Recommended –

That the minutes of the meeting held on 31 August 2022 be signed as a correct record (attached).

(Jill Bell – 01274 434580)

Questions on minutes

Savings policy

Asked whether the savings policy for young people in had now been finalised, the interim Assistant Director for Safeguarding and Review, Commissioning & Provider Services (iAD/SRCP) said that a few final details remained to be resolved.  The Panel asked to be informed of when the policy would be available.

Action: iAD/SRCP

Document setting out entitlements of young people in care

The Panel asked for an update on the production of the revised document on the entitlements of young people in care, including:

whether the Working Group with young people, due to be established in the autumn to oversee the clarity and comprehensibility of the entitlements document, had started work;

progress on supporting young people to prepare a flow chart summarising their entitlements; and

the scope to bring forward completion of the document from the planned date of April 2023, in light of the importance of young people being able to understand their entitlements.

Leaving Care services (LCS) said that the entitlements document had been updated and signed off in May 2022 and was now under review.  Young people had been consulted on a paper version of the document in September: their feedback had indicated that they found the document wordy.  LCS was updating the document on the website, where it was presented as a flowchart.  The Panel made clear that it was essential that Bradford’s young people in care should understand their entitlements: their feedback when they met the Panel on 08 June 2022 had made clear that they did not do so.  The Panel asked again what scope there was to bring forward the proposed date of completion of the document from April 2023.  LCS said that the document was under continual review.  The delay to completion was caused by IT issues.

The Panel asked for a timeline for the various elements of the production of the entitlements document so that it could monitor progress.

Action: LCS

Noting that young people had indicated their wish to be involved in development of the flowchart, the Panel asked who was leading on its preparation and sought assurance that the consultation that officers had held with young people in September did not cut across the Panel’s original discussion with young people on 08 June 2022.  LCS said that the September 2022 consultation had involved the same young people that the Panel had met on 08 June 2022.  Officers had showed young people the Coram website and asked whether that was what they needed: they had said that it was.  The link to Coram would therefore be included in the Council’s offer.

The Panel agreed that its meeting with young people on 07 December 2022 should include a brief presentation on how the Council had responded to the request for clearer information on entitlements and invite young people to give feedback on whether the response met their needs.

Action: iAD/SRCP

The Panel noted that the first version of the entitlements document had been completed; working groups with young people were ongoing; and officers would present the document to young people at the Panel meeting of 07 December 2022.

Corporate Parenting Strategy

Asked for an update on the re-drafting of the Corporate Parenting Strategy to make it comprehensible to young people, iAD/SRCP said that the document, which followed a “you said … We will …” format, had been reviewed with young people to ensure that it was clear to them.  The document had been signed off internally and was on its way to the Chair.

Replying to the Panel’s observation that the consultation with young people at its meeting on 08 June 2022 had given them little time to consider a long and densely written document, iAD/SRCP said that officers had consulted further with all groups of young people of different ages to ensure that the offer was clear to them.

The Panel agreed that the Chair, in consultation with the Deputy Chair, should sign off the Corporate Parenting Strategy in principle and that the document should be brought to the next formal meeting for ratification.

Action: iAD/SRCP

Gym membership for young people placed outside Bradford District

Asked how officers proposed to respond to the request that young people placed outside Bradford be given the same free gym membership as those placed within the District, Interim Deputy Director, Children’s Social Services (iDD/CSS) said that it would be necessary to consider how to finance it and the scope to enter into reciprocal arrangements with other local authorities (LAs).  LCS added that, although it was not part of the Bradford Council offer, discretionary grants could be made to young people placed outside Bradford on request. 

Asked how this would be fed back to young people, officers said that they would explain openly that every LA was financially challenged and that requests that required additional expenditure were unlikely to be agreed.  This feedback would be given at the next Panel meeting with young people on 07 December 2022 and disseminated more widely through the newsletter.  The Chair asked that the wording be cleared with her in advance.

Action: iAD/SRCP

Activities to promote better physical and emotional health

Asked how officers proposed to take forward the request for an extended range of activities to promote physical and emotional health, iAD/SRCP said that officers were exploring with young people (a) their awareness of existing activities and (b) their views on what more was needed.  The Panel agreed that this should be discussed with young people at their meeting with the Panel on 07 December 2022.

Action: iAD/SRCP

Safeguarding restrictions on young people in care going out by themselves

Asked how officers proposed to response to the request made by young people for a clearer understanding of the reasons for, and scope of, restrictions on their freedom to go out by themselves, iAD/SRCP said that this would be discussed at the November 2022 meeting of the forum for young people in care.  Experts from the legal and fostering teams would explain the context and that the restrictions depended on the circumstances and setting rules for each individual young person.   The Panel considered that officers also needed to make it clear to young people how they could challenge such restrictions and ensure that they had appropriate representation.

Asked to what extent the safeguarding concerns relating to an individual young person were discussed with that young person by their social worker, iDD/CSS said that children who were being exploited did not necessarily recognise that fact and therefore did not understand or accept the reasons for restrictions.  Ongoing conversations were required to help them to understand.  Young people needed to know that they could challenge such restrictions though several avenues, including their social worker in the first instance, the Regulation 44 visitor if they lived in a residential facility, an advocate, teacher, foster carer or member of children’s home staff: CSS would accept concerns received through any route.  The Panel noted that, ultimately, it might not be possible to give a young person unrestricted outside liberty: in that case, the reasons needed to be explained clearly. 

Asked how this would be promulgated to young people who did not attend the meeting with the Panel on 07 December 2022, iAD/SRCP said that it would be included in the newsletter.  Asked whether this was also made clear to young people as they entered the care system, the Interim Head of Service for Children Looked After (iHoS/CLA) said that, as they entered care, conversations were held with young people about their circumstances and the rules that applied to them.  As their circumstances changed, so did their care plans: the skill lay in ensuring that carers, social workers, advocates and other professionals remained up to date with the evolving restrictions.

Requests in general from young people

The Panel noted that it would not always be possible to accede to the requests of young people.  This needed to be explained openly at the time of the request to avoid a lengthy bureaucratic process.  In some cases, a request made, for example, at a Panel meeting with Young People would have to be refused – with a clear explanation – at the time, minuted, and no further action taken

Panel feedback on activity session with young people at the meeting on 31 August 2022

Panel members said that the activity day had provided an opportunity to interact with young people in a relaxed and informal way and had enabled young people to display leadership.  It had highlighted the contrived nature of the Panel’s usual interactions with young people, including at its regular meetings with them: the presentations and discussions, while providing useful feedback, did not allow for the development of relationships.  Panel members and officers agreed to reflect further on how relationships could be developed more effectively.  

Action: All

Resolved -

That the minutes of the meeting held on 31 August 2022 be signed as a correct record.

ACTION: Director of Legal and Governance