All
Members present are required to declare, at this point in the
meeting or as soon as possible thereafter:
I.Any disclosable
pecuniary interests and / or
II.Other interests arising under the Code of Conduct in
respect of any item(s) of business being considered at this
meeting
NOTES:
·Members are reminded that they must not participate
in any item where they have a disclosable pecuniary interest
·As well as an interest of the Member, this includes
any interest, of which the Member is aware, that relates to the
Member’s spouse or civil partner (or any person with whom the
Member is living as a spouse or civil partner)
·Members with a significant personal interest may
participate in the discussion and vote on that matter unless that
interest could be reasonably regarded as prejudicial.
1.The deadline for Member’s questions is 12.00pm
four working days before the meeting (30 November
2023).
2.The deadline for public questions is seven days
before the meeting(29 November 2023
3.The deadline for petitions was 14 days before the
meeting, and no petitions have been received.
The
public retain their right to submit questions for written response,
with such answers recorded in the minutes of the meeting;
questioners may participate in meetings to ask a supplementary
question. Petitioners may address the Committee on their petition
for up to three minutes Guidance will be made available to any
member of the public wishing to speak at a meeting.
There were two Member
questions and no public questions or petitions. The responses to
those questions are annexed to these minutes.
A Member asked a
follow up question on what changes were planned for the adult
education budget. The Director for Education and Lifelong Learning
noted that there were no plans to reduce the budget for Surrey
Adult Learning for the coming year. The
Cabinet Member for Children and Families, Lifelong Learning added
that the budget for Adult Learning did not include any centre
closures in 2024/25.
On action 29/23
regarding a written response on the multi-agency network and school
absences for girls with ASD, the Director for Education and
Lifelong Learning said that the initial answer was not satisfactory
and would send an updated response by the end of the week to the
Committee.
The Director for CFL
Commissioning assured the Committee that as soon as procurement
regulations allowed, action 40/23, a written response outlining the
scale of Health Service Investments in the EHCP process and data on
the recruitment and retention of Occupational Therapists would be
provided.
Purpose of
report:To review
the handling of applications forHome to
School Travel Assistanceat the start of the
2023/24 academic year, after a learning review that followed a
change in policy implemented in 2022.
Kate Goode – Participation Manager, Family Voice Surrey
(remote)
Key points
made in the discussion:
The Participation
Managers from Family Voice Surrey gave a short presentation on Home
to School Travel Assistance. They noted that Family Voice had seen
good progress but highlighted that families were still experiencing
communication issues with the transport team. The Chair thanked
Family Voice for the informative presentation.
The Cabinet Member
for Children and Families, Lifelong Learning thanked Family Voice
for their engagement with the transport team and the production of
the parent guide. She noted that issues brought up in the survey
were issues the sector faced as a whole.
A Member asked a
question on independent travel allowance. The Participation Manager
answered that parents were now being paid for four journeys instead
of two a day. However, the allowance
did not consider the cost of vehicle maintenance. The Participation
Manager noted that it was difficult to find drivers who were
understanding of complex needs and stressed the importance of the
independent travel allowance.
A Member asked if
plans in place since the results of last year’s Family Voice
Survey had had the desired impact. The Member stressed that many
children did not have travel arrangements in time for the start of
term. The Interim Assistant Director Support Services (Home to
School) answered that 31 July was the cut-off for applications for
transport arrangements but that when applications were received
late, the service had a 30-day turnaround. The Interim Assistant
Director said she hoped to make significant improvements to the
process in time for the next academic year.
A Member asked if
applications within timescales deteriorating between July (2%) and
September/October (8%) were expected or normal. The Interim
Assistant Director Support Services (Home to School) noted that the
rise was due to an unprecedented volume of applications and the
Home to School Transport team expected elevated levels in
August.
A Member asked if the
service was measuring adherence to the policy of having travel
arrangements in place within six weeks of an
application. The Interim Assistant
Director Support Services (Home to School) answered that
applications were assessed within 20 days and arrangements
confirmed seven days before the start of term. The Member asked if
parents were updated on plans between application and term
starting. The Interim Assistant Director said that parents who had
applied early were alerted with an update in August.
A Member asked how
the SEND and Home to School Transport teams communicated and if
there were aspirations for better communication. The Interim
Assistant Director Support Services (Home to School) explained that
she met with the Director for Education and Lifelong Learning
...
view the full minutes text for item 50/23
Louise
Lawson,Strategic Finance Business Partner–Customer &
Communities
Nikki O’Connor, Strategic Finance Business
Partner –
Corporate
Rachel Wigley, Director – Finance Insights
& Performance
Daniel Shurlock, Customer & Communities Strategic
Lead
Susan Wills, Assistant Director for Cultural
Services
Jean-Pierre Moore, Head of Community
Partnerships and Prevention
Matt Marsden, Strategic Finance Business Partner
– CFL
Key points
made in the discussion:
A Member asked
witnesses why library income levels were declining and what plans
were in place to counteract that. The Deputy Leader and Cabinet
Member for Customer and Communities said that extensive efforts had
been made to find alternative provisions due to the temporary
closures recently. The Deputy Leader noted that the service had
faced risks such as planning issues or procurement, but this had
all been tracked timely and vigorously. The Assistant Director for
Cultural Services noted that while the library went under
refurbishment in Redhill, a temporary library in a Council owned
site would be in place. This new library space directly under the
current library would mean as little disruption as possible to
residents and the Council would still be able to utilise the space
for events. The Assistant Director offered to meet with the Member
outside the meeting to hold a discussion about the Redhill library
interim and refurbishment plans.
A Member noted that
there was a proposed £100,000 shared reduction in funding
from the Council to the Voluntary Community and Faith Sector (VCFS)
in 2024/2025. The Member asked how the diverted funding would be
used and the repercussions for the organisations. The Deputy Leader
noted that there would be a period of transition. The Head of Community Partnerships and Prevention
noted that during the period of transition they would help the
charities be more independent. The
actual amount of the efficiency was £68k, rounded to
£0.1m for the purposes of the budget papers. The Council had invested £100,000 in the
Strategic Strength Transformation Fund from the Community
Foundation for Surrey that was available for the whole voluntary
sector. The VCFS would also be putting around £230,000 in the
same fund. This funding would empower smaller grassroot
organisations to access better funding as part of a long-term
funding strategy. The Member asked to see the impact assessment of
the funding reductions. The Head of Community Partnerships said
that he could share it with the Committee.
A Member asked to
hold a conversation with the Head of Community Partnerships and
Prevention regarding the voluntary sector within Surrey. The Head
of Community Partnerships and Prevention agreed.
A Member noted that
Surrey Youth Focus’s funding had already been cut, impacting
their work. The Deputy Leader said that there had been a safety net
around this transformation with additional funding to create
capacity and resource around infrastructure
organisations.
Purpose of
report:The Select Committee will receive
Ofsted reports on Surrey County Council-run Children’s Homes
in its agenda, as part of a communications plan agreed in June
2022.
Clare Curran, Cabinet Member for Children and Families, Lifelong
Learning
Rachael Wardell, Executive Director
- Children, Families & Learning
Key points
made in the discussion:
The Chair noted there
had been one Ofsted report published since the last meeting and was
pleased that it continued the trend of positive reports and
commended the work of all staff involved and thanked them for
enabling the continuity of that trend.
Purpose of the
report:The Select Committee is apprised
of the latest CFL performance information, which consists
of:
(a)Key indicators in children’s social care
measuring progress made in Ofsted recommendations following the
January 2022 inspection of Surrey Local Authority Children’s
Services;
(b)Key indicators relating to the additional needs
strategy and EHCP timeliness recovery plan;
(c)Turnover of social workers and foster carers to
measure progress in the Children’s Recruitment, Retention and
Culture Workforce Planning Strategy;
(d)External assessments of all areas within the
Committee’s remit.
Clare Curran, Cabinet Member for Children and Families, Lifelong
Learning
Rachael Wardell, Executive Director
- Children, Families & Learning
Patricia Denney, Director – Quality and Performance
(remote)
Key points
made in the discussion:
The Chair asked if
more up to date information on additional needs and disabilities
key performance indicators (KPIs) could be brought to the February
2024 Full Select Committee. The Executive Director for Children, Families &
Learning said that it would be shared as soon as possible.
The Chair asked when
the social worker recruitment and retention statistics would this
be available. The Executive Director
for Children, Families & Learning noted that it was a
priority to access the data and would be shared once
received.
A Member asked how
the Service was increasing the number of Children In Need
visits. The Director for Quality and Performance noted
that there were only marginal increases to Children In Need visits,
but this was being rectified under the new delivery model that
would address this issue.
A Member asked if
everything promised to be delivered around EHCPs was on track, The
Executive Director for Children,
Families & Learning and the Director for Quality and Performance
confirmed yes.
The Chair asked to
see a comparison of progress to date of improvements of KPIs 2.3,
5.2, 6.4 and 6.8 against the original target plan ahead of the
February 2024 Select Committee Meeting.
A Member asked a
question on the 341 looked after children who were not placed in
Surrey. The Executive Director for Children, Families &
Learning agreed that sufficiency issues around placements in
surrey were an issue but that solutions were being explored to
improve it, such as working with independent foster providers and
the work around the Extended Kinship Network or reunification. The
Director for Quality and
Performance noted that there were constant conversations
with health colleagues to notify them of children coming into care
in order to provide medical care such as EHCP demands.
A Member expressed
concern over the number of pupils absent from schools and asked
witnesses to send further information on school attendance in
Surrey. The Director for Quality and Performance noted
that Surrey had high school attendance during the pandemic as
compared with other counties.
A Member noted that
MindWorks was closed for referrals. The Executive Director for Children, Families &
Learning noted that there had been no further recent data
from MindWorks and that neurodivergent pathways had stopped
accepting referrals.
The Chair thanked
witnesses and Members.
Actions/requests for further information:
Director –
Quality and Performance Extend action CFLLC41/23 [Provide a short
report explaining performance in and steps to improve KPIs 4.3,
5.2, 6.4 and 6.8] and have a comparison of progress to date against
the original target plan in July 2023 and the current reprofiled
plan, ahead of the February Select Committee
meeting.
Committee to make
the Adults and Health Select Committee aware that the percentage of
Looked After Children Initial Health Assessments completed dipped
below 90% in September due to both Initial & Review Health
Assessments continuing to be ...
view the full minutes text for item 53/23
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