Agenda item

[Darren Martindale, Service Manager, to present report]

The Chair invited Darren Martindale, Service Manager, to present the report. The Service Manager outlined the structure of the Virtual School Head Annual Report 2021 and explained that the presentation would focus on five key themes. 

The Service Manager commented on the profile of children and young people in care or previously care covered by the report.

The Service Manager highlighted the educational achievements and the progress of children, young people in care and the efforts made by schools and the local authority and partners to support them. The Service Manager commented on the school Oftsed ratings attended by children and young people care and reported that 85 per cent of children are attending schools rated as either Good (69%) or Outstanding (16%) which is in line with what was expected and an improvement on the previous year’s results. The Service Manager added that some of the schools are awaiting outcomes of inspections by Oftsed which could affect the results.

The Service Manager commented that one percent of children and young people are in schools rated by Oftsed as being ‘Inadequate’ and explained the reasons for this could be that either the rating of the school was changed following an inspection, or a judgement was made that at the time it would not be in the child’s best interest to move them to a different school.

The Service Manager reassured the panel that every effort is made to ensure that children and young people are attending the best educational provision that is available to them.

The Service Manager explained that it is a statutory requirement of local authorities to have an update Personal Education Plans (PEP) for children and young people in care. The Service Manager gave a breakdown of the PEP completion rates at the end of June 2021. The Service Manager advised the panel that an estimated 80 per cent of children and young people in care have an up-to-date completed PEP based on the monthly analysis of the figures.

The Service Manager commented on the findings based on an audit of 235 PEP plans which reported that 84 percent had SMART targets, an increase of three per cent compared to the figures for 2020.There are ongoing efforts to make sure that all children have a quality PEP. The Service Manager commented that attendance at schools for children in care overall remain high and the aim is to see a slow incremental improvement every year.

The Service Manager commented on the work done to monitor attendance by Virtual Schools team by all children and young people, with half-termly reports being checked, and action taken where issues have been highlighted. The Service Manager commented about the concerns about the level of persistent absence (pupils with less than 90% attendance) after schools re-opened on 8 March 2022. 

The Service Manager commented on the challenges presented by Covid 19 and the range of work being done to promote good school attendance. The figures nationally for school attendance report similar results as Wolverhampton, which showed an increase in non-attendance rates in the first two years of the pandemic, before levelling off.

The Service Manager commented on the issue of school inclusion rates and reported that there had no permanent exclusions for children in care during the academic year and the service is working hard to avoid children being excluded. The Service Manager added that there had been no permanent exclusions in either of the previous two academic years and that this very positive as children in care are three times more likely than their peers to be excluded.

The Service Manager briefed the panel on GSCE and post 16 attainment results.  The Service Manager highlighted details of the percentage of pupils achieving grade 4 and above and grade 5 in core subjects at GSCE in 2021 and added that primary school validated results were not available for Covid related reasons. The Service Manager advised the panel that there had been an improvement in number of the children and young people in care achieving grade 4 and above, and that the figure of 30 per cent is the highest since 2014. The Service Manager commented that the change to teacher graded assessment rather than exams may partly explain the improved results. The service is working hard to ensure that children and young people are as prepared as possible for summer exams which are expected to replace teacher assessments.

The Service Manager commented on the post 16 educational achievements to children and young people and reported good progress. The Service Manager also reported the best results among the 40 young people who were in further education and the highlighted the success at University level with three care leavers graduating with degrees and two were awarded a first and a first-class honours degree. The Service Manager praised the achievement of the young people and the progress made at post 16 level.

The Service Manager advised the panel that DfE issued details of funding and non-statutory guidance in June 2021 which extended the responsibility of the Virtual School Head to include all children with a social worker or who ever had a social worker. This change has been welcomed and is expected to benefit more vulnerable children and young people. The Service Manager advised that the details for this group will be included in the next annual Virtual Head report.

The panel were invited to comment on the report. The Chair thanked the presenter for the report.

The panel welcomed the progress and educational achievements detailed in the report and commented on the importance of efforts to improve outcomes for children and young people in care. The panel praised the progress of young people in care going to University and suggested that more young people in Wolverhampton should encouraged to consider this option and highlighted the important role of Wolverhampton University.

The Service Manager thanked the panel for the comments and added that the Council has been working with the University through the Aspire Project where 30 young people receive support through the virtual school and the results have been positive.

The panel queried the reasons for the change in the grade for age related expectation for cohort groups for children in Year 9 for English (57%) which then increased to 100% for children in Year 10, who were predicted to achieve a Grade 4 or above at GSCE. The Service Manager commented that the change may be due to the small number of the children and the impact that small changes in results can have on the overall results. The Service Manager reassured the panel there were no concerns about this issue and that the performance of young people is closely monitored.

The panel welcomed the successful educational results for children and young people at post 16 but queried the reasons why only 40 young people achieved one more qualification and specifically the reason why 16 young people in year 12 and 13 were not in education, employment, or training in 2021.

Emma Bennett, Executive Director of Families, responded that there were no specific reasons for the issue highlighted and added that these were young people with complex needs, and some would have a background of experiencing trauma, which presents a challenge when trying to engage with them and to consider possible education, employment, or training opportunities. 

The Executive Director of Families added that the Council is continuing to work with young people aged 16 and above to offer the support needed. The panel discussed the impact of the pandemic on the number of work experience and apprenticeship opportunities available. 

The panel commented on the positive educational achievements for young people in care and queried the impact on future exam grade performance when results will be based on exams rather than teacher assessments.  The Service Manager agreed with the view that the expectation is that GSCE exams pass rates are likely to be lower than the current figure of 30 per cent to about 16 per cent with the change in the method of assessment. The Service Manager advised the panel that the service is working with young people to prepare them for exams and offer a range of support for example, one to one tuition.

The panel wanted to formally put on record their congratulations to education achievement of all the children and young people in care.

Resolved:

1.    The panel agreed to note the report and record their congratulations on the educational achievements of children and young people in care.

2.    The panel comments on the draft Virtual School Head Annual Report 2021 to be considered by Cabinet.