Venue: Town Hall, Moorgate Street, ROTHERHAM. S60 2TH
Contact: Natasha Aucott, Governance Advisor Tel: 01709 255601 The webcast can be viewed at http://www.rotherham.public-i.tv
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Minutes of the Previous Meeting
To consider and approve the minutes of the previous meeting held on 3 December 2024, as a true and correct record of the proceedings and to be signed by the Chair. Minutes: Resolved: - That the Minutes of the meeting of the Improving Lives Select Commission, held on 3 December 2024, be approved as a correct record of proceedings. |
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Declarations of Interest
To receive declarations of interest from Members in respect of items listed on the agenda. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. |
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Exclusion of the Press and Public
To consider whether the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of any part of the agenda. Minutes: There were no items of business on the agenda that required the exclusion of the press and public from the meeting.
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Questions from Members of the Public and the Press
To receive questions relating to items of business on the agenda from members of the public or press who are present at the meeting. Minutes: There were no questions from members of the public or press. |
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Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Ofsted Area Inspection Update To receive an update on the outcomes of the Ofsted Special Education Needs and Disabilities Strategy (SEND) Area Inspection that took place in October 2024. Additional documents: Minutes: The agenda item provided an update on the outcomes of the Ofsted Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Area Inspection.
The Chair welcomed to the meeting Councillor Cusworth, Cabinet Member of Children and Young People Services (CYPS), and Niall Devlin, Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion.
The Chair invited the Cabinet Member of Children and Young People Services to introduce the report, during which the following was noted:
· In July 2021, Rotherham Council’s Children and Young People Service was inspected and areas for improvement were identified, this led to the development of a written statement of action, which aimed to improve the local SEND offer. · By September 2024, significant progress had been made, though further work would continue. The 2024 inspection outcome was positive and reflected the hard work of the Service, despite the national challenges to the SEND system.
The Chair invited the Assistant Director for Education and Inclusion to present the update and presentation, during which the following was noted:
Aims of the presentation- · The presentation would set out the progress made towards the Written Statement of Action (WSOA). · The presentation would provide an overview of the findings and consequences of the 2024 Inspection Report.
The 2021 SEND inspection- · The inspection identified thirteen areas of strength and sixteen areas that required improvement. To address the areas requiring improvement, the local area was required to produce a Written Statement of Action (WSOA) prioritising the following four areas for action- o Quality of Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) o Communication of Local Offer o Preparation for Adulthood o Graduated Response.
· The local area had made significant and sustained progress in relation to the following- o Improved the variability in quality of EHCPs including contributions from health and partners. o Improved the effectiveness of the Graduated Response to meet young people’s needs, especially in Key Stage 1 and 2. o Improved the quality of provision for young people’s preparation for and transition to adulthood. o Improved communication with parents and carers with SEND about the Local Offer.
· A lot of progress was made from August 2022 to August 2024, during which- o Completed actions increased from 7 to 71 o Actions on track decreased from 43 to 2 o Actions in progress reduced from 13 to 0 o Actions with no progress decreased from 3 to 0 o Actions not due to start reduced from 9 to 2.
The 2024 inspection- · Significantly different from earlier inspections, it was more rigorous and lasted three weeks. · The new inspection involved a broader range of participants, including a Lead Inspector from Education, a Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspector, and, for the first time, a His Majesty's Inspector (HMI) who evaluated the entire partnership. · Unlike previous narrative-based inspections, this inspection introduced a grading system with three levels, which were as follows- o Grade 3: Indicated significant weaknesses that required intensive monitoring and reinspection within 18 months. o Grade 2: Reflected variability, with both strengths and areas needing improvement, requiring a follow-up inspection within 18 ... view the full minutes text for item 54. |
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To receive an update on the Family Help Strategy 2024-2029, which was approved at Cabinet in March 2024. The Strategy is currently in the design phase as part of Phase One, this item will provide an update on the progress of the strategy, prior to it returning to Cabinet in March 2025. Minutes: This item provided an update on the Family Help Strategy 2024-2029, which was approved at Cabinet in March 2024. The Strategy was in the design phase and a further update on the Strategy was due to be presented to Cabinet March 2025.
The Chair welcomed to the meeting Councillor Cusworth, Cabinet Member of Children and Young People Services (CYPS), Kelly White, Assistant Director for Early Help and Anne Hawke, Head of Service for Performance and Quality.
The Chair invited the Cabinet Member of Children and Young People Services to introduce the report, during which the following was noted:
· The Strategy aligned with the Government vision, which was to transform Childrens Social Care. The Strategy focused on Family Help, to ensure timely and effective support for families. · There was an emphasis on a collaborative whole system approach, which involved various services to support families. The Strategy aimed to provide support at the earlies opportunity, to avoid escalation of concerns and reliance on statutory services. · The Strategy would give special consideration to the challenges faced by teenagers and their families. · The Strategy was implemented through co-location arrangements in the Family Hubs, which offered a range of services and support. An example was provided of the recent launch of the baby packs at Brookfield Family Hub. The focus of the Family Hubs was building resilience in families and supporting them through problems independently, through supportive working ways and the co-location of services and advice.
The Chair invited the Assistant Director for Early Help to provide the presentation, during which the following was noted:
· There had been a lot of work completed across the Partnership, such as engagement with service users, children, families, partners and beyond.
The Key vision and Key Principles- · Early Help was a shared responsibility and was everyone’s business. Early Help was not a Council run offer; it was a partnership approach. · Children, young people and families would receive the right support, at the right time, in the right place, from the right person. It was important to recognise the right person to support a family and this was often not a council officer. · Early Help had purposeful conversations and provided support to improve outcomes. · Early Help worked restoratively with children, young people and families. · Prevention and early help support was better than late intervention. · Public, voluntary and community sector organisations had combined to create the early help system and worked together to meet the needs of children and their families. · Family Help provided the right support at the right time so that children could thrive with their families.
Shared Responsibility- · The service had an Early Help assessment which was used by the Council and all partners across the partnership, such as schools. This was a standalone assessment, if a family was required to escalate to social care intervention, this was another separate assessment. This was recognised as difficult for families as they were required to tell their story twice, as a result of this a new revised assessment had been ... view the full minutes text for item 55. |
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To consider and approve the Commission’s Work Programme. Minutes: The Committee considered its Work Programme, and the following was noted:
· At the next meeting, the Commission would consider reports and updates on the following items- o The Kinship Care Offer, including new procedures, policies, and the local offer. o An update on the Youth Justice Service, including an overview and update on the new inspection framework.
· A future workshop would be arranged for members of the Commission, to consider the following items: o An update on the Prevent Programme o An update on the protest recovery response.
Resolved: - That the Work Programme for 2024/2025 be approved. |
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Improving Lives Select Commission - Sub and Project Group Updates
For the Chair/Project Group Leads to provide an update on the activity regarding sub and project groups of the Improving Lives Select Commission. Minutes: The Chair provided a progress report on sub and project group activity, during which the following was noted:
· The Preparation for Adulthood Spotlight Review Recommendations that were presented to Cabinet, had all been accepted by Cabinet. Members and Officers present at the Cabinet meeting thanked the Commission for their work on the review and stated how important the work had been. · Members of the Commission were asked to consider whether there were any potential areas for review activities that they would like to suggest. Members were asked to email any suggested review topics to the Governance Advisor.
Resolved: - That the update be noted. |
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Urgent Business
To consider any item(s) the Chair is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency. Minutes: There was no urgent business. |