Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee - Tuesday, 5th March, 2019 2.00 pm

Venue: Council Antechamber, Level 2, Town Hall Extension

Contact: Rachel McKeon 

Media

Items
No. Item

14.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 229 KB

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 5 February 2019.

To receive the minutes of the Ofsted Subgroup meeting held on 29 January 2019.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair informed Members that the requested visit to Alonzi House would take place early in the next municipal year.  A Member who was also the Chair of the Ofsted Subgroup reported that the Ofsted Subgroup would be receiving a progress update on Lily Lane Primary School at a future meeting in the new municipal year.

 

Decisions

 

1.            To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 5 February 2019.

 

2.            To receive the minutes of the Ofsted Subgroup meeting held on 29 January 2019.

15.

School Governance Update pdf icon PDF 357 KB

Report of the Director of Education

 

This report outlines the support that the Council has provided to assist with the development of effective school governance across the city including governor recruitment, governor training, development and resources and school quality assurance.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of Education which outlined the support that the Council had provided to assist with the development of effective school governance across the city.

 

Officers referred to the main points and themes within the report which included:

 

·         Governor recruitment;

·         Governor training, development and support; and

·         School quality assurance.

 

Some of the key points and themes that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

 

·         How academies, which were not required to have a local authority governor, were engaged;

·         What was being done to fill the school governor vacancies; and

·         That Ofsted inspections considered the effectiveness of the governing body and what could be done to address any issues related to the governing body before schools were inspected.

 

The School Governance Lead reported that, while they were not legally required to have a local authority governor, some multi-academy trusts (MATs) had asked the Council to nominate someone to join their governing body.  She reported that the Council had good connections with the MATs in the city and that MAT Chairs attended the Chair of Governors’ briefings.  She reported that addressing governor vacancies was a challenge as there was a turnover of governors for reasons outside of the Council’s control, such as changing family circumstances.  She also commented that it was important to ensure that suitably skilled individuals were recruited and were matched appropriately to the right school for them.  She outlined the steps being taken to recruit to vacancies, including working with Governors for Schools, using the Manchester Jobs website and working with Manchester Metropolitan University to hold roadshows with their staff to promote the role of school governors.  In response to a question from the Chair, she advised Members that most vacancies were in north Manchester but that most volunteers were from south Manchester. 

 

The School Governance Lead reported that the Council’s Quality Assurance Team visited schools’ governing bodies and offered support where needed.  She informed Members that the Council had also provided some schools with funding for an external review of their governing body and that this approach had been praised by Ofsted.  The Director of Education outlined how the Support and Challenge Board was engaging with schools, including Chairs of Governors, particularly focusing on schools which were currently judged as “requires improvement” and which were due another inspection.

 

Decisions

 

1.            To thank the School Governance Lead and the School Governance Unit for their valuable work.

 

2.            To note that Members will consider how they can use their networks to encourage people to apply for governor vacancies, especially in north Manchester.

 

3.            To note that the Committee has previously requested a briefing session on the new Ofsted Framework, to be arranged when the details of the Framework are known, and to request that an invitation to this be extended to all Members.

 

[Dr Omara declared a personal interest as the Chair of the Manchester Governors Association.]

16.

Attainment and Progress 2018 pdf icon PDF 202 KB

Report of the Director of Education

 

This report provides an analysis of the 2018 outcomes of statutory assessment at the end of the Early Years Foundation Stage, Key Stage 1, Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 4.  It also includes a summary of performance according to groups by ethnicity.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of Education which provided an analysis of the 2018 outcomes of statutory assessment at the end of the Early Years Foundation Stage, Key Stage 1, Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 4. The report also included a summary of performance according to groups by ethnicity.

 

Officers referred to the main points and themes within the report which included:

 

·         The outcomes of all pupils at every key stage;

·         Outcomes for disadvantaged children and those eligible for Free School Meals (FSM);

·         Progress for pupils with English as an Additional Language (EAL);

·         Outcomes for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND);

·         Outcomes for Manchester pupils by ethnicity; and

·         Next steps.

 

Some of the key points and themes that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

 

·         To note that the education system in Manchester had improved in recent years, particularly the primary sector;

·         Request for information on the Progress 8 measure;

·         What was being done to address the gap in achievement between different groups of pupils;

·         The impact of higher-achieving pupils from Wythenshawe choosing to attend secondary schools in neighbouring local authority areas; and

·         How the outcomes for pupils with SEND who attended mainstream schools compared with those who attended special schools.

 

The Head of Schools Quality Assurance and Strategic SEND reported that Progress 8 measured pupils’ progress between Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 4 and compared it with the national average progress but did not take into account other factors, such as whether pupils were from a disadvantaged background.  She reported that there was a gap between the outcomes of advantaged and disadvantaged pupils in the city, although it was smaller than the gap nationally.  She outlined some of the work taking place to improve outcomes, for example, investment in Early Years and schools using their Pupil Premium Funding to improve outcomes for disadvantaged pupils.  The Director of Education reported that the percentage of Early Years settings in Manchester which were judged as “good” or better by Ofsted had increased from 64% to 98% in recent years and that this should result in improvements in outcomes as this cohort of children progressed through the education system.

 

The Director of Education informed Members that children in Wythenshawe primary schools achieved well but that a significant number of the higher achievers then went to secondary schools in neighbouring local authorities.  She reported that work was taking place to support the four secondary schools in Wythenshawe and improve the educational outcomes for the pupils, using a whole community approach.  She informed the Committee that this included working with a range of partners, such as housing providers, Manchester Airport, local businesses, youth providers and leisure centres, to promote the importance of education and that this would include positive messages about the local secondary schools.

 

The Head of Schools Quality Assurance and Strategic SENDreported that it was difficult to compare outcomes for pupils with SEND in mainstream schools to those in special schools as many  ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.

17.

Manchester Youth Justice Service pdf icon PDF 481 KB

Report of the Strategic Director of Children and Education Service

 

This report provides an update on the work and strategic priorities of the Youth Justice Service including the findings of the recent inspection, the wider review of the service that was planned prior to the announcement of the inspection and the progress achieved in reducing re-offending rates.  

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Strategic Director of Children and Education Services which provided an update on the work and strategic priorities of the Youth Justice Service including the findings of the recent inspection, the wider review of the service that was planned prior to the announcement of the inspection and the progress achieved in reducing re-offending rates.  

 

Officers referred to the main points and themes within the report which included:

 

·         Performance and impact in relation to the strategic objectives set by the national Youth Justice Board;

·         The inspection of Manchester Youth Justice Service by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP);

·         HMIP’s findings and recommendations;

·         The review of the Youth Justice Service; and

·         Developments in Youth Justice Services across Greater Manchester.

 

Some of the key points and themes that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

·         The concerns raised by the HMIP inspectors about the service’s premises in north Manchester;

·         Whether progress had been made in filling vacancies;

·         What was being done to address the number of young people with SEND who were in the Youth Justice System; and

·         Work with partner agencies to reduce the over-representation of black and minority ethnic (BME) young people in custody.

 

The Strategic Lead for Early Help and Youth Justice outlined the incident at the service’s north Manchester premises which took place during the inspection.  She reported that some of the work with young people which had previously taken place at that premises had now been moved to a different venue and that, following a risk assessment and consultation with the Council’s Health and Safety team, additional security had been put in place at the north Manchester building.  She reported that the service was currently in the process of moving out of that premises.  She informed Members that the level of staff vacancies was unrelated to this issue as they were in other parts of the service.  She reported that the level of vacancies and staff caseloads had improved in recent months and that the service was working to speed up the recruitment process and get new staff in post more quickly.

 

The Head of Youth Justice informed Members that young people with SEND were over-represented in the Youth Justice System nationally.  She reported that Manchester Metropolitan University had led a large piece of work on this and that Youth Justice Services across Greater Manchester were working in partnership with the university to use the research to influence practice.  She reported that the Service worked closely with the Education Service to identify young people at risk of entering the Criminal Justice System and was raising awareness with other stakeholders such as the Pupil Referral Units and the police of the issues relating to young people with SEND and the Criminal Justice System.

 

The Head of Youth Justice reported that BME young people were over-represented in the custodial population both in Manchester and nationally.  She reported that her service was looking for any evidence of unconscious bias in its own practices, including pre-sentencing reports,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.

18.

Leaving Care Service pdf icon PDF 137 KB

Report of the Strategic Director of Children and Education Services

 

This report provides an update on progress on the Leaving Care Service, giving specific focus to the development of the workforce and ensuring our young people are afforded suitable accommodation.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Strategic Director of Children and Education Services which provided an update on progress on the Leaving Care Service.

 

Officers referred to the main points and themes within the report which included:

 

           An update on the service, including the voice and influence of young

           people, the workforce and the flexibility and responsiveness of the

           service;

           An update on work to ensure suitable accommodation for Our Young

           People (care leavers); and

           Next steps.

 

Some of the key points and themes that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

 

           Concern that Our Young People were still facing many of the same

           challenges which previous generations leaving care had faced;

           To welcome the work to ensure suitable accommodation for Our Young

           People;

           The importance of access to education, employment and training for

           Our Young People; and

           What was the impact of extending the provision of support to Our

           Young People up to the age of 25.

 

The Strategic Director of Children and Education Services informed Members about work taking place to increase Our Young People’s access to employment and training opportunities, including work with the private sector and programmes such as Mind The Gap, which supported young women to move into full-time work or education.  He offered to provide further information on the work relating to education, employment and training in a future report to the Committee.  The Service Manager emphasised the importance of early intervention and reported on work to ensure that Personal Advisers were able to support young people from aged 14 upwards to identify their career ambitions, including backup plans, and to plot pathways for achieving these.

 

The Service Manager acknowledged that supporting young people up to the age of 25 represented a challenge for the Leaving Care Service.  He reported that the service provided to young people over the age of 21 was needs-led and young person-led, with the young person choosing the level of contact they wanted to maintain; however, he advised that they would be contacted at a minimum once a year.  He informed Members that young people over the age of 21 should naturally start to disengage from the service but that the message to the young people was that the service was there if they needed it.

 

Decision

 

To request a further report in 6 months’ time to monitor the progress being made to improve outcomes for Our Young People.

19.

Overview Report pdf icon PDF 390 KB

Report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit

 

This report provides the Committee with details of key decisions that fall within the Committee’s remit and an update on actions resulting from the Committee’s recommendations. The report also includes the Committee’s work programme, which the Committee is asked to amend as appropriate and agree.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

A report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit was submitted. The overview report contained key decisions within the Committee’s remit, responses to previous recommendations and the Committee’s work programme, which the Committee was asked to approve.

 

The Chair informed Members that this was Mrs Kellner’s last Committee meeting, as she was resigning from her post as Co-opted Member for the Diocese of Manchester.  He thanked her for her contribution over the years, particularly on the Ofsted Subgroup, where her experience as a former headteacher had been invaluable.

 

Decision

 

To note the report and agree the work programme.