Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any Declarations and advise Members accordingly.

There were no declarations of interest. 

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meetings held on 18 January and 1 February 2018.

That the minutes of the above meetings be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

(i)         The minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 18 January 2018 were submitted:

            Matters arising

Page 7:  in response to a question from Mr. David Hytch concerning a potential efficiency from the GwE service the Interim Chief Officer (Education) advised that a 1% efficiency had been negotiated. 

(ii)        The minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 1 February 2018 were submitted.

Matters arising

Page 13: Councillor Patrick Heesom asked if a date had been arranged for the workshop on Post 16 education.  The Facilitator explained that she was liaising with officers to find a suitable date and would inform the Committee once this had been agreed.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the above meetings be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

(a)       That the Committee notes the development of the Integrated Youth Provision (IYP) and endorses the delivery model which was informed by the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) agenda;

(b)       That the Committee endorses the increased focus on targeted and preventative  e.g. increased focus on substance misuse and sexual health innovations as this offered the earliest support to the most vulnerable young people;

(c)        That the Committee endorses the increasing focus on delivering within Flintshire’s secondary schools to support the engagement, attendance and wellbeing of the most vulnerable young people, particularly those who were ‘looked after’ children (LAC) and those at risk of becoming ‘Not in Education Employment or Training’ (NEET);

(d)       That the Committee invite the Youth Council to discuss youth provision issues in the County and provide a report back to the Committee;

(e)       That the Committee endorse the continued focus on safeguarding and educating young people with regard to online and social media safety; and

(f)        That the Committee request that the Integrated Youth Service seek to facilitate community initiated projects with advice and support across Flintshire.

The Interim Chief Officer, introduced a report to provide an update on the overall provision of Integrated Youth Services.  She provided background information and advised that the IYP model worked with other statutory organisations and voluntary sector providers to deliver a bespoke universal, targeted and specialist provision for young people.  She invited the Senior Manager Integrated Youth Provision to present the report which provided an overview of the many strands of service delivery for young people across Flintshire.

                        The Senior Manager reported on the main considerations, as detailed in the report, and explained that the IYP was informed by the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) agenda which enabled the service to provide the most reactive responses and the best preventative provision to match the needs of a cohort which required creative responses to complex individual needs.

                        Councillor Patrick Heesom expressed concerns that the report did not provide a universal service across the County and did not address the “dire circumstances” which prevailed in some areas due to lack of provision.  He also said the report was selective in terms of service provision and was provider not user driven.  Councillor Heesom suggested that a workshop be held to move forward the concerns raised and also ensure that the service was user driven.    

                        The Senior Manager responded to Councillor Heesom and referred to the issues of recruitment and lack of funding to provide additional services.  She advised that the focus was on prevention and informative education and commented on the range of services that young people were sign posted to and which fed into the IYP.

Councillor Aaron Shotton spoke of the need to achieve efficiencies across all services during the ongoing financial austerity.  He said the Authority had worked with local communities to provide a holistic approach to service delivery which may necessitate a change from the traditional provision.

In response to a question from Councillor Kevin Hughes on safeguarding and education of young people against internet and social media abuse, the Senior Manager gave an assurance that robust procedures were embedded into youth services provision to protect young people with regard to online and social media safety. 

                        The Chairman emphasised the need to encourage engagement with local communities and to explore the potential for ways in which the community can provide assistance to maintain service provision in their areas.

Councillor Andy Dunbobbin commented in favour of the Supporting Service Children in Education (SSCE) campaign on the service child pupil premium on which he had attended a seminar in Cardiff earlier in the month.

Following concerns raised by Councillor Patrick Heesom on the lack of youth service provision to the west of the County, the Interim Chief Officer gave a commitment to meet with him and the Senior Manager Integrated Youth Provision following the meeting.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the Committee notes the development of the Integrated Youth Provision (IYP) and endorses the delivery model which was informed by the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) agenda;

(b)       That the Committee endorses the increased  ...  view the full minutes text for item 46.

(a)       That the Committee support the establishment and maintenance of a Flintshire Youth Council to represent all young people in Flintshire in line with the National Participation Standards;

(b)       That the Committee actively consult with the Youth Council to create guiding principles and to provide feedback to the Youth Council on outcomes of consultations to bridge the gap between Local Government and Flintshire young people by opening the lines of communication, leading to meaningful participation and enabling them to engage as citizens in the “here and now” to influence the future;

(c)        That the Committee establishes regular opportunities for the Youth Council to meet with them to broker opportunities for assessing and securing the sufficiency of services that affect the lives of young people they represent.  This will be especially important when assessing the opportunities for those who are identified as having suffered adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s) which have impacted on their lives;

(d)       That the Committee ensures that all information is communicated in a format and language appropriate for the cohort offered in language of choice for young people in order for them to give informed opinions and make decisions;

(e)       That Cabinet be asked to establish a method for consulting with the Youth Council ensuring an appropriate timeframe for them to participate in line with Children and Young People’s Participation Standards;

(f)        That the Committee ensures that the views of the Youth Council and the young people they represent are embedded in the decision making process by using the wellbeing goals, ensuring participation is offered in a meaningful and accessible way and embedding the guidance of Annex B of the guidance for Public Service Boards. “To promote and facilitate the participation of children and young people in decisions which may affect them”; and

(g)       That the Youth Council be involved in assessing and securing the sufficiency of services that affect the lives of young people they represent. This will be especially important when assessing the opportunities for those who are identified as having suffered adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s) which have impacted on their lives.

The Interim Chief Officer (Education and Youth) introduced the report to provide an update on progress in establishing the Youth Council.  She invited the Senior Manager Integrated Youth Provision to present the report.

                        The Senior Manager provided background information and reported that the development of the Youth Council had started with representatives from community groups and schools councils forming a steering group and undertaking preparatory research work.  She advised that representatives of the Youth Council had met with the Leader and Deputy Leader of the Council to formalise the establishment of the Youth Council.  The Senior Manager referred to the main considerations, as detailed in the report, and the Delivering Together, Integrated Youth Provision delivery plan which was appended to the report. 

Councillor Aaron Shotton provided feedback on the meeting held with representatives of the Youth Council which he said had been positive and informative.  He commented on the opportunity which the Youth Council presented for young people to have a strong voice to express their views.

Councillor Dave Mackie said it was important to review the constitution of the Youth Council to ensure it represented a broad range of young people and local communities across Flintshire.  The Chief Officer emphasised that engagement with young people was the key priority. 

            RESOLVED:

(a)       That the Committee support the establishment and maintenance of a Flintshire Youth Council to represent all young people in Flintshire in line with the National Participation Standards;

(b)       That the Committee actively consult with the Youth Council to create guiding principles and to provide feedback to the Youth Council on outcomes of consultations to bridge the gap between Local Government and Flintshire young people by opening the lines of communication, leading to meaningful participation and enabling them to engage as citizens in the “here and now” to influence the future;

(c)        That the Committee establishes regular opportunities for the Youth Council to meet with them to broker opportunities for assessing and securing the sufficiency of services that affect the lives of young people they represent.  This will be especially important when assessing the opportunities for those who are identified as having suffered adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s) which have impacted on their lives;

(d)       That the Committee ensures that all information is communicated in a format and language appropriate for the cohort offered in language of choice for young people in order for them to give informed opinions and make decisions;

(e)       That Cabinet be asked to establish a method for consulting with the Youth Council ensuring an appropriate timeframe for them to participate in line with Children and Young People’s Participation Standards;

(f)        That the Committee ensures that the views of the Youth Council and the young people they represent are embedded in the decision making process by using the wellbeing goals, ensuring participation is offered in a meaningful and accessible way and embedding the guidance of Annex B of the guidance for Public Service Boards. “To promote and facilitate the participation of children and young people in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47.

(a)       That the new Estyn framework for the inspection of education services within Local Authorities in Wales be noted; and

(b)       That the comments of the Committee in relation to the latest draft self-evaluation report be noted.

The Interim Chief Officer (Education and Youth) introduced the report to provide an update on overall service performance.  She provided background information and advised that the report provided an overview of the new inspection arrangements, and a summary of the draft self-evaluation and a copy of the draft report were appended to the report. 

                        The Interim Chief Officer gave a brief overview of the self-evaluation of local government education services and referred to the main considerations, as detailed in the report.  

                        In response to a question from Councillor Paul Cunningham the Interim Chief Officer outlined the role of Estyn and explained that in the main it was for the Authority to determine its own improvement.  She commented on the impact of financial austerity on service delivery. 

Mrs Lynne Bartlett suggested that the word ‘effective’ be added to the description of the partnership working between the Local Authority and the Diocese.

Councillor Patrick Heesom asked that the views of GwE on the draft Self-Evaluation Report 2018 be provided to the Committee when received.

            RESOLVED:

(a)       That the new Estyn framework for the inspection of education services within Local Authorities in Wales be noted; and

(b)       That the comments of the Committee in relation to the latest draft self-evaluation report be noted.

(a)       That the report be noted; and

(b)       That the Committee notes with concern the risks involved in the report which were associated with Austerity and the low funding of the Council.

The Interim Chief Officer introduced the Quarter 3 Council Plan 2017/18 Monitoring Report.  She advised that the Report presented the monitoring of progress at the end of Quarter 3 for the Council Plan priority ‘Learning Council’ relevant to the Committee.

The Interim Chief Officer explained that the Monitoring Report for the 2017/18 Council Plan was a positive report, with 81% of activities being assessed as making good progress, and 69% likely to achieve the desired outcome.  Performance Indicators showed good progress with 84% meeting or near to period target.  Risks were also being successfully managed with the majority being assessed as moderate (67%) or minor (10%). 

            The Chief Officer advised that there were no performance indicators which showed a red status for current performance against target relevant to the Committee.  She reported that there were three major (red) risks identified for the Committee as detailed in the report.

The Facilitator advised that an ‘Understanding of Performance Reports’ workshop for all Members was to be organised for late June/early July, to link to the Council Plan out-turn report to Council on 19^th June 2018.

Councillor Dave Mackie referred to page 236, IP 3.1.1.12 M12, and sought clarification on the number of first time entrants.  He also queried the start date and 50% completion data provided against IP 3.1.1.2 on page 234.    

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the report be noted; and

(b)       That the Committee notes with concern the risks involved in the report which were associated with Austerity and the low funding of the Council.

(a)       That the Forward Work Programme be amended; and

(b)       That the Facilitator, in consultation with the Chair of the Committee, be authorised to vary the Forward Work Programme between meetings, as the need arises.

The Education & Youth Overview & Scrutiny Facilitator presented the current Forward Work Programme for consideration.  She advised that the next meeting of the Committee to be held on 24 May would be a joint meeting with the Social & Health Care Overview & Scrutiny Committee.  She also confirmed that Mr. Arwyn Thomas, Managing Director of GwE, would be attending the meeting of the Committee to be held on 28 June. 

The Facilitator advised that the Quarter 4 Improvement Monitoring Report would be submitted to the meeting of the Committee on 24 May 2018. 

In response to a request from Councillor David Williams the Facilitator agreed to ask that the School Modernisation Update report, due to be submitted to the Committee meeting on 28^th June, include an update on each of the current school improvement work streams.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the Forward Work Programme be amended; and

(b)       That the Facilitator, in consultation with the Chair of the Committee, be authorised

 to vary the Forward Work Programme between meetings, as the need arises.

There were two members of the press and no members of the public in attendance