Agenda item

[Andrew Wolverson, Deputy Director Commissioning and Transformation, to present report]

The Chair invited Andrew Wolverson, Deputy Director, to present the report. The Deputy Director advised the transformation for Children’s Services is a five- year programme and the report covers the first two years of the programme.

The Deputy Director advised the panel of changes made to the layout of the report.

The Deputy Director advised the panel that the report Transforming Children’s Service Programme (TCSP) details the key achievements, progress against outcomes and priorities for the next reporting year. The TCSP consists of a collection of projects which are intended to achieve the programme outcomes as outlined in the report.

The Deputy Director commented on the changes made to the governance and oversight of the programme and details of the successes. The recognition by Ofsted about the work of the programme and its contribution to improving outcomes for children and young people was highlighted.

The Deputy Director commented on how the programme has been influenced by young people and shared feedback received when they were asked about what they wanted from the transformation programme.

The Deputy Director commented on the strategic drivers for the programme which have been updated and the vision for the future of the service.

The Deputy Director briefed the panel on the key highlights and the future priorities from the TCSP Annual Report 2021-2022.

The panel were invited to comment on the report and presentation.

The panel queried the vision of the programme and the likely impact of current financial challenges facing the wider economy in the future.

The Deputy Director reassured the panel that the transformation programme looks at different ways of doing things, which is expected to lead to efficiencies in the future.  In addition, projects are piloted to check that will have the desired outcomes before they become part of ‘business as usual’ practices. The Deputy Director advised the panel in response to concerns about future funding for the programme that there are ongoing conversations with strategic partners organisations around joint funding arrangements.

Emma Bennett, Executive Director of Families, commented that the programme is aimed at reducing the demand for specialist support services and the savings have been used to fund other work that supports families. The Executive Director of Families commented on the positive impact of the programme.

The Executive Director commented that any cuts in the level of local authority funding would place non statutory work such as a transformation programme at risk as the focus would be in this situation would be to protect services working directly with families.

The panel discussed the ending of the HeadStart programme and queried what would replace it. The Deputy Director advised the panel that Headstart was a test and learn programme which had now ended and outlined other initiatives which have been developed. The Deputy Director highlighted the funding for mental health support services to build on the legacy of the programme, for example Base 25, Mental Health First Aid training delivered in all schools.

The panel discussed the structure of the report and suggested changes be made to make clearer and easier to follow and provide a level of reassurance about the impact of the programme. The Deputy Director welcomed the comments of the panel and agreed to consider providing further information to address the points raised when presenting a future report.

The panel thanked the presenters again for the report and success in improving outcomes for children and young people.

Resolved:

1.    The panel comments on the report to be noted and actioned where appropriate.

2.    The panel support the recommendations detailed in the report.