had also been a national recruitment campaign ‘You Can Adopt’.

 

Following comments and questions from members of the Board, the following responses were made, and issues highlighted:-

 

-        The new Adoption Agency was more effective than the previous in-house system. It had a greater ability to reach more people and find matches. It was also able to offer better after-support and at a reduced cost.

-        The reason families did not pursue adoption or withdraw their interest varied. Some family configurations or single people did not understand that they could adopt. The process could also be tough and for some was very intrusive and could be overwhelming.

 

7/21

Scrutiny Review - The Impact of the Lockdown on Children and Families pdf icon PDF 279 KB

Members to consider the service response to the pandemic and the impact of the lockdown on Children and Families

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Executive Director of Children’s Services delivered a presentation on the pandemic response and the impact on children and families. The presentation consolidated previous updates provided to Scrutiny on the pandemic response and acted as a baseline for a more in-depth look at the impact of the lockdown on children and families in future Board meetings:

-        Services had continued to operate throughout the pandemic and continued to be very busy. Many members of staff had volunteered to assist other response functions, including the early morning schools support helpline. Staff absences had continued to be low and those members who had been self-isolating had in most cases continued to work.

-        Engagement with the educational establishments across the Borough had been excellent. There had been initial weekly meetings with the Department for Education which had continued and now occurred bi-weekly. A Return to School Support Strategy had been developed which focused on the welfare of children and young people.

-        Sandwell had enabled Sandwell Children’s Trust to access various Covid-related grants which supported services against increased costs and fast tracked additional equipment for social workers.

-        During the School year STEPS had supported 160 homes with learning packs for International New Arrival Children. There had been 950 wellbeing follow up calls to check progress and resolve any issues. A centre supporting these families opened fully in early-March.

-        Those children and young people being Electively Home Educated (EHE) was recorded at 557 at the end of January Half-Term. An EHE Advisory Teacher had been recruited to support these children and half-termly newsletters had been distributed. Free School Meals had been provided to those EHE children who were eligible.

-        Vulnerable children had been a priority during the pandemic, the service had:

o       Conducted an average of 254 contracts per week including phone calls, emails and in person visits;

o       Delivered an average of 357 meals per week;

o       Delivered 1334 Learning Resource Packs ;

o       Supported 86 children living in hostels with Learning Resource packs and food parcels;

o       Supported Alternative Provision settings to monitor their pupils;

o       Supported the Return to Schools strategies

-        There had been some negative developments due to lockdown:

o       Free School Meals eligibility had increased by over 27%;

o       There had been an increase in domestic abuse and safeguarding incidents;

o       Children’s mental health had been impacted;

o       Digital exclusion for a number of students;

o       An increase in demand for EHCP assessments;

o       Increased pressures and increases in SEND assessments.

-        The next 12 months were going to focus on a number of key areas:

O      Catch-up and recovery in education and child development;

o       Social care recovery;

o       Planning ahead, expecting an increase in demand for the service;

o       Continuing to deliver emotional and wellbeing support;

o       Managing the increase in Education, Health and Care Plan assessments;

o       Supporting staff;

o       Moving back to Business as Usual.

 

Following comments and questions from members of the Board, the following responses were made, and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7/21

8/21

Work Programme pdf icon PDF 474 KB

To consider the items on the work programme for upcoming Board meetings

Minutes:

The Board noted the Work Programme. The next scheduled meeting of the Board would receive an update on the Youth Facilities Scrutiny Review. The Board will be continuing its work as part of the Joint Scrutiny Review into Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Transport Models.

9/21

Cabinet Forward Plan pdf icon PDF 461 KB

To consider the Cabinet Forward Plan

Minutes:

The Board noted the Cabinet Forward Plan.

10/21

Chair’s Announcements

Minutes:

The Board extended its congratulations to pupils and staff following the GCSE and A-Level results day. A special mention was given to Councillor W Gill following his results. It was hoped that all young people had achieved what they wanted and would be moving onto their desired destinations.

 

It was announced that the meeting would be the last attended by the Executive Director of Children’s Services Lesley Hagger who was leaving Sandwell. The Board thanked Lesley for all her hard work and dedication to the Children of Sandwell and wished her all the best for the future.