Agendas, Meetings and Minutes - Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Venue: County Hall, Worcester

Contact: Kate Griffiths, Committee Officer 

Items
No. Item

267.

Apologies

Minutes:

Apologies were received from Cllrs. Mike Johnson, Fran Oborski, Margaret Sherrey, and Tom Wells.

268.

Confirmation of the Minutes pdf icon PDF 289 KB

Minutes:

The minutes of the last meeting held on 5 October 2021 were accepted as an accurate record and were signed by the Chairman.

269.

Corporate Parenting Board Pledges pdf icon PDF 283 KB

Minutes:

The original Corporate Parenting Board Pledges had been agreed in 2017 and now needed refreshing. At the last meeting it had been agreed the original Pledges were not too far away from what was required now but they should be updated to include a ‘doing’ aspect so that they were not just aspirational. The Pledges needed to be something everyone, including District Councils, could agree to and contribute towards delivering.

 

It was suggested that most of the original pledges should be retained apart from taking out the word ‘ensure’ in certain pledges; emotional health and well-being should be explicitly referenced alongside ‘Health’, which had particularly been highlighted during Covid 19. An additional pledge to be added was the recruitment of Foster Carers. Finally, under the pledge around valuing family life, a reference should be added to supporting reunification where appropriate to do so.

 

The idea of a ‘prompt card’ was discussed as a tool for CPB members to carry to remind them of the pledges and how they could be practically promoted.

 

The Chairman distributed a report from Worcester City Council giving an overview of Corporate Parenting and listing the original pledges; it also detailed the services which were available to children who were looked after or care leavers in Worcester City.

 

Once the revised Pledges have been circulated it was hoped that all Councillors would be able to explain what had been done in their areas to support Looked After Children and Care Leavers.

 

Members discussed the Pledges and raised various issues around seeing assurance young people would be consulted in agreeing the Pledges; clarification in the difference between the Pledges and social work operational business as usual; clarity around the specific age range to be focussed on when promoting the recruitment of foster carers. The Participation Team added that the Pledges were an opportunity for members to positively and proactively champion care leavers and looked after children.

 

(A copy of the presentation on the Corporate Parenting Board Pledges delivered at the meeting is attached to these minutes)

 

RESOLVED that;

a)     the Pledges would be refreshed to capture and reflect the comments of the Corporate Parenting Board Members along with a suggestion or actions card to sit beneath the Pledges,

b)    the Participation team would be asked to look at the Pledges, confirm the wording and determine the design; and

c)     the Pledges would then be circulated to Board Members.

270.

Kickstart pdf icon PDF 109 KB

Minutes:

Board Members were updated on the Kickstart Programme which was for 16-24-year- olds in receipt of Universal Credit and at risk of long-term unemployment. The programme was 100% funded by the Government and involved the creation of new jobs for 25 hours a week for 6 months. The young people received wrap around support and gained the opportunity for work experience so that when they applied for jobs they had increased confidence and practical experience, increasing their employability.

 

The Kickstart Programme had enabled mentor posts for Care Leavers to be created; one was a care leaver who was a parent and one who was helping care leavers avoid criminality. Adam Johnston gave a brief case history of Nathan, who was now helping Care Leavers avoid criminality. Nathan had a chequered history within the Gypsy Roma Traveller community and had become a Looked After Child himself at the age of 16. He had received a 4-year custodial sentence from which he had been released in 2020. He had been keen to change his ways and had volunteered for advocacy roles which led him to the position with the Kickstart Programme

 

( A copy of the presentation about the Kickstart programme given at the meeting is attached to these minutes)

 

RESOLVED that the Corporate Parenting Board were asked to note the update on the Kickstart Programme and if they wished for further information should contact Justine Bishop or Ria Hale.

271.

A Care Leaver's Poem

Minutes:

This item was withdrawn from the agenda.

272.

Verbal reports from Districts pdf icon PDF 1 MB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

A copy of the information distributed at the meeting is attached to these minutes.

·       Worcester City Council - Corporate Parenting Update

·       Wychavon District Council – Update.

 

273.

Quarter 2 Data Report pdf icon PDF 172 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The data had been provided as a tool for local councillors to see the picture in their particular area and if they had a question about a specific issue they could ask for more specific information.

 

·       It was asked if data was available for a longer time period so trends could be seen. Data was available over a longer period but was usually considered on a quarterly basis.

·       It was queried whether Autism or SEN assessments formed part of the Health assessments which were carried out for all children who became looked after. The response was that it was not part of that assessment. The health assessment could be refused by older children but where it was carried out it could highlight where further assessments may be needed. If immunisations had not been administered that would be followed up with the Foster Carer and Social worker.

·       It was agreed that Health assessments could be looked at in more detail at a future meeting.

·       There was a query about the number of care leavers who remained in touch and whether the figure could be improved. In reality the data was positive. It was explained that the Care leavers team made strong and imaginative efforts to keep in touch and tried to engage in a variety of different ways. Many care leavers preferred virtual communication rather than face to face meetings. Scrutiny around keeping in touch would continue, including comparisons with regional authorities.

·       It was queried whether there was data on the numbers of children with autism or SEN and family breakdowns. It was confirmed that there was data available, as well as for children with disabilities. The data would be fed back outside the meeting.

·       A Board member asked about the Rees Foundation and it was explained that it was set up to support care leavers by providing support, advice and assistance. It was charity and there was a Rees café in Worcester.

 

RESOLVED that the Corporate Parenting Board noted the Quarter 2 data report.

 

274.

Future Meeting Dates

Dates 2022

 

·        Tuesday 1 February 2022

·        Wednesday 4 May 2022

·        Tuesday 12 July 2022

·        Wednesday 5 October 2022

·        Tuesday 29 November 2022

 

Locations to be finalised.

 

Minutes:

Dates 2022

 

·     Tuesday 1 February 2022

·     Thursday 12 May 2022

·     Tuesday 12 July 2022

·     Wednesday 5 October 2022

·     Tuesday 29 November 2022