Agenda item

Cabinet is asked to propose to Council that the following Surrey County Council strategic response to child poverty be adopted and continue to be developed across all service areas through 2022 and beyond.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Children’s, Families, Lifelong Learning & Culture Select Committee)

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet RECOMMENDS that the County Council:

1.    Notes the data research review on poverty, with emphasis on children, in Surrey as requested in a previous Council motion.

2.    Endorses and adopts the proposed framework, approach and themes as the basis for the Council’s strategic response to child poverty in the county.

Reasons for Decisions:

A strategic response to child poverty will ensure that SCC stays true to its principle of ‘no one left behind’ and deliver a number of benefits to Surrey residents.  A more aligned strategy around support services will ensure cross-cutting understanding of personal circumstances; more tailored advice and support, more effective signposting between services and community offerings, effective targeting of hardship funds for families, and new projects to mitigate and impact the root causes of poverty in the county.

The Cabinet Member for Children and Families introduced the report and noted that the Council’s guiding principle of “no one left behind” established before Covid-19 was more pertinent now following the acute impact of the pandemic, as highlighted through the 2021 Community Impact Assessment. Residents and the employment sector had been affected from the rising cost of living and energy prices, more families sought assistance and more children in Surrey were classified as living in poverty. The Council recognised the need to bring forward the coordinated strategy with statutory partners and the Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector (VCFS) to respond to the issue of children and families in poverty. The report was wide-ranging and ran in parallel with the Council’s four strategic priorities and was co-produced across the directorates; it sought to address the underlying causes of poverty, addressing inequalities through employment and housing for example. The report also sought to better coordinate and signpost individuals to the arrangements in place to mitigate poverty to meet immediate needs through free school meals and food banks. Whilst the report focused on families and children in poverty, the initiatives were applicable to all residents. She thanked the officer team for their work and hoped the report would be endorsed at the next meeting of the Council.

The Deputy Cabinet Member for Levelling-Up welcomed the timely strategy, noting that there were pockets of deprivation in Surrey and the strategy sought to target support. She highlighted the various crises funds available and intervention programmes such as theHelping Families Early Strategy 2020 to 2023 and Changing Futures programme. That the strategy was innovative through seeking to address the causes of poverty which was challenging. She paid tribute to the work of the Cabinet Member for Children and Families, the Executive Director of Children, Families and Lifelong Learning, officers and Members; and offered her full support.

The Cabinet Member for Adults and Health highlighted that the strategy recognised and sought to address the synergy between childhood poverty and the transition to poverty in adulthood. That ensuring the access to opportunities such as education and employment, and good quality housing was vital to address poverty. She was pleased that the strategy would be going to the Health and Wellbeing Board which would continue its scrutiny to ensure delivery.

The Cabinet Member for Education and Learning highlighted the importance and value of skills training and employment to address the causes of poverty through working in partnership with the further education sector noting the work underway to support disadvantaged adults and those with few or no qualifications.

The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources noted that the Council delivered social value through procurement, half of its spend or £900 million was spent on local suppliers in Surrey which supported the delivery of jobs for local residents. The Council had secured £4.7 million of social value through its contracts and had created opportunities for Care Leavers and young residents such as through the S-Skills programme on the highways contract.

The Leader highlighted that the strategy provided a framework pulling together various strands of work and welcomed an update on its delivery on a periodic basis.

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet RECOMMENDS that the County Council:

1.    Notes the data research review on poverty, with emphasis on children, in Surrey as requested in a previous Council motion.

2.    Endorses and adopts the proposed framework, approach and themes as the basis for the Council’s strategic response to child poverty in the county.

Reasons for Decisions:

A strategic response to child poverty will ensure that SCC stays true to its principle of ‘no one left behind’ and deliver a number of benefits to Surrey residents.  A more aligned strategy around support services will ensure cross-cutting understanding of personal circumstances; more tailored advice and support, more effective signposting between services and community offerings, effective targeting of hardship funds for families, and new projects to mitigate and impact the root causes of poverty in the county.