Annex M. Required evidence and reporting
We invite local authorities to provide an up to date position statement against each of the judgement areas below. There is no requirement for local authorities to do so, and in these circumstances the inspection team will gather the evidence in the course of their inspection activity. The lead inspector provides this template to record a concise summary of the local authority’s position which will form the basis of our discussions throughout the inspection, during which we will seek to triangulate the information you provide with the evidence we gather directly. Please refer to Annex M in the handbook for further guidance on what information to provide in each section of this table.
Item / Judgement area/s / Local authority brief summary of information /Key threshold / decision-making points / Help and protection
Children looked after and achieving permanence / Our NSCB publishes a thresholds document, the “Pathway to Provision”, (Annex A 1.07) which supports the consistent application of thresholds by professionals and in particular the work of our MASH and Early Help Unit. We actively seek to identify professionals or agencies who consistently make poor referrals or who struggle to understand the thresholds so that we can support them in improving practice. We carry out regular audits in respect of threshold decisions and use the results to refine internal guidance and to focus workforce development activity.
The decision for a child to become looked after is made by our nominated Children’s Services manager. Legal planning meetings are chaired by a consistent Children’s Services manager who tracks outcomes and ensures no delay in issuing proceedings. This is supported by our legal planning guidance.
http://nottinghamshirechildcare.proceduresonline.com/chapters/p_legal_planning_meetings.html
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Young people who are homeless and aged 16/17 / Help and protection
Children looked after and achieving permanence
Care leavers / We have a three year Youth Homelessness Strategy, (M1) which was approved by the Council in 2012. Where a young person presents as homeless, a protocol is in place with Targeted Support who assess whether it is safe and possible for a young person to return home. Where a safe return home cannot be attained the Case Manager or a social care worker will provide full information, both written and verbal, to that young person about the looked after process.
We have a range of supported accommodation options available with high, medium and low levels of support from 24 hour on-site support to visiting support only for those with strong independent living skills. We have recently reviewed the commissioning arrangements for 16+ supported accommodation with new arrangements planned to be in place by August 2015. This will include an extension of existing provision to include a more comprehensive 'Host families' service to offer a broader range of provision.
We have confirmed that 84% of all of our care leavers were in suitable accommodation in 2013-14. Houses of multiple occupancy are only used when assessed to be in the young person’s best interests and young people are fully consulted and choose to live together. Bed and breakfast accommodation is only used on very rare, emergency situations. We do not place 16 and 17 year olds in Bed and Breakfast accommodation.
Further information can be found in our Homelessness Position Statement (M2).
Missing from home or care / Help and protection
Children looked after and achieving permanence / Our response to this vulnerable group of children is promoted by the NSCB guidance and training events. Connectivity between missing and CSE is emphasised through training. We have and will continue to focus on improving the quality and timeliness of return interviews, acknowledging the link to identification of risk and improved outcomes.
Our Children Missing Officer provides a central point for notifications and is pivotal in requesting return interviews and multiagency meetings and tracking compliance. There has been an increase in missing notifications received from the police following revisions to the definitions used.
We hold a multiagency ‘hotspots meeting’ which provides tracking and challenge regarding prolific or concerning children and locations. Our Missing Children Steering Group reports to the NSCB and other key stakeholders including elected members.
Our data collation and analysis provides us with a regular oversight of the effectiveness of our arrangements and this was supplemented by a NSCB led multi-agency audit in 2014.
Further information can be found in our Position Statement on Children Missing (M3).
Missing from education / Help and protection
Children looked after and achieving permanence / We have a Children Missing Education (CME) Policy (M4) for which elected members hold officers to account. There are 367 learners accessing fewer than 25 hours weekly (May 2015). We require schools to update us termly on progress towards full entitlement. Learners accessing alternative provision are monitored, for attendance and outcomes.
We take action where children are not on a school roll so that the average number of days that such children have been off roll has, over the last 2 years, reduced from 94 days to 27.
Our Virtual School is highly effective. We track attainment and progress data termly. PEPs are monitored and the Pupil Premium is allocated to schools only upon receipt of an appropriate plan.
Our CME group monitors monthly those children receiving less than their entitlement. Senior officers are tasked to report back on their CME work with their teams and schools, to ensure improvement.
Further information can be found in our Position Statement on Children Missing Education (M5).
Children who are neglected or physically, sexually or emotionally abused / Help and protection / At the end of April 2015, 682 children were subject to child protection plans, an increase over the past year. The rate per 10,000 children is 41.9 which is comparable to national and statistical neighbour averages. We have completed a themed audit regarding repeat plans, showing that decision-making had been appropriate. We are undertaking further work looking at the interface between child protection plans and targeted/universal services.
Neglect is a significant feature in child protection plans, often due to concerns regarding domestic abuse and parental substance misuse. We give consideration as to whether a Legal Planning Meeting is appropriate when a plan exceeds 15 months. We make multi-agency guidance available to help practitioners with cases of neglect, sexual and emotional abuse, supported by single and multi-agency training. Children are only subject to one planning and review process whenever possible, with plans being ended in a timely way when a child becomes looked after.
For further information, please see the Children’s Social Care Core Performance Measurement Set for April 2015 (Annex A 1.03) and the end of year report for Child Protection Coordinators (M6).
Children at risk of or being sexually exploited (CSE) / Help and protection
Children looked after and achieving permanence
Care leavers / Our response to these children is underpinned by NSCB guidance and training opportunities. This includes NSCB events including those for schools and governors, e-learning, single agency training (such as that for sexual health and contraception services), and use of newsletters. These activities reflect the connectivity to missing episodes and acknowledge the vulnerability of those in or leaving care.
Our engagement with young people and parents/carers has included a theatre production targeting 7400 children and parental e-learning which has been promoted through schools.
We have a robust operational response with strategy meetings independently chaired. Intelligence sharing with the police has been promoted to assist disruption. Specialist support to children is accessible via two voluntary organisations.
Work linking to district councils and local businesses regarding licencing has begun. Data and analysis continues to be developed.
We have a cross-authority group which reports to the NSCB and other key stakeholders, including elected members. A recent NSCB audit was positive with areas for improvement identified including the importance of high quality strategy meetings in achieving positive outcomes. We are working through a plan to make the required improvements.
Further information can be found in our CSE Position Statement (M7) and briefing for staff (M8).
Domestic abuse, parental substance misuse and mental ill-health / Help and protection / During 2014-15 27% of all child protection referrals to the MASH involved domestic violence. A snapshot of children subject to a Child Protection Plan in Nottinghamshire taken in April 2015 showed that 29% have a parent with a substance misuse problem, 27% have a parent with a mental health problem and 16% (207 children) have a parent with both.
Across Nottinghamshire we have a range of prevention, support and recovery services for adults and children affected by domestic violence. We have some evidence that these services are effective and produce positive outcomes and we plan to build on this as we recommission services. For the children of those with mental health and substance misuse issues we commission services to reduce the caring needs upon them and child centred therapeutic services to support them.
We have six specific social work posts across early help services directly working with the most complex cases and giving advice to children’s centre and targeted support staff. There are additional social work qualified staff within the Supporting (Troubled) Families teams.
Further information can be found in our Domestic Violence (Annex A 1.09), Mental Health and Substance Misuse (Annex A 1.09) Position Statements.
Looked after children living outside the local authority area / Children looked after and achieving permanence / 87% of our looked after children and young people are placed within 20 miles of their own home.
Notifications in and out of county are managed by our Placements Team and are made within 5 days of placement.
We undertake regular monitoring visits through our Placements Team and the East Midlands Framework Team for all out of county placements.
Our Virtual School and Fair Access officers assist in the admissions process and ensuring that looked after children’s educational needs are met. Transition arrangements are made for children moving to schools in other counties when placed for adoption.
We have strong partnership working arrangements are in place with the Looked After Children’s Health team to ensure that appropriate health services are provided.
Our annual audit of LAC who are placed ‘at a distance’ from Nottinghamshire (Annex A 3.05), last completed in September 2014, highlighted areas of strength:
· Quality of placement,
· Local community links and access to leisure facilities
· Reviews and the C/YP involvement in reviews
· Identification and management of CSE risk
Further information can be found in our External Residential Placements (M9) and Virtual School summary (Annex A 3.08).
Achieving the right permanence option / Children looked after and achieving permanence / We hold tracking meetings every 6 weeks attended by the Court, Permanence and members of our County Adoption Team. This enables awareness at the earliest stage of children who may require an adoption plan and aims to identify children who may be suitable for Foster to Adopt placements. These meetings discuss other aspects of permanence plans that are being made and consider options, for example assessing foster carers as adopters and placing with older siblings who have been adopted. Where plans for Permanency are being made on children and young people under 15 that are not for adoption these are taken for scrutiny to the Permanence Panel.
Our Permanence Team are alerted by the IRO following the second Looked After Review where a parallel plan for adoption is made. At this point the permanence team will begin to co-work a case with the court team to minimise any delay in seeking an agency decision for adoption if assessments of other permanence options have indicated adoption is the preferred option.
We have implemented CAFCASS Plus in Mansfield and Ashfield and will be rolled out across the County by August 2015.
Further information can be found in our Achieving Permanence Position Statement (M10).
Educational progress of children looked after / Children looked after and achieving permanence
Care leavers / We have improved the progress of primary aged LAC over the past 3 years. Secondary aged LAC’s progress is improving but there is more work to be done in this area. Attainment for all LAC is in line with or better than LAC nationally.
New LAC are admitted within 6 days. Where admission is difficult, immediate alternative provision is made. None of our looked after children have been excluded permanently in the last 4 years as a result of direct intervention by our LAC officers.
PEPs are improving. Our Virtual School works with IROs, social workers, and designated teachers to drive improvement. Pupil Premium is allocated to schools only upon receipt of an appropriate plan.
Members and officers demonstrate their ambition for LAC through committees and the Virtual School Leadership Team.
Further information can be found in our Virtual School documentation in Annex A (3.04 and 3.08), “Care2 Work” nomination (M11), and Leaving Care Traineeship Programme (M12).
Rights and entitlements as a child or young person looked after or as a care leaver / Children looked after and achieving permanence
Care leavers / Through our Staying Put Policy (M13) sixteen young adults, aged 18 years and over, are continuing to live with their foster carers.
As part of our pathway planning and at the point of referral to leaving care services young people will receive verbal information about leaving care services which we reinforce with a variety of publications including:
· NCAS – Support for care leavers aged 21-25 with education and training; A guide to employment; Know your rights, know your benefits;
· GETA (Guide to emergency and temporary accommodation);
· CV hints and tips for Young People;
· Staying Put Policy
· Who Cares Trust – Who Cares Now?
· NYAS – Information for children and young people about independent visitors
Our Personal Advisors ensure that young people who may have literacy difficulties also understand the information verbally. They also supply other information with regard to how to make a complaint and access to records.
Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children have access to interpreters at key points along their Leaving Care journey to ensure that they fully understand their rights. We support young people to access solicitor’s appointments, reporting centres and attend asylum hearing tribunals.