EQUALITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT

COMMISSIONING SERVICE


EQUALITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT

Name of the policy or function being assessed:

Children’s Commissioning Service

Directorate Children’s Services

Date Impact Assessment completed March 2009

Is this a policy or function? Policy o Function Xo

Is this a new or existing policy or function? New o Existing Xo

Names and roles of the people carrying out the Impact Assessment:
(Explain why the members of the impact assessment team were selected i.e. the knowledge and experience they bring to the process).
1. Angela Lewis, Community Resources Manager
2. Karen Badgery, Commissioning Manager
Service Head / Anthony Walters
Signature
Date

SECTION 1

AIMS AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE POLICY

Identifying the aims of the policy
The Commissioning Team is responsible for leading on strategic commissioning for Children’s Services. The team works towards the delivery of Tower Hamlets Children and Young Peoples Plan (CYPP) which sets out our overarching three year vision and strategy to improve outcomes for all children and young people in the borough.
The team is responsible for producing a joint commissioning strategy which underpins the CYPP that sets out our commissioning priorities for the life of the CYPP. The joint commissioning strategy is the route through which we generate agreement to the year on year priorities, actions, delivery mechanisms and resources for all children’s services that we commission.
There are a number of distinct blocks of commissioning across Children's Services (including the Primary Care Trust) covered by the strategy, as follows:
· Family/parent Support Services
· Children in Need
· Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
· Primary Care Trust Children's Health Services
· Children's Centres
· Extended Services
· Careers/Connexions Services
· Youth Services
The Commissioning Strategy is set within the context of the way we deliver services to children and families which is based on a continuum of need from universal (for all children) through to specialist services (where very specific needs are identified in a multi agency context) as depicted in the diagram below.

The Strategy sets the framework in which to commission according to need, not historical provision. It facilitates the opportunity to commission services across providers and has given us the potential to increase the range, scope and volume of provision within available resources.

Rationale behind the policy and its delivery

(Please state the underlying policy objectives which underpin this service and what they are trying to achieve).
The aim of the strategy is to ensure that we identifying priorities and focus activity and resources to where they are needed most to improve outcomes. The strategy also strives to ensure that we achieve optimum value for money across all commissioned services.
The key drivers for Children’s Services are the six key outcomes areas that are the focus of our Children and Young People’s Plan and the priorities set out therein:
§ Being healthy – we want our children and young people to grow up healthy in body and mind
§ Staying safe – we want our children and young people to grow up free from harm, fear and prejudice
§ Enjoying and achieving – we want our children and young people to grow up enjoying life, feeling proud of where they live and what they have achieved
§ Making a positive contribution – we want our children to grow up understanding differences, confident and courageous about the future, able and willing to make a positive contribution to a strong cohesive community in Tower Hamlets
§ Achieving economic well being – we want our children and young people to embark on fulfilling careers and contribute to prosperous communities
§ Excellent Children’s Services – we want all our children, young people and their families to receive excellent services informed by their views, which are easy to access, targeted at needs and delivered locally to make a difference to their lives
What outcomes do we want to achieve from this policy?
We are committed to ensuring that all children have the best start in life so that they go on to fulfil their full potential. Effective joint planning and commissioning is integral to this as it is seen to be at the heart of improving outcomes for children and young people.
What factors could contribute/detract from the outcomes?
We have identified an increase in numbers of specific groups coming to the attention of children’s social care – e.g. young carers, children with complex health needs, children living in families affected by domestic violence. This, along with the growing child population will put additional pressures on Children’s Services budgets in future years.
In addition, the year on year efficiency savings that have to be applied across the Council and PCT and the change to the Council’s grant funding arrangements will potentially limit the opportunities available to fund additional support for our most vulnerable young people.
The challenge for commissioners is to ensure more efficient use of resources when procuring services to maximise the opportunities for targeted groups to access to mainstream provision. This will be achieved by ensuring that we continually base commissioning decisions on comprehensive analyses of need that will allow us to identify gaps in provision, strip out duplication across all commissioned services and redirecting resources to where they are most needed. Reviewing our referral routes will also assist in ensuring more effective targeting of mainstream support.
A further challenge for commissioners is ensuring that the local market is equipped to deliver identified services. To achieve this we will further develop our knowledge of the third sector, stimulate growth when the need arises and continue our drive to build the capacity of local providers.
Are there associated objectives of the policy? If so, what are they?
The CYPP and the Joint Commissioning Strategy are guided by a number of recently published government policy documents which have influenced our commissioning decisions:
Care Matters White Paper
The White Paper, Care Matters, published in June 2007, sets out a range of proposals to transform the lives of children in care:
Aiming high for children: supporting families
Aiming high for children: supporting families was published at the end of March 2007 and builds on the progress of Every Child Matters to secure improved outcomes for children and young people.
Aiming high for disabled children: better support for families
This document was published in May 2007 and sets out the government’s agenda for disabled children. The report was based on a recent review to improve outcomes for this group of children and young people and local authorities are expected to deliver against the key priorities.
Youth matters – integrated youth services and targeted youth support
The Youth Matters Green Paper (2005) sets out a vision of integrated youth support services for children and young people to help young people achieve the five ECM outcomes. Integrated services should be in place nationally by 2008. Central to this vision is a focus on targeted youth support for vulnerable teenagers. (includes Children in Need). The focus of support is on early intervention and multi-agency working.
Aiming High for Young People: A Ten Year Strategy for Positive Activities
This document was published in July 2007 and builds on the Youth Matters Green Paper. It sets out the government’s strategy for positive activities for young people. It is based on the themes of empowerment, access and quality and identifies three priority areas that the government aims to focus on:
Reaching Out: Think Family
This recently published report following the Families at Risk review highlights the importance of the home environment and the crucial influence of parents in determining outcomes for children and the need for all services to ‘think family’.
The Strategy is also guided by the National Service Framework (NSF) that has developed new national standards across health and social care for children. NSF aims to ensure fair, high quality and integrated health and social care from pregnancy, right through to adulthood. The focus of the framework is on early intervention. The relevant core standards are:
§ Standard 1 - promoting health and well-being, identifying needs and early intervention
§ Standard 2 - supporting parents and carers
§ Standard 3 - Child, young person and family-centres services
§ Standard 4 - Growing up into adulthood
§ Standard 5 - Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people.
§ Standard 8 – Children and young people who are disabled or who have complex health needs.
Who is affected by the policy? Who is intended to benefit from it and how?
Who are the main stakeholders in relation to this policy?
What outcomes would other stakeholders want from this policy?
Are there any groups, which might be expected to benefit from the intended outcomes
but which do not?
The strategy is supported by a detailed analysis of need that aims to ensure that those most in need are identified and supported appropriately through our commissioned services. The main stakeholders are:
·  children, young people and families who can expect to see improved outcomes across a range of areas as a result of our commissioning decisions.
·  The Departmental Management Team and senior managers from the Council and Primary Care Trust benefit as stakeholders by having in place a co-ordinated strategy for all children's services commissioning.
·  Service Providers as the delivery agents (including third sector organisations)
·  Existing support groups and networks
Promotion of good relations between different communities
(How does the policy or function contribute to better Community Cohesion?)
How do you promote good relations between different communities you serve based on mutual understanding and respect?
What opportunities are there for positive cross cultural contact between these communities to take place e.g. between younger and older people, or between people of different religious faiths?
Community cohesion is a major consideration in all aspects of service commissioning. The commissioning process aims to ensure that a comprehensive range of services are provided to children and young people that represent value for money. We recognise that this is best achieved by ensuring that services are joined up and complementary. In bidding, potential service providers must demonstrate that consideration has been given to working in partnership with other local organisations in order to promote community cohesion and ensure that services are provided to all sections of the community.
(Specifically identify the relevance of the aims of the policy to the equality target groups and the Council’s duty to eliminate unlawful racial discrimination, promote equality of opportunity and good relations between people of different racial groups).
As described above the strategy is based on analysis of need which drills down into a detailed analysis of the characteristics of children, young people and families so that we can assess whether or not we are meeting their needs. This includes analysing data on all equality target groups.
Policy Priorities:
(How does the policy fit in with the council’s wider aims? Include Corporate and Local Strategic Partnership Priorities)
How does the policy relate to other policies and practices within the council?
What factors/forces could contribute/detract from the outcomes?
How do these outcomes meet or hinder other policies, values or objectives of the council?
The Strategy is ultimately underpinned by the Community Plan priorities as follows:
§ A Great Place to Live - including housing, transport and waste
§ A Prosperous Community – covering learning, worklessness and enterprise
§ A Safe and Supportive Community – bringing together support for the most vulnerable residents with community safety issues
§ A Healthy Community – including public health, access to primary care and mental health
The Strategy is also influenced by our Joint Commissioning Principles and Framework which guides all commissioning activity across our partner agencies. There are ten key principles within the framework:
§ User focussed – Processes and services will be designed and delivered in a way that meets the needs of individual children and their families and encourages greater independence. They will be responsive, easily accessible and of high quality. Services will be delivered in a way that supports children and families to take responsibility for their own achievements and well-being.
§ Celebrating diversity – We will recognise the diversity of children in Tower Hamlets and ensures strategies and services are designed to meet needs of children across our communities.
§ Inclusive – Mainstream services will be delivered in a way that meets the needs of all children, including vulnerable children. Where necessary, these services will be enhanced so children who require specialist support are able to access this within a more inclusive context.
§ Evidence based – Services and interventions that are commissioned or provided by Children’s Services will be based on evidence about effectiveness.
§ Strategically directed – We will strategically assess the best ways of meeting the needs of children across our communities and will plan and co-ordinate a coherent response and target resources effectively.
§ Open and Transparent – We will ensure that its decisions and actions are open and transparent.
§ Accountable – We will be accountable to all its different stakeholders for its performance.
§ Value for money – We will ensure that the resources that children’s services and the PCT influence or which they direct are used in the most effective way to provide the best outcomes for vulnerable children.
§ Choice – As far as possible, we will work to ensure children and their families are offered a choice about who delivers their services and how and when the services are provided.
§ Outcome focused – the focus of the work of we will be on delivering improved outcomes for vulnerable children and their families.
The Strategy is also closely aligned with the principals of the Tower Hamlets Partnership Third Sector Strategy, which facilitates collaborative and partnership working between all sectors in order to help deliver the goals set out in the Community Plan.

How the policy is implemented

(How is, or will, the policy be put into practice and who is, or will be, responsible for it?)
Who defines or defined the policy?
Who implements the policy?
How does the council interface with other bodies in relation to the implementation of this policy?
The strategy is delivered through our joint commissioning and partnership arrangements with Tower Hamlets PCT as a key stakeholder. In this way, we know that our strategies and service intentions are closely aligned.
Is the service provided solely by the Department or in conjunction with another department, agency or contractor?
The services identified and set out in the strategy are delivered through partnership arrangements between the Local Authority, health service and third sector providers.
If external parties are involved then what are the measures in place to ensure that they comply with the Council’s Equal Opportunities policy?
The Commissioning Plan underpins the Children and Young People’s Plan (CYPP) and is governed by the same monitoring arrangements, as they are inter-linked. The Children and Young People’s Strategic Partnership Group (CYPSPG) is the body through which the CYPP is monitored. The CYPSPG sits within our broader planning and accountability framework which underpins our Local Strategic Partnership.
In line with the Tower Hamlets Partnership Third Sector Strategy, this Strategy aims to promote equity, equality, diversity and fair access for Black and Minority Ethnic organisations, those representing disabled people, women and other socially excluded groups; and for the people they represent. Contracts held with our Commissioning Team include equalities monitoring and ask that all providers hold Equal Opportunity Polices and act on these.


SECTION 2