The report of the Chief Executive (Document “D” To Follow) outlines the background to the establishment of the Children’s Trust, the progress to date and critical next steps. The report also makes a number of recommendations to the Executive.

NOTE: due to the complex and evolving nature of the information informing this item, the report is still under finalisation and will therefore be delayed in distribution, but will be provided as soon as it is finalised.

(Chris Chapman – 01274 433656)

NOTE: due to the complex and evolving nature of the information informing this item, the report was still under finalisation at the time that the agenda was published and was delayed in distribution, it was published as soon as it was finalised in accordance with paragraph 9.4 of Part 3B of the Constitution.

The report of the Chief Executive (Document “D” which contained an NFP appendix) outlined the background to the establishment of the Children’s Trust, the progress to date and critical next steps. The report also made a number of recommendations to the Executive.

The Chief Executive introduced the report and advised members that this was the first in a series of reports on the establishment of a Children’s Trust which would operate from 1 April 2023.  She stressed that the Council would retain statutory responsibility for services to children and this would be discharged through a contract.  She added that scrutiny and Corporate Parenting Panel would remain with the Council.  She emphasised that the first priority was to engage with staff, trade unions and elected members and that 22 workshops had been held and a dedicated mailbox had been set up and over 800 people had been heard from with a wide range of feedback.  She added that work was being undertaken on what might be transferred.  She noted that support had been procured from Price Waterhouse Cooper which was funded by the DfE and that ongoing discussion were taking place with the DfE on further financial support.  She added that the Council was engaging with all other trusts in England.  She advised that Eileen Milner had been appointed as the Chair of the Trust and preparations were being made to recruit key personnel and Shadow Directors.  She added that it was proposed that the Children’s Trust would be responsible for Children’s Social Care, Youth Justice and Early Help and Prevention.

The Leader welcomed the proposals and committed to work with government to establishment the Trust as soon as possible.  She also welcomed the appointment of the Chair.  She emphasised that Councillors would continue to have responsibility for children in the district and would be accountable for the performance of the Trust with clear lines of accountability.  She thanked staff for their feedback and commitment to the children of the District.

The Chair of the Children’s Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee was pleased to note the progress that had been made and the ambitious timeline to establish the Trust.  He stressed the need to continue the improvement journey and noted that there were some concerns regarding the transition period which he hoped would be managed.  He welcomed that the Council had accountability but stressed the importance of getting the right balance to ensure that the Trust had operational freedom.

The Children and Families Shadow Portfolio Holder stressed that it was imperative that the improvement journey continue and that vacancies continue to be filled during the transition period.  He stressed the importance of the whole Council and all political parties working together for the children of the district.

The Leader stressed that he improvement journey had to continue and that the Commissioner was clear that the work on the Trust could not destabilise the improvement journey.  She added that the Commissioner was chairing the Improvement Board and the Council’s improvement journey remained focused.  She noted that establishing a Children’s Trust was a positive step and the relationship between the Trust and the Council needed to be excellent and worked on to give the best service for children in the district.  She was joined by the Children and Families Portfolio Holder in stressing that cross party working on delivering the Children’s Trust would continue.

The Chief Executive gave an assurance that establishing the Children’s Trust would not detract from the improvement journey.  She added that the Strategic Director of Children’s Services and her Management Team would work on continuing the improvement journey and the establishment of the Trust would be dealt with by other officers.

The Children and Families Portfolio Holder concluded that the relationship between the Council and the Trust needed to be seamless.  She added that the concerns raised by the Chair of the Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee regarding accountability would be dealt with in the contractual arrangements.

Resolved that –

i.     Delegated Authority is given to the Council Chief Executive, (in
consultation with the Leader, Portfolio Holders, Strategic Director
Corporate Resources, Director of Finance, City Solicitor, Trust
Chair Designate and the DfE) to agree the final name for the
Children’s Trust.

ii.     Delegated Authority is given to the Council Chief Executive, (in
consultation with the Leader, Portfolio Holders, Strategic Director
Corporate Resources, Director of Finance, Director of Children’s
Services and City Solicitor) to agree the terms of, authorise and
sign the Memorandum of Understanding on behalf of the
Council, recognising that although it is not technically, a legally
binding document it will, in practice, commit the Council to the
course of action described within it.

iii.    The Executive approves the establishment of the Children’s Trust
as a wholly owned Company Limited by Guarantee. Following
the appointment of the Chair and the other directors, the
company should then decide whether to seek registration as a
Community Interest Company.

iv.   Delegated Authority is given to the Council Chief Executive, (in
consultation with the Leader, Portfolio Holders, Strategic Director
Corporate Resources, Director of Finance, Director of Children’s
Services and City Solicitor) to agree the terms of, authorise and
adopt the Articles of Association on behalf of the Council.

v.    Delegated Authority be given to the Chief Executive to lead
negotiations with DfE on behalf of the Council to (amongst other
matters):

a.    Negotiate the suite of corporate, commissioning and ancillary documentation necessary for the implementation of the arrangements with the Children’s Trust

b.   Undertake appropriate consultation with the Section 151
and Monitoring Officer.

c.   Agree the contract sum and the corporate support
services (amongst other matters such as VAT and tax
treatment).

d.   Establish the ‘best negotiated position’ for the Council
that meets the legal requirements imposed by the
Direction and references the needs of the Company in
relation the effective delivery of the transferring services.

e.   In reference to the recommendations contained in
subparagraphs a-d above, negotiate and agree the
terms of any other contractual and corporate
documentation referenced within the MoU such as the
Governance Side Agreement, Service Delivery Contract,
any support services agreement, pensions agreements,
occupation agreements for property, deed of novation of
third party contracts and other formal agreements, legal
or otherwise, including satisfying and complying with all
procurement and corporate or Council governance
requirements that may be required to enable these
recommendations to be implemented.

f.    Any key decisions in relation to the above to be
undertaken in consultation with the Leader of the
Council and the relevant Portfolio Holders.

vi.    In order to provide effective strategic leadership of the Children’s
Trust a Chief Executive be appointed. The recruitment of the
Chief Executive should commence immediately in liaison with
the Chair of the Children’s Trust as per the terms of the MoU that
are summarised in Appendix 3 of this report. Agreement that
Interim arrangements may need to be put in place in order to make progress with the establishment of the Children’s Trust
board and associated contract negotiations.

vii.   The Executive approve the following proposed scope of services
for which the Children’s Trust will be responsible from 1 April
2023:
i.              Children’s Social Care
ii.             Early Help & Prevention
iii.            Youth Justice Service
And reserve for future decision, the process for finalising the
scope of corporate support services.

vii.   Bi-monthly reports are brought to the Executive with the next report scheduled for August.

The Executive notes:

a)    The DfE appointment of Steve Walker and Eleanor Brazil as
Commissioners to support Children’s Social Care Improvement and the
establishment of the Children’s Trust.

b)    The appointment of PWC to provide Programme Director / Programme
Management support to the process.

c)    The appointment of Bevan Brittan as external legal advisors to the
Council

d)    The appointment of Eileen Milner as Chair of the Children’s Trust
following a competitive selection process undertaken in partnership with the DfE. The Council welcomes Eileen to the role and looks forward to future working relationships.

e)    Consultation and engagement will continue. This will include full TUPE consultation with all employees affected by the creation of the Children’s Trust.

f)     The high-level programme plan and governance arrangements
programme to establish the Children’s Trust.

ACTION: Chief Executive