Agenda item

-           Acting Strategic Director of Children and Young People’s Services to report.

Councillor Beaumont, Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, introduced a report by the Acting Strategic Director for Children and Young People’s Services which highlighted the progress made in the delivery of the Rotherham CSE Strategy and Action plan in the second quarter of 2014/15 and the next steps across the three key priorities of Prevent, Protect and Pursue.

The recommendations of the Jay Report and the others added since have been incorporated into the Child Sexual Exploitation Action Plan and would be reported on in future progress reports to the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board and Cabinet.

During September the Council underwent an inspection of Children’s Services and were also one of eight authorities subject to a Thematic Inspection of Child Sexual Exploitation by Ofsted.

Although this report focused on progress achieved between June – September 2014, additional content and information on key development activity since the report publication had also been included.

The findings from the eight Thematic inspections were published in a single report on the 19^th November, 2014. The report discussed good and poor practice across the eight authorities chosen, but did not identify any detail to a specific authority. The report highlighted twenty recommendations for all Local Authorities, their partners and Local Safeguarding Boards to take forward. These recommendations were currently being considered and any newly identified issues would be incorporated into the existing action plan.

It was also noted that a new child sexual exploitation lead had also been appointed who would assess the multi-agency contributions to child sexual exploitation and pull together the strategy and action plan.  This operational team co-ordinator would pull all the relevant threads together.

The concerns about the appointment of a person to oversee the work of the mutli-agency safeguarding hub were still being addressed to ensure the right sort of person to deliver on this was appointed.

The action plan with the inclusion of all the recommendations arising from the Jay Report and relevant inspections had made it a little unwieldy and it would form part of the operational co-ordinator’s role to give the action plan more focus and actions include responsible named individuals.  The responsibility for the success of the action plan lay with the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board.

Cabinet Members also noted the data summary in relation to Pursue and suggested that a representative from South Yorkshire Police be present to answer any queries when the quarterly report was considered.

The Overview and Scrutiny Management Board had also commissioned two scrutiny meetings to consider the recommendations of the Jay Report on the 12^th and 18^th December, 2014 and would be looking further to the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board to ensure the contents and the subsequent actions in the action plan were right.

Cabinet Members also sought progress on the delays associated with the Crown Prosecution Service, position of the Single Line Manager recommended by Ofsted and whether the voice of the child had been included in the development plan, given that this report was for the second quarter ending 30^th September, 2014 and were informed that the models used within other Local Authorities and the taking account of questions in listening to the needs of the child and their families.

In terms of the Crown Prosecution Service it was noted that this issue had been escalated, but a response was still awaited.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the progress be noted and the further development areas be endorsed.

(2)  That Police attendance be considered when the next quarter report was presented to the Cabinet.