Agenda item

The Chair welcomed Alan Adams Interim Chief Executive, James Thomas and Rob Moore to the meeting.

Members asked what strategies were in place to encourage school attendance of children in care. Members were informed that processes were in place to ensure those responsible for children in care understood the value of education and attendance, whether this was children placed in foster care or those in a residential setting. Arrangements were built in to the commissioning process to ensure regular attendance and reduced absenteeism of children in care.

The Committee enquired whether there were any specific challenges around children in care accessing placements in schools. Members were informed that for children in care there were sometimes additional factors that needed to be considered to ensure the placement was appropriate in meeting their needs. Whilst children were generally supported to remain in their current school, alternative placements would need to be sought where this was not in the best interest of the child. The virtual school advocates on behalf of children in care and each child has a personal education plan with attendance being monitored and reviewed regularly. The Committee sought assurance that children in care were placed in schools quickly. It was reported that there were frameworks and expectations in place but more work needed to be undertaken with partners to improve this further.

Members asked about the provision in place for those children in care who were moving back to live with their families. It was reported that the Trust ensured there was effective support mechanisms in place and the children were moving on to a nurturing environment with a strengthened partnership offer to support the transition.

Members asked what the impact would be on the delivery of services to children as the Trust sought to make £3m savings over the next 3 years. It was reported that the DCST had begun to achieve its savings earlier as detailed in the Medium Term Financial Strategy to lessen the impact and allow for better planning.

It was reported that the improved changes to services would also bring about savings and efficiencies. Two of the key pressures on the service were the high cost of placements and the increased costs and complex needs of children accessing the service. Improvements to bring more children in care back into the Borough and creating more residential homes in the borough were included in the Future Placements Strategy.  In achieving savings, any action had to be right for the child and meet their care requirements. The Future Placement strategy scheduled for Cabinet on 17^th December proposed the building of a number of 2-bedroomed accommodation units for children in care. This was a more effective and efficient solution than allocating places outside of the Borough.

In terms of foster care provision, there was encouragement to use the Trust’s foster carers, which were up to a third less than the cost of external foster care, this also kept children closer to home and their friends and families.

Members asked about shared arrangements with other local authorities to manage placements and partnership arrangements. The Committee was informed that joint arrangements worked well with the Regional Adoption Agency. Working regionally helps recruit new families more effectively, enables children to be placed in a more timely way and improves adoption support services as well as improving services by sharing best practice.  It was reported that the DCST had also signed up to the White Rose Framework, which was a Residential Contract Agreement with providers to deliver the provision of residential children’s homes placements for children and young people across Yorkshire.

A Member asked if staff vacancies in Family Support Services and Youth Justice had an impact on the quality of service and if agency staff were covering those vacancies. It was reported that DCST was not looking to make savings in these areas. In terms of performance, the Youth Justice Service was likely to be inspected next year and contained some areas of very high performance, which provide positive outcomes for young people. DCST would look at recruiting to these vacant posts.

RESOLVED that the Overview & Scrutiny Management Committee note the progress of DCST performance outcomes and the contribution that the Trust makes to supporting the Council’s strategic priorities.