Agenda item

This paper provides an update on the progress to date and work being carried out across the BCP place with regards to the improvements required in the Local Area SEND system. It provides an update of work across the partnership with regards to the SEND Improvement Plan and associated Performance Scorecard.

The Performance Scorecard will both identify and evidence the performance areas and improvement metrics that can demonstrate that the partnership is making sustainable improvements.

The report also outlines the current funding position for SEND services, for the Council.

The Department for Education (DfE) advisor for the BCP Council gave the Committee a verbal update regarding the Children’s Social Care Improvement journey.

The Committee considered the update and made the following comments:

• In response to a question regarding the root cause of the failure and the subsequent improvement journey, the Committee was informed that the focus of Children’s Services Social Care had been lost due to several factors related to the restructuring of BCP Council. The Committee was also advised that the senior leadership team now in place would significantly influence the improvement and success of Children’s Services.
• The Committee was informed that, as part of the improvement journey, BCP Council needed to address the funding challenges related to SEND that were linked to the high needs funding issue. The DfE advisor commended the work done in the allocation and investment of resources within the service on a systemic level. They explained that efficient management of these resources would have benefited the service and positively impacted the improvement journey for Children’s Social Care.
• In response to a query raised regarding other local authorities that have a successful Children’s Social care service and whether those authorities tend to outsource their requirement or own the services they provide the Committee was advised that in some instances the skill of commissioning is dependent on expertise in delivery and the further Local Authorities come from direct delivery the less skilful they become in skilful commissioning. Although there was no direct analysis on performance on this issue the balance in BCP Council was strong.

The Department for Education (DfE) advisor for the BCP Council gave the Committee a verbal update regarding the SEND Improvement journey.

The Committee considered the update and made the following comments:

• The Chair highlighted the potential benefits of adding a health representative to the Committee and agreed to explore that possibility. ACTION
• In response to a query raised regarding the confidence of parents and carers, and what the service could do to reassure them in the future, the Committee was advised that there was a challenge. However, they believed that implementing a system that instilled more confidence would help reassure parents. This included improving response times and ensuring that the local authority, the school, and the health service communicated effectively and with one voice.
• In response to a query raised regarding the government's planned funding for SEND the Committee was advised that while nothing had been confirmed at that time, it was assumed that the funding would be allocated through the direct schools grant to support the high needs block.

The Interim Director for Education and Skills presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'A' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

The paper provided an update on the progress to date and work being carried out across the BCP place with regards to the improvements required in the Local Area SEND system. It provided an update of work across the partnership with regards to the SEND Improvement Plan and associated Performance Scorecard.

The Performance Scorecard would both identify and evidence the performance areas and improvement metrics that can demonstrate that the partnership was making sustainable improvements.

The report also outlined the current funding position for SEND services, for the Council.

The Committee discussed the report and presentation, including:

• In response to a query about the increase in requests from parents and carers, the Committee was informed that these requests often fluctuated throughout the year. They typically rose in August and September due to students transitioning while schools were closed. In October, the requests were at approximately 45%. This situation was being monitored, and the service hoped that the number of requests would decrease once children and young people returned to their school settings.
• In response to a query about the rate of EHCPs being granted when requests were submitted by schools versus those submitted by parents or carers, the Committee was informed that the service would investigate this matter and provide an update at their next update to the Committee. ACTION
• In response to a query regarding the recent events in the locality and how the service ensures that all individuals who could benefit from the events were informed about them the Committee was advised that Children’s Services collaborated with the parent/carer forum, Parent and Carers Together and through the school system to make sure everyone was aware of the events. Additionally, they organised online events for those who were unable to attend in person.
• The Committee was advised that the service had been developing an information-sharing agreement with schools. This agreement would provide Children’s Services with more information on referrals and behavioural patterns. By doing so, the service would be able to identify trends in referrals and parent/carer engagement across different localities.
• In response to a query about students with EHCPs not receiving adequate support in sixth form provisions, the Committee was advised that a sufficiency strategy was being developed to aid post-16 provision and identify improvements that had to be made.
• The Committee was advised that a restructuring was implemented to help the service better address the backlogs in EHCP annual reviews. The new structure, which included assistant positions, provided additional support and addressed issues identified in the processing system.