Agenda item

[NOTE: V. Kenny having earlier declared an interest in this item remained in the meeting for its consideration].

The Committee considered a report which provided an update on the Authority’s position in respect of the contacts and referrals, pressures and demands within the Children’s Services division.

Members were reminded that a report had been presented to the Scrutiny Committee at its meeting on 8^th July 2021 and it was therefore considered timely to provide updated information on the current situation regarding the increase in the volume of work within the division; the challenges faced and the potential need for additional resource.

The report detailed the remit and structure of the Children’s Services division and set out pertinent information to the Committee in respect of the staffing levels and the processes followed by the Central Referral Team (CRT), Assessment Team and Long-term Child Care Teams, to deal with cases.  Furthermore, the report referred to the preventative services provided by the division, including the Flying Start and Families First initiatives and also referred to a new structure implemented in response to the increase in Electively Home Educated (EHE) children.

The report showed an increase in contacts since the onset of the pandemic, though it was noted that the number of referrals had decreased during 2021/22 which may have been attributable to the Preventative Services having reverted to the provision of  face to face support with the easement of coronavirus restrictions.

A number of observations and queries were addressed, as follows:

Committee referred to the ongoing National recruitment crisis and concerns were raised regarding the risks presented to the Authority in light of the difficulties in appointing social workers.  The Service Manager provided members with a synopsis of the array of measures implemented to mitigate those risks, including an ongoing review which sought to enhance the salary of social workers to bring the rate of pay in line with other Authorities, and the recruitment of suitably qualified social workers from overseas.  The Director of Education and Children’s Services referred to the favourable working conditions within the Authority, therefore it was pleasing to note that the retention of employees was not an area for concern.  Furthermore, the high-quality service maintained by the division, who were required to deal with complex issues, was commended by the Director of Education and Children’s Services and Committee members.

DURATION OF MEETING

During the consideration of this item, the Committee’s attention was drawn to Corporate Procedure Rule 9 – Duration of meeting and the fact the meeting had been underway for nearly three hours. It was therefore:

RESOLVED that Corporate Procedure Rule 9 be suspended to enable the remaining items on the agenda to be considered.

A concern was raised that not all Electively Home Educated (EHE) children had received a statutory annual home visit from the Authority.  The Director of Education and Children's Services reported that additional funding had been provided by the Welsh Government which would address the increase in the level of demand placed on the division as a result of the rise in EHE children across Wales since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the report be received.