Agenda item

To consider a report by the Head of Service for Birth to Settled Adulthood.

This report was deferred by the committee at its previous meeting on 6 February 2025.

The Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, Education and Skills introduced the report. The Head of Service for Birth to Settled Adulthood (B2SA) updated the committee on B2SA progress since the report was originally published in February 2025.

The Chair of Dorset Parent Carer Council highlighted that families were increasingly aware of the service and there was improved joint working.

The Committee discussed the report and asked questions of officers. During the discussion, the following points were raised:

·         The Outcomes Framework, co-produced with the Dorset Parent Carer Council and young people, had been signed off. There was an easy-read version of the framework, which was requested for circulation.

·         The Dorset Care Record (DCR) enabled professionals to identify whether individuals were supported by health or social care services. Staff training on the system was ongoing.

·         Governance issues with data-sharing through the Mosaic system had been resolved. The system was being tested and rolled out to those in Adult Social Care that needed access to the system.

·         Joint commissioning arrangements with the NHS were in place, though differences remained between children’s and adult services. Work was ongoing to explore a more integrated solution to ensure a smoother transition into adulthood. However, officers recognised that different commissioning arrangements could cause disruption for a small number of people.

·         The importance of smooth transitions into adulthood was emphasised to avoid placing pressure on carers and young people.

·         Adult practitioners had begun engaging earlier with young people who had complex needs, working alongside children’s services to ensure continuity of support during the transition into adulthood.

·         Assistive technology was being used to support independence and reduce pressure on families. This included young people using apps to plan their day, and monitoring equipment for older children, enabling parents to feel more confident in identifying when their child needs help. Members were encouraged to visit the TEC Lounge.

·         In response to a question on tracking how young people’s needs are met as they transition into adulthood, officers advised that there was a review programme which ensured young people were moving in a positive direction. There were also performance indicators, however the way data was captured was still work in progress.

·         A member asked about the financial resilience of Birth to Settled Adulthood and how it could be delivered in the long-term if partners reduced their funding. Officers advised that B2SA helped by increasing direct payments and strategically managing costs by reducing the numbers of children in care, which increases financial resilience.

·         Members asked how flexibility in the system could be used to empower young people to shape their own lives. Officers advised that care packages were delivered to suit the child’s needs and that flexibility between children’s and adult services was where it needed to be. The NHS had a universal commissioning arrangement; however, they would review individual needs and review how services are delivered to individuals.

·         Accessibility could be more challenging in rural areas, so it could be harder to recruit personal assistants in rural areas. This caused a difference for some young people in rural areas compared to urban.

·         There was progression by NHS Dorset in developing mental health support for young people. The Chair of Dorset Parent Carer Council hoped that this would improve mental health support.

·         Members raised that representatives of only Dorset County Hospital were on the Delivery Board, rather than including other NHS providers, and questioned how this would be able to support young people across the whole county. Officers advised that the Delivery Board was working together with the SEND Board which had health provider representatives for the whole county.

The Chair closed the discussion and recommended that there were annual updates for the committee to review the progression of Birth to Settled Adulthood. This could be facilitated through reviewing the annual report of the Independent Chair of the Birth to Settled Adulthood Delivery Board.