The Panel will consider a verbal update on the performance highlights from the latest Children’s Services data report.
Contact: Jo-Anne Sanders, Service Director
Elaine McShane, Service Director
Tom Brailsford, Service Director
Minutes:
The Panel received a verbal update on the performance data which was provided by the Service Directors in Children’s Services and the following areas were highlighted:-
Exclusions
Joanne Sanders, Service Director of Learning and Early Support, explained that the ambition across Kirklees as part of ‘our Kirklees futures’ was to secure zero exclusions by 2030. It was important to find the right and most appropriate pathway for youngsters, by securing sufficient places that met the needs of learners.
The Panel agreed that an in-depth report would be provided at the next meeting in March 2023, which showed a breakdown of the key stages and how old the youngsters were that were subject to permanent exclusions and currently suspended. It was also agreed that deeper analysis would be provided which included the reasons for the exclusions and suspensions for children in Kirklees schools, along with youngsters who lived in Kirklees but were educated elsewhere. Joanne Sanders advised that the data looked at the characteristics of young people to show if any trends emerged, so that the correct resources could be directed as soon as possible.
Joanne Sanders provided the headlines of the data regarding permanent exclusions which were:
- There was an increase in permanent exclusions across key stages with the largest proportion at Key Stage 3 & 4,
- There was not a particular pattern emerging with regards to the types of schools that had permanent exclusions,
- There was a small number of schools involved that permanently excluded,
- The number of boys permanently excluded was a higher proportion than girls
- Physical assault was a prevalence in terms of reasons for exclusions,
- After consideration at meetings, some schools re-instated youngsters,
- Further analysis needed to be undertaken with regards to suspensions.
In response to a question from the Panel which asked how the figures for 2021 compared to pre Covid figures, around the long-term behavioural impacts with the removal of face-to-face teaching for pupils, Joanne Sanders advised that that it was important to look beyond when there was disruption to education, as young people were not in school the same way that they were prior to the pandemic. Schools and partners were inclusive and strong engagement had taken place across the system with school leaders which included the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities transformation plan that concentrated on reducing exclusions. A dashboard had been developed which would be shared with schools, and other professionals at specialist meetings. The Panel was informed that specialist teachers around Social, Emotional and Mental Health had been recruited who supported schools and learners at an earlier point, and that there was a tendering process in place for an alternative provision which allowed additional places and included medical teaching, a primary and secondary turnaround provision, along with alternative pathways.
Children’s Mental Health
In response to a question from the Panel around Children’s Mental Health, Tom Brailsford, Service Director (Resources, Improvement and Partnership explained that there had been a reduction in waiting list times in July and August 2022 for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) due to urgent referrals where the waiting times were based upon contact to first appointment. In July and August, a number of urgent referrals were received by CAMHS where professionals prioritised the first assessments and worked flexibly to ensure that there were enough clinicians to meet the demand, and assess young people safely, which had resulted in a reduction in waiting times.
Tom Brailsford explained that there was a need for people in the school system to be aware of the pathways for immediate support, including not using accident and emergency for immediate support, but to go through the single point of access which enabled the crisis and home treatment teams to respond more appropriately, and to use mental health support teams in schools to better support school staff.
The Panel was informed that an in-depth report on CAMHS waiting times and models looked at would be presented to the Panel at the next Panel meeting in March 2023.
Recruitment and retention of staff in Children’s Services
The Panel acknowledged that there was a shortage of child protection staff nationally and asked what Kirklees was doing to recruit and retain staff. Elaine McShane, Service Director - Family Support and Child Protection advised that Kirklees no longer used agency Social Workers. To support development, Kirklees introduced a ‘step up’ training programme for Social Workers and a front-line training programme for Social Workers who were graduates that had taken a previous degree and applied specifically for this type of programme. The Panel was informed that Kirklees also had students from universities across the region who had made a positive choice to come into Kirklees as part of starting their social work career. The Panel noted that practitioners who had completed their training made a positive choice to remain in Kirklees. Elaine McShane advised the Panel that Social Workers were also recruited internally, to move into advanced practitioner posts and team manager posts and that Kirklees had introduced apprenticeships which were aimed at practitioners who worked in services within Kirklees who had skilled knowledge and wanted to do an apprenticeship as a pathway to becoming a Social Worker.
Elaine McShane advised that due to vacancies and slight increase in workload for Social Workers, Kirklees had looked to introduce family support workers and contact and liaison officers into Social Teams to do the day-to-day work which allowed Social Workers to concentrate on their statutory duties. In the Children and Looked after teams, Kirklees had introduced Youth Engagement Workers that linked with the Youth Engagement Service, who worked with vulnerable young people who needed additional support on a day-to-day basis.
RESOLVED:
(i) That the update be noted.
(ii) That a report on permanent and fixed term exclusions (suspensions) would be presented to the Panel at the next meeting in March 2023.
(iii) That a report on CAMHS waiting times would be presented to the Panel at the next meeting in March 2023.