Report of the Strategic Director (Children’s and Education Services)

This report provides a further update to members on the priorities for the services in the remit of this committee and details the changes to the initial revenue budget options proposed by officers in November 2023. Each scrutiny committee is invited to consider the proposed budget changes that are within its remit and to make recommendations to the Executive before it agrees to the final budget proposals on 14 February 2024.

The Committee considered a report of the Strategic Director (Children and Education Services) which provided a further update on the priorities for the services in the remit of this Committee and detailed the changes to the initial revenue budget options proposed by officers in November 2023. The Committee was invited to consider the proposed budget changes that were within its remit and to make recommendations to the Executive before it agreed to the final budget proposals on 14 February 2024.

Key points and themes in the report included:

·       Service overview and priorities;

·       Service budget and proposed changes;

·       Workforce implications; and

·       Use of reserves and grants.

The Executive Member for Early Years, Children and Young People reported that the Council had been in a difficult financial position for the last 14 years due to Government cuts but had continued to prioritise children and had invested in a range of successful innovations, such as Early Help and Edge of Care services.  He informed Members that, excepting Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children, the number of Looked After Children in Manchester had decreased, which was contrary to the national trend and demonstrated the success of early intervention, providing support to families so that more children could safely remain with their families.  He expressed concern about profiteering in the private placement sector and about the impact of the withdrawal of the Household Support Fund.  He stated that the Council would continue to invest in Children’s Services, highlighting investment in a range of areas including Youth Services, Sure Start and work to become a Child Friendly City.

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

·       To thank officers for their work in making the most of the funding available to support children and families, in the face of continuing Government cuts, which restricted what could be done;

·       To support the continuing use of the early intervention approach which had worked successfully over recent years;

·       Concern about the challenges facing families, including increased use of Section 21 eviction notices and the removal of the Holiday Activity Fund, and the increased pressures on schools in trying to support these families; and

·       The importance of providing Home To School transport for children with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and to ask for further information on the proposals for the service, including the new route planning software.

The Strategic Director (Children and Education Services) reported that, while the Council and its partners, including schools and health partners, were all facing challenges, they were continuing to focus on partnership working to support children and families.  He informed Members about the refresh of the Children and Young People’s Plan, one key area of which would be poverty.  He advised that there was a focus on getting the maximum amount of impact and efficiency from services, rather than reducing services.

The Director of Education reported that an additional £3.9 million was being invested in Home To School Transport over the next three years, in recognition of the growing demand for the service and increased pressures; however, she advised that the Council was seeking to make the service more efficient, through route planning software and commissioning.  She reported that route planning had previously been carried out manually by staff but that the software would enable more efficient routes to be identified and for buses to be fully utilised.  She also highlighted the new policy which had been introduced the previous year, and which had been considered by the Committee at that time, which included a range of other options for eligible children, such as a personal budget for the family to use to arrange transport.  She informed Members about an audit tool that was being developed to help schools to poverty-proof the school day and suggested that the Committee could receive a report on the work taking place at a future meeting.

The Executive Member for Early Years, Children and Young People reported that the increasing cost of Home To School transport was a serious problem for local authorities across the country but that the Council had invested in this area and worked across different departments, including ICT and HR, to find solutions.

The Chair informed Members about the improvement journey that Children’s Services had been on since 2014, when it had been judged to be inadequate by Ofsted.  She highlighted that in 2010 the Council had lost 4000 staff due to the cuts to local government budgets.  She praised the work that had taken place to get Children’s Services to its current position, improving the lives of children and young people while also saving money, particularly through the implementation of new approaches to safely reduce the number of Looked After Children.  However, she expressed concern that the ongoing cuts being imposed by the current Government were unsustainable.

Decision

To note the proposed changes which are relevant to the Committee’s remit.