Issue - meetings

[To receive the report on health assessments for children and young people in care.]

Jazmine Walker, Head of Children and Young People in Care presented the Health Assessments Report and highlighted salient points. The report provided the Corporate Parenting Board with an update on the challenges

and actions identified to improve the completion and timeliness of initial and review health assessment for all children and young people in care.

It was reported that the performance data for initial and review health assessments, which were previously an area of strength, had shown a continued month on month reduction since July 2020. The response to this decline consisted of a manual trawl and data quality activity undertaken with health and Local Authority colleagues in order to understand the reasons for this level of performance. The data quality activity provided assurance about the number of children with an in-date review health assessment as well as assurance about how the Local Authority will further monitor and improve performance in this area.

It was stated that this work would continue and a full update on outcomes would be provided to Corporate Parenting Board in six months’ time. This would include how changes made had impacted the performance data.

A concern was raised in respect of the accuracy of the system and the manual data trawl and if this may be creating duplicate work. Assurances were offered that changes had already been made to the way data was recorded to enable it to be separated and analysed efficiently and accurately. It was noted that the effects of the changes would take time to filter through and take effect. It was also agreed that an update should only be provided in six months’ time if there were significant changes to report.

Assurances were offered from the Wolverhampton CCG that the majority of children will have had their initial review, it just might mean that some will have had it outside of the 30-day time period. The very small percentage that had not had their review were those who had actively chosen to opt out.

Resolved:

1. That a further update on health assessment performance is presented to Corporate Parenting Board in six months’ time for review if there were sufficient changes to report.

2.    That Corporate Parenting Board note the challenges and actions identified to improve the completion and timeliness of initial and review health assessment for all children and young people in care.