Date:25th April 2007 Time: 1.30pm
In attendance:
NAME / ORGANISATION / Attending / NAME / ORGANISATION / AttendingBoard Members
Terry Garner (Chair) / Strategic Director CYP / / Ruth Purdie / N. Wales Police / X
Bob MacLaren / WCBC Safeguarding and Support / / Sue Willis / WLHB /
Peter Stevenson / Public Health / / Cilla Robinson / NEW NHS Trust /
Clare Field / WCBC Prevention and Inclusion / / Carol Moore / Probation / X
Cllr. Arwel Jones
Cllr. Pat Jeffares / WCBC (Lead Member)
WCBC / X
X / Hywyn Williams / WCBC Learning and Achievement /
John Gallanders (Vice Chair) / AVOW / / Sally Rees / WLHB
Lead Non-Executive /
John Leece-Jones / Non-Executive Director
NEW NHS Trust /
Officers
Angela Roberts / WLHB / / Jan Jones / Head of Service: Perf., Support and Development /
Also present at this meeting: / 2.
Distribution: As above, cc Andrew Figiel Minutes taken by: Jan Jones
Agenda/Points covered: / Respons- ible person:- Apologies
- None provided.
- Previous Minutes (28/02/07) and matters arising not already on the agenda
Action: CF to feedback to the Framework Partnership Board
Previous Minutes (28/02/07) and matters arising (continued)
Pg. 2: Translation: BMcLhas progressed this issue with Celia Gibson (Equalities Officer with Wrexham CBC).WCBC Executive Board have agreed a two-step approach involving Language Line (telephone services) and a list of potential providers of services.
This list would be open to other Partners to access with the proviso that any organisational requirement to carry out security and other checks beyond those put in place by Wrexham CBC would be the responsibility of that organisation, not the Council. A standard rate will be agreed which Partners could, hopefully, also take advantage of.
Language Line is prohibitively expensive for small volume users and so the ability to combine organisations to achieve a lower charge would be welcome. SW believes that health organisations have a contract with Language Line and so it might be possible to get an even more competitive price by combining forces.
Action: BMcL will pass these thoughts through to Helen Gerrard who is dealing with this from the legal angle and will update Partners at the next meeting
Pg. 4 (4.4.1): CAMHS: TDG outlined briefly the discussion which had taken place at this morning’s Health, Social Care and Well-being Strategic Partnership Board meeting re. funding/resourcing issues. Although this has been agreed by Chief Executives as a key priority it is more difficult to re-align budgets.
SR pointed out that these delays had potentially damaging ramifications for the children waiting to access services and would cost more money in the long run as delays tend to lead to the need for more intensive interventions eventually.
TDG/CF are meeting with Andrew Figiel tomorrow (26/04/07) to see if a way forward can be identified.
Pg. 4 (4.4.2): Healthy and Active ScoG – Omission to Minutes of 28/02/07. A paper providing a PRINCE2 project outline for an integrated service for children with disabilities was tabled and discussed at the last meeting.
Decision: Board members agreed to the contents of the project plan in principal on 28 February 2007
Pg. 6 (5.5): Cymorth: SW asked if a breakdown of spending for 06/07 would be brought to the Framework Partnership Board. JHJ responded that this could be provided if so wished.
Action: JHJ to provide breakdown at next meeting / CF
BMcL
JHJ
Decision: The Minutes of previous meeting (28 February 2007) were approved
3. Confirmation of Agenda
- Nothing further raised/added.
4. Strategic Co-ordinating Groups
4.1 Learn and Achieve SCoG
4.1.1 Verbal update
- HWhas sent out a letter asking for SCoG nominations. The meeting is set for 18 May 2007 @ 9am. This will be largely a ‘scene-setting’ and clarification meeting.
- A second meeting will be arranged fairly soon after the first to move business forward (ie. June or July).
- Proposed Task and Finish (TF) Groups will be identified.
- JHJ emphasised the important role of the Partnership Advisory Group (PAG) in looking together at proposed TF Groups to ensure that nothing important has been overlooked and also to identify any possible duplications, complexities and tensions. The Framework Partnership Board will then be formally asked to approve the TF (and other) Groups and the business plans/work programmes arising from these.
4.2 Enjoyment and Participation SCoG
4.2.1 Verbal Update
- CF informed the meeting that she will conduct one further meeting of the previous sub-group to clear up outstanding issues before constituting the new SCoG. This meeting is scheduled for the first week in May.
- The Anti-Social Behaviour Team which is being established will become a TF Group within this SCoG. CF explained that this is a group which is hoping to attract internal Council funding. Elected Members are happy with the concept of the Team but have asked for some slight amendments to the Council Strategy document before making a final decision on funding.
- Participation Standards have been published by WAG and organisations will be measured against these by regulators such as Estyn.
Action: JHJ will send on information of membership of previous sub-groups to provide a starting point for consideration of membership of new TF Groups / JHJ
JHJ
4.3 Safe from Harm ScoG (also LSCB Development Group)
4.3.1 Verbal Update
- The group met yesterday (24/04/07). BMcL believes issues re. governance arising from the statutory obligations placed on this group over and above those emanating from the Framework Partnership requirements have now been resolved.
- The LSCB Training Sub-Group is already up-and-running; the LSCB Audit Sub-Group will be set up shortly (role is to celebrate success and learn the lessons of matters which go awry.)
- The LSCB is required to produce a Business Plan and this task is being led by Marie Lebaqc (Head of Service: Safeguarding). The intention is to keep this simple and modest.
- Some good examples of potential inter-agency work have already been identified which BMcL outlined for the Board (Headteachers and allegations of abuse; licenced child minders).
- There are financial considerations to be borne in mind when drawing up the business plan. Inevitably, aspirations and priorities will need to be constrained by the availability of resources.
- PS pointed up the example of the Chronic Disease Management Group of which he is a member which tends to focus on adult issues but which clearly has a brief to consider the CYP population in this respect. Should the CYP elements come to the Framework Partnership (via a SCoG)? How can the Framework Partnership Board influence this group’s agenda? Many other such examples will emerge as partnership working develops.
- CR explained that a flow chart mapping the work and relationships within the Chronic Disease Management Group is being produced and she will bring this to this Board when it is completed.
4.4 Healthy and Active SCoG
4.4.1 Verbal Update
- The first meeting of the SCoG is scheduled for 01 June 2007. Some nominations still required. Lists to be provided by JHJ (see 4.2.1, above) will help with this.
- Agreed that Chairs of eventual TF Groups ought to be on the SCoG (or represented there) to enable SCoGs to track progress etc.
- Young Carers TF Group will move forward outstanding items from previous Action Plan.
- The Advocacy Group has been separated out from the previous Sub-Group to provide a tighter focus.
- The Integrated Children’s Disability TF Group will replace the former Children with Complex Needs Sub-Group. BMcL will discuss recent proposals re. staffing with Health colleagues after this meeting.
4.4.1 Verbal Update (continued)
- The Children and Young People’s Substance Misuse TF Group will be the pre-existing SMAT Commissioning Group which was set up when the SMAT was recently re-organised and re-aligned. This provides a good link into the overall substance misuse agenda and gives a clear focus on issues around CYP without creating new/duplicated groups.
4.5 Children’s Partnership
4.5.1 Verbal Update
- CR explained that she and JHJ had outlined an agenda for the next Children’s Partnership meeting which is scheduled for the 18th. May. JHJ hopes to get this out to people named on the previous membership listing before the end of the week. JHJ will add this list to the website papers – if Board members feel colleagues who should be included are missing please contact JHJ.
- Agenda will focus on membership, purpose of the Children’s Partnership and setting the direction of role and future meetings.
Action: Board members to look at list and identify any additional colleagues who ought to attend Children’s Partnership – notify JHJ / JHJ
All
4.6 Young People’s Partnership
4.6.1 Verbal Update
- No meeting has taken place since the last one. This will be organised after the Summer Conference for all Partnerships.
- JG drew attention to documentation he has received from Alan Whittick of the Welsh Language Board. They are looking into accessibility of provision in Welsh and are focusing on the YP age group at the moment. This will also be a focus for regulators during inspections.
- £10k ESF funding to move forward on Youth Parliament project has now been approved.
JHJ
Decision: The Board endorsed the updates provided
5. Framework Partnership Board – For Action
5.1 CYP Plan – WAG Draft Guidance
- Report for Wrexham CBC Executive Board and Appendix of responses has been produced by TDG and sent out with agenda.
- Nothing has been changed as a result of the consultation day at the Ramada (20/04/07). Very great level of consistency of views/ criticisms among and between the groups feeding back to WAG on that day.
- Key themes in the response provided were:
- the problems created by the different organisations required to work together to produce the plan being pulled in different directions by the expectations placed upon them;
- the level of detail demanded – not really strategic;
- an apparent confusion about the purpose of the plan – to provide strategic information which will move organisations forward together for the benefit of CYP or another regulatory layer/mechanism?
- A debate ensued – will WAG actually take note of the messages coming from the consultation? BMcL thought not – too closely aligned with the English model which is already in place.
- The same criticisms had been made at a recent LHB quarterly Clinical Governance meeting; these concerns will be shared at a regional level also.
- Some (faint) hope that the Regional Co-ordinators who will be appointed might be helpful in the process of drawing up the plan.
- JL-J pointed out that the response to Core Outcome 5 requires revision (post-16 reference too narrow in outlook).
- A very similar version of what Partners have received will go to the WCBC Executive Board and will form Wrexham CBC’s response.
- If Partners are agreeable, the version in front of them (with an amendment to Core Aim 5) will be sent as the Wrexham CYP Framework Partnership Board response.
- Partners were invited to make use of the report and the responses in drawing up their separate organisation responses to the consultation.
5.2 ToR/Governance Document
- All additions/amendments received by JHJ have been incorporated. JHJ has not re-published as there are more amendments to be received.
5.2 ToR/Governance Document (Continued)
- SW/SR/AR felt that a face-to-face meeting was needed rather than an electronic exchange of information. A date will be set for this.
- SW asked for clarification around future reports on SCoGs to Framework Partnership Board meetings. The issue was discussed and it was agreed that the aim is to provide the necessary level of information with the least amount of additional work/bureaucracy.
- It was agreed that minutes/notes of SCoGs ought to provide sufficient information for the Framework Partnership Board, though Chairs of SCoGs may wish to bring specific, more detailed reports to the Board if circumstances merit this. These minutes/notes and any (exceptional) additional reports will need to ready for discussion at the PAG meeting which precedes full Board meetings. This suggests that the date for any reports to SCoGs themselves, and for minutes/notes to be prepared, should be no later than one week before the date of the PAG. The Chairs of SCoGs will highlight issues at the PAG meeting so that these can be considered along with potential solutions for the full Board. Chairs will also need to clearly identify any matters which need to be ‘signed off’ by the Board.
Action: JHJ will incorporate a section on deadlines based on the above into the ToR/Governance document / JHJ
5.3Summer Partnership Conference
- Date proposed is 27 June 2007. Venue: Brymbo.
- Draft outlined produced by JHJ was discussed at length. The following points were decided upon:
- time for discussion of SCoG presentations needs to be lengthened;
- time to be gained by altering start/finish times;
- YP/CP issues should be addressed as part of the SCoG deliberations and feedback;
- short presentations by other Partnerships and their interface with CYP would be useful/welcome;
- important to fit in some discussion of CYPP consultation – possibly include overview of Needs Assessment – where we’re up to with this and where the gaps are;
- need to maintain focus on outcomes and progress, not structures;
- useful to devote time to a thematic workshop which looks at partnership working through the vehicle of a single important issue – theme agreed: anti-bullying;
- invitations should be made to Partnership/TF Group members in the main, and any other key people whom colleagues feel ought to be invited.
Action: Anti-bullying themed workshop to be organised by AR in partnership with Pauline Preston and Carl Wassal (HW to brief PP/CW). Aim for 90 minutes in total
Action: JHJ to send out diary marker and flyer to Board members/known members of Partnerships/TF Groups. Board Members will also circulate/ promote within their organisations emphasising the need to stay for whole day and not just until lunch time. Attendance to be notified to Elaine Sheldon directly / JHJ
HW
AR
JHJ
ES
5.4Partnership Health Checks
- JHJ provided an overview of the surveys carried out in 2003 and 2005.
- It was felt that this would not generate a meaningful overview of perceptions given the re-structuring and the need for new processes to become more widely understood.
- Information
6.1.1 Performance, Support and Development Update
- The issue of support for Framework activities was discussed. There are some capacity issues at the moment due to staff moving to other posts but these are being resolved; all managers now in post; vacancies in the process of being filled.
- JHJ outlined arrangements to ensure that a better understanding of the work of other Partnership Boards can inform CYP Framework debates/decisions.
- Response required by 23 July.
Decision: The Board noted and endorsed the recommendations in the reports presented / JHJ
- AOB
- Still a need to keep work required carefully under review and to return to the debate re. whether or not a dedicated NSF Co-ordinator is needed.
- Michelle Wright post to be funded from Cymorth central costs – no problem with this as will be covered by savings made from current vacancies as discussed in 6.1.1, above.
- JG asked if Cymorth projects will be monitored as before in respect of slippage issues – eg. whether funded projects have been started on time. Answer is yes – good practice will be built on and developed; ways to reduce bureaucracy further explored; support from WCBC finance will be further developed; one of the posts to be filled will have a contracting/audit focus.
7.2Protection of recreational open space consultation
- JHJ distributed the document to interested parties (only available as a hard copy).
- TDG recommended that a copy be sent to John Bradbury.
- Funding available for appointments to construct a bid.
- New funding always acceptable but issues re. ongoing sustainability, and the need for a credible exit strategy, were highlighted.
7.4Dates of meetings
- Paper showing dates of future Board and PAG meetings distributed by JHJ (nb. 18 July meeting not shown here).
- Debate re. SCoG meeting date arrangements took place.
- Meeting closed at 3.45pm
- Next meeting: (addditional) 18th July 2007; 2.00 – 4.00pm
- Venue: Erlas Centre – Room to be notified
- Please note dates of other meetings as per paper distributed by JHJ
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