Agenda and minutes

76.1     RESOLVED: to agree as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 29 January 2021.

77.1     Apologies were received from Councillor Charles Clark and Councillor Colin Swansborough.

Disclosure by all members present of personal interests in matters on the agenda, the nature of any interest and whether the member regards the interest as prejudicial under the terms of the Code of Conduct.

78.1     There were none.

Notification of items which the Chair considers to be urgent and proposes to take at the end of the appropriate part of the agenda. Any members who wish to raise urgent items are asked, wherever possible, to notify the Chair before the start of the meeting. In so doing, they must state the special circumstances which they consider justify the matter being considered urgently.

79.1     There were none.

80.1     The Panel considered the Annual Report of the Children in Care Council (CiCC) and welcomed two members of the CiCC to the meeting to present the report and update the Panel on the work of the CiCC.

80.2     The Panel heard about the following areas of the CiCC’s work:

·                     Mental health of young people: The Panel heard that the issue of young people’s mental health was voted as a key priority in the UK’s Youth Parliament Make your Mark survey in 2020. The CiCC also recognise the importance of this issue and will continue to work towards ensuring mental health support is treated as a priority in East Sussex. As a result, since June 2020 a CiCC member has been working alongside the East Sussex Youth Cabinet and East Sussex Community Voice (ESCV) to support Mental Health in Schools Teams (MHST), with the work focused on reviewing the current provision of mental health support in schools and how it could be improved.

·                     Education of children in care: The Panel were informed of the ongoing work undertaken by the CiCC to support the education of children and young people in care. This role includes working closely with social workers and the Virtual School to share the personal educational experiences of children in care.  As a result of this work, the Panel heard, for example, that the CiCC have raised concerns regarding the status of children in care being unintentionally flagged in lessons when they have needed to leave class to attend a meeting.

·                     Online Safety and Social Media: The Panel heard that the CiCC are developing a Digital Safety Training course to be available later in 2021 for children and young people in Care. The course has been developed in response to the ongoing negative mental health impacts reported by young people due to social media use.  The CiCC therefore are hopeful that its training course will help young people use the internet safely and regulate the time they spend online.

·                     Buddy scheme: During the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions the CiCC started a buddy scheme project to ensure that children in care had a ‘buddy’ that they could have regular online contact with. The Panel heard that this initially small project has now developed into a larger piece of work, with a system being deployed for buddying up children that are entering into care for the first time with those that have more experience of life in care.

·                     Family contactduring Covid-19: The CiCC updated the Panel on the measures which have been put in place to allow for children in care to have contact with their birth families during the Covid-19 restrictions. The contact moved online during this period and the response to this has been mixed; with some families finding that it allowed for more regular contact as the travel aspect was removed, and some finding it more difficult to connect and engage when the contact was virtual. The Panel heard that as Covid restrictions are eased  ...  view the full minutes text for item 80.

Report by Director of Children's Services.

81          Looked After Children (LAC) Statistics

81.1     The Panel considered a report by the Director of Children’s Services which provided an update on Looked After Children (LAC) statistics.

81.2     Liz Rugg, Assistant Director for Early Help and Social Care updated the Panel on the latest data regarding LAC in East Sussex. The Panel heard that in the past quarter there has been an increase in the number of children in care, with 612 children at the end of March compared to a figure of 607 at the end of December. The Panel heard that the ongoing impact of Covid-19 continues to place significant additional pressure on foster carers.  Although in support of this vital group, a decision was taken to offer the Covid-19 vaccination to ESCC foster carers so as to increase safety and ensure placements were still available for children.

81.3     The Panel discussed the difficulty in finding secure placements for children that have experienced high levels of trauma and therefore can pose challenging behavioural issues. Liz Rugg assured the Panel that every effort is made to find the most suitable secure accommodation for these children, but that there is unfortunately a national shortage of placements. The Panel were also informed that there is a need for the Council to create bespoke care packages around the most challenging children, and that this can include the adaption of existing buildings to accommodate them and the use of agency staff.

81.4     RESOLVED: to note the report.

82.1     There were none.

To consider excluding the public and press from the meeting for the next two agenda items on the grounds that if the public and press were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information as specified in Category 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended), namely information relating to any individual.

83.1     RESOLVED to exclude the public and press from the meeting for items 9 and 10  on the agenda (see minutes 26 and 27) on the grounds that if the public and press were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information as specified in category 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12(A) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended), namely information relating to any individual. It was considered that the public interest in maintaining the exception outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.

84.1     The Panel considered Regulation 44 Reports for the following Children’s Homes:

• Acorns
• Brodrick House
• Hazel Lodge
• Homefield Cottage
• Lansdowne Secure Unit
• The Bungalow

84.2     The Panel discussed a range of issues, including: building improvements at the homes, staff wellbeing, the educational developments of the children and the ongoing day to day activity within the homes.

84.3     The Panel also asked about the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the Children’s Homes. The Registered Homes Managers provided the Panel with detailed information on how issues caused by the pandemic have been mitigated, but it was noted that many children have struggled with mental health and behavioural issues due to the pandemic. The Panel were informed however that with restrictions easing and with front line staff being offered vaccinations there is an overall sense of optimism and return to normality at the homes.

84.4     The Panel gave thanks to the Registered Homes Managers and their colleaguesfor their excellent service and support to the children and young people in the Council’s Care.

84.5     RESOLVED: to note the reports

85.1     There were none.