Issue - meetings

The People Scrutiny Committee are invited to consider the proposals for the development of the Children and Young People and Families’ Plan and provide feedback on the proposed priorities to enable the development of the final plan.

The Portfolio Holder for Children, Education and Early Help presented the report which invited the committee to consider the proposals for the development of the Children and Young People and Families’ Plan and to provide feedback on the proposed priorities to enable the development of the final plan by the Strategic Alliance for Children and Young People before it was recommended by Cabinet for endorsement and adoption by the Full Council.

The Corporate Director, Commissioning, Quality and Partnerships provided an overview of the report and the work that had been undertaken to date.  In order to deliver the vision in this area, a set of emerging priorities have been identified and classified into six themes which were set out in the report.  The committee’s feedback was sought on the themes, which would assist in the development of the plan to be considered by Cabinet in September and onto Full Council.

The committee considered the issues arising from the report and during discussion, the following points were raised:

·                A number of councillors thanked the leadership team in Children’s Services for their work undertaken to date

·                Points were raised with regard to how resources could best be targeted, the importance of early intervention, issues around family breakdown and the recruitment of more foster carers, and the council’s work in these areas was noted

·                The Corporate Director noted that the council, working with partners, aimed to give children the best start in life.  Partners were fully engaged in the development of the plan

·                There would be constant review of the action plan in this area and a regular process around tracking actions was welcomed

·                A discussion was held in respect of the roles of the Strategic Alliance for Children and Young People and local alliance groups.  The local alliance groups brought together a range of local organisations who could provide information at a local level and all councillors were encouraged to be aware of local alliance groups in their area and how they could assist in the promotion of these

·                A point was raised as to how to include representatives of non-commissioned services.  In response, the Corporate Director expressed a commitment to involving people in conversations and the encouragement of further engagement

·                In response to a question, the importance of the council and partners working collectively was recognised.  There was felt to be strong leadership across the partnership and that alongside the action plan, the measures were in place to ensure required outcomes

·                The Corporate Director for Education and Learning noted that the council had built strong relationships with schools, with a shared understanding of working together to achieve better outcomes for all

·                A point was raised with regard to the importance of data sharing in safeguarding issues

·                Comments were made with regard to the language used in the plan and the need to ensure it was clear to read, the financial implications of the plan and the need for continued monitoring through scrutiny

·                In response, the Executive Director for Children reminded councillors  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10