Local Authority Youth Work Managers Sub Group Meeting

Friday 5th September 2014

10.00am – 2.30pm

YouthLink Scotland Office

Rosebery House

Edinburgh, EH12 5EZ

Draft Minutes

  1. Welcome & Apologies

Attendance

Andrea McMillanGlasgow Life

Beverley AkinlamiWest Lothian Council

Bill InnesOrkney Council

Bill MillerStirling & Clackmannanshire Councils

Brenda LeaskShetland Council

Brian HuttonPerth & Kinross Council

Craig SingerAberdeen City Council

Frank ThomsonSouth Lanarkshire Council

Heather LaytonEast Renfrewshire Council

Hugh ScottInverclyde Council

Jennifer MillerAngus Council

Karen DelaneyMoray Council

Kenny LindseyDundee City Council

Kevin WellsEast Ayrshire Council

Laurence ReidMidlothian Council

Liz FergusNorth Lanarkshire Council

Ross MartinFife Council

Simon RossEast Dunbartonshire Council

In attendance

George SinclairEducation Scotland

Gillian LithgowYouthLink Scotland

Graham NorrisEducation Scotland

Heather Fuller Education Scotland

Jane DailyYouthLink Scotland

Mandy ToogoodEducation Scotland

Nicola SykesEducation Scotland

Peter Donachie Scottish Government

Peter TaylorCLDMS

Apologies

Angela MorrellNorth Ayrshire Council

Dougie FindlayAberdeenshire Council

Jim SweeneyYouthLink Scotland

Laura KerrSouth Ayrshire Council

Mark ConwayWest Dunbartonshire Council

Mark MalloyDumfries & Galloway Council

Martin TurnbullArgyll & Bute Council

Pablo MascarenhasHigh Life Highland

Rab ByfieldCity of Edinburgh Council

  1. Curriculum, learning, teaching and assessment (CLTA): National Forums Graham Norris

The overall purpose of the CLTA National Forums is to secure, consolidate and embed improvements to the curriculum, learning, teaching and assessment, and maintain their relevance for all learners and ensure they are capable of delivering high-quality learner outcomes.

The forums are being established in three phases, the first of which is now underway. This first phase, which is very much the ‘pathfinder/piloting’ phase, will establish the following forums led by Education Scotland Senior Education Officers.

•Expressive Arts 3-18 (led by Ron Cowie)

•National Digital Learning Forum (led by Dr James Fanning)

•Mathematics and Numeracy 3-18 (led by Carol Copstick)

•The Middle Years 8-16 (led by Alison Drever)

Future phases will establish 3-18 forums in the remaining six curriculum areas and also for Gaelic, The Early Years (0-9) and The Upper Years (14-19).

The first meetings of the first group of forums will take place before the end of this year. Members will be expected to attend four full day meetings each year and for a term of one, two or three years.

Graham invited members to nominate up to four practitioners, one for each of the first group of forums. ACTION: All MembersIt was agreed that nominations should be sent in the first instance to Bill Miller so that these can be coordinated on behalf of the group (Please see copy of Bill email attached for further details)

  1. Minute of last meeting 19.06.14

The minutes of the meeting which took place on the 19th/20th June were approved by those present as a true record.

  1. Business Arising

4.1 Scottish Youth Parliament. It was agreed that Bill should liaise with Hamira with regard to the use of LA fees with a proposal that any underspend should be used specifically for the delivery of SYP Sittings and support to the Local Authority Host.

4.2 Youth Scotland

Unfortunately Ian McLaughlan was not able to attend the Youth Work Managers meeting in September as initially intended, however Ian has sent through a copy of his presentation (circulated with this email) and has agreed to attend the December meeting of the group.

4.3 Youth Work Survey

It was agreed that the key highlights of the Youth Work Survey should be published, perhaps a one page leaflet which might include demonstration case studies which support the findings. ACTION: Gillian agreed to liaise with the original working group members to progress this work.

4.4 CLDMS Conference

The CLDMS Conference will take place on the 30th/31st October in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Glasgow. The focus of the event will be the CLD Guidance and Regulations.

  1. Feedback from members attending other meetings

5.1 Policy Forum

Brenda Leask reported that the last meeting of the policy forum which took place on the 21st August focused on a review of previous year’s work including;

  • Discussion about potential Employability Award for employers of young people
  • Review of the work completed on Youth Work & Sport
  • Agreement to explore further the 8 – 12 work and the types of activities and outcomes being offered/achieved
  • Mental Health1st Aid
  • Poverty Work

The group agreed to focus on the following areas of work moving forward

  • Connectivity & Communications
  • Carers Bill
  • Employability and wider achievement
  • Links to FE/HE

5.2 CLDMS Workforce Development Group

The workforce Development Group is currently working with partners Education Scotland, CLD Standards Council. YouthLink Scotland, SCDC and WEA to conduct a CLD Workforce Survey. The initial pilot will begin shortly pre-Christmas with the full survey taking place after Christmas.

The National Training & Development Network is going to be re-established and led by the CLD Standards Council.

There was a short discussion by the YWM group about the Innovation & Improvement Grants and members reflected some disappointment in terms of not being able to access this for workforce development programmes. There was a call for more transparency re the process and outcomes. In addition there was a call for investment in workforce planning

5.3 Members Network

Ross Martin and Frank Thomson noted that the Members Network took place on the 4th September and the agenda focused on the Sports & Legacy with inputs from:

  • North Lanarkshire Ambassadors
  • Youth for Christ
  • Youth Sports Strategy
  • G2014 Head of Games Legacy

The next meeting will be held on the 4th December

5.4 Young Scot Advisory Group

Hugh Scott circulated an update from Young Scot (paper attached)

Hugh informed the members that he was now a member of the Young Scot Board. ACTION: Hugh It as agreed that Hugh would circulate a short list of questions to the YWM group in order to gather views prior to the next Young Scot Board meeting.

5.5 Youth Scotland Health & Wellbeing Group

Brian Hutton reported that there had been no further meetings of this group

5.6 SYP Board

No update available from Dougie Finlay

5.7 Review of Youth Achievement Awards

Liz Fergus noted that were a number of changes proposed from UK Youth that would have a direct impact of the delivery of YAA in Scotland. These included;

  • Reduction in subsidy from UK Youth
  • New accrediting body
  • Discussions with SQA re a bespoke award

Members ask Liz to clarify with Youth Scotland how the transition would impact on young people part way through the award. ACTION: Liz agreed to keep the group updated on the developments.

5.8 Teenage Pregnancy Review

ACTION: Liz agreed to circulate the papers

5.9 YouthLink Scotland Board

Bill Miller noted that there would be two vacancies for LA/CLDMS reps on the YouthLink Scotland Board. Nomination papers are available from YouthLink should you be interested in being on this group.

  1. Education Scotland – Insight

Peter Donachie, Scottish Government gave a presentation on Insight, the Senior Phase Benchmarking Tool (copy of presentation attached) this was followed by a presentation from Heather Fuller, Education Scotland on Profiling (presentation attached)

The YWM group welcomed the opportunity to hear more about these developments and welcomed the ethos around Profiling and noted some challenges in relation to Insight. These included;

  • The fact that it is linked to SCQF and therefore didn’t capture non SCQF levelled wider achievement e.g. DofE Awards
  • Insight didn’t capture the significant learning achievements of the younger pupils
  • Insight focused only on schools, how were other education providers benchmarking their work with the 16 – 18 school leavers
  • How does Insight link to Activity Agreements? Is there a mechanism to link both?
  • Through Insight it is the School that gets the credit for the learning, there is no recognition of the input from partners e.g. CLD

Education Scotland offered to continue this conversation with the YWM Group as the initiatives develop.

  1. Youth Work Outcomes & the European Report: the value of youth work in the European Union

It was agreed that a specific meeting should be held to explore the potential for a suite of youth work outcomes for the sector.

This initial meeting would look to utilise the European Youth Work Outcomes draft a NATIONAL Suit of Youth Work Outcomes which were mapped against the Curriculum for Excellence Outcomes, GIRFEC and SHANARRI.

There would be an expectation of common language and a separation of Youth Work Outcomes for Outcomes for Young People

ACTION: Gillian agreed to circulate a possible dates for a late October meeting in order to bring those interested in taking this forward together.

  1. AOB

8.1 YouthLink Scotland & Equalities: Jane Daily

Jane Daily highlighted the work she was doing for YouthLink Scotland in terms of equalities. She was keen to understand the extent to which YouthLink Scotland reaches and engages with youth work organisations that provide support to young people with protected characteristics and improve this where possible to ensure YouthLink demonstrates best practice.

In addition Jane noted that as well as taking YouthLink through this process she is keen to share the learning with our membership and ask the members of the group if they would be happy to complete s short survey to find out what information, advice, support they would want form YouthLink.

ACTION: Jane agreed to circulate a short survey to the members to gather feedback.

8.2 Dates of Future Meetings

Friday 12th December 2014

Friday 13th February 2015

Thursday 11th & Friday 12th June 2015 for the joint residential with NVYWOS

Friday 4th September 2015

Friday 11th December 2015

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