Agenda item

This report provides a briefing to the Health and Well Being Board on the role and challenge function of Medway’s Corporate Parenting Board, the key focus and achievements over the last 12 months.

Discussion

All Members of the Council were corporate parents for Looked After Children in Medway. It was important to give LAC a good childhood and enable them to transition into adulthood. This required there to be good access to early intervention provision.

A new Looked after Children Strategy was being developed to replace the current strategy that covered 2015 to 2018. The number of LAC in Medway had remained fairly stable over the last year, with there having been a peak in October to November 2017 in the number of LAC entering or leaving the care system. There were currently 413 LAC against a target of 427, which demonstrated that interventions were working.

There were currently 29 foster carer placements and there would be a focus  on creating parent and child placements, specifically where parents had a learning disability, with a recruitment campaign due to take place in June. Plans for community based fostering were due to be implemented. There is a new framework for independent fostering agencies which would help ensure children were placed with better quality fostering agencies. Maximising permanency was key to improving outcomes for LAC, whether through Special Guardianship Orders, long term fostering or connective carer arrangements.

Medway had been successful in terms of the number of children adopted with levels being above national averages. A Regional Adoption Agency was due to be formed between Medway, Bexley and Kent. The aim was to place 135 – 150 children each year. £820,000 of funding had been granted.

The Virtual School had a new Headteacher. The Virtual School’s remit is being extended to improve attainment. Attainment of LAC at Key Stage 2 was similar to national figures for maths but was slightly below average for reading. Consideration was being given to how to support the virtual school to improve results. The percentage of pupils achieving at least the expected standard in English and Maths GCSE had increased in the last academic year. The rate of exclusions amongst LAC had increased slightly from 10% to 11%.

The percentage of in date health assessments for LAC for October to December 2017 was 94% and up to date dental assessments for the same period was 93%. Both of these figures met national targets but work was being undertaken to achieve 100%.

Children’s Services and Safeguarding now worked in four area based pods. This and the creation of a Multi-agency Safeguarding Hub, would facilitate better joint working and increased management support for staff involved in the safeguarding of Medway’s children. A First Line Leadership Programme had been introduced for managers who had responsibility for social workers.

A multi-agency action plan had been developed to address the needs of Medway’s Care leavers. An engagement event was due to take place in May to get views of partners and young people ahead of the Plan being reviewed.

A taskforce had been established to help address the issue of care leavers who were NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training). This would include reviewing the apprenticeship offer in Medway.

It was noted that the Medway Children and Young People’s Children in Care Council, attended every Corporate Parenting Board meeting to provide challenge on LAC performance. There was also extensive input from the Medway Youth Council. Areas of focus for the Corporate Parenting Board over the next year would include the LAC Strategy, NEETs, the arrangement of Local Government Association training and increasing board meetings to six per annum.

A Member highlighted a need to actively involve more Council Members in Corporate Parenting work and to clearly demonstrate what was involved and the opportunities available. Other Members agreed with this and it was requested that the role of Corporate Parents be highlighted at the Member induction following the local elections in May 2019. It was also requested that consideration be given to holding a Member seminar ahead of this to which  all Members would be invited. Officers advised that they were also planning to ask for volunteers to mentor Looked After Children.

A Member said that more should be made of employment opportunities, both  at the Council and in relation to day jobs of Councillors, for LAC entering employment and it was suggested that apprenticeships should be offered to LAC and also that care leavers be prioritised for housing.

Decision

The Health and Wellbeing Board:

i)     Considered and commented on the annual report and the effectiveness of the Corporate Parenting Board, as set out in the minutes.

ii)    Requested that the role of Councillors as Corporate Parents be included in the new Member induction in 2019 and that consideration be given to holding a Member seminar ahead of this.