Agenda item

The Panel received an update on the Draft Corporate Parenting (CPP) Action Plan 2023/24 (circulated in the Supplementary agenda) from the SCF head of service, sufficiency & permanency. The document incorporated the priorities from SCF Business & Improvement Plan, Sufficiency Strategy and recommendations from the 2023 Local Government Association (LGA) Corporate Parenting Peer review.

Members also received a presentation which provided and update on the progress of the CPP Action Plan. The five priority aims were highlighted as follows:

1. Corporate Parenting Panel best practice development
2. Corporate approach to Corporate Parenting
3. Further Development of our Local Offer for CEYP
4. Ensure Active Participation and Engagement with our CLA and CEYP
5. Themed activities linked to Pledges

Further consideration regarding panel membership needed to be progressed to ensure full relevant membership, including representatives from the voluntary sector and attendance of portfolio holders.

Agenda item for next meeting – performance.

During discussion members agreed that it would be beneficial for a session on performance to be arranged in order to monitor how well the CPP was doing.

The following was noted:

• The SBC funding co-ordinator for the voluntary sector would be contacted as part of the process of including relevant partners on the CPP.
• Follow-up with Thames Valley Police to confirm representative on CPP.

A draft Corporate parenting strategy currently in progress would be reported to a future CPP meeting. The aim as part of the strategy was to ensure that CPP was included as part of the action plan of all services. It was noted that CPP Strategy should also be covered in LGA training sessions and further work to be undertaken to consider how for instance, the care experience a protected characteristic could be included in the Council’s Corporate Plan.

Although the care experience as a protected characteristic had been filtered through to housing, it was highlighted that it had not yet been reflected in the housing preference for care leavers, currently placed in band B, as opposed to being in band A. However, members were reassured that young people were being allocated housing, regardless of being in Band B.

The Housing Allocations Policy was due to be reviewed in 2024, providing the opportunity for issues relating to allocations for care leavers to be included as part of the review. The Policy would need to go through the formal Council process of approval once the review had been completed.

The issue of young people being able to manage their rents and the growing number of young people needing housing in relation to the current shrinking housing environment was highlighted as a factors to be aware of. A review of the Joint Housing Protocol for care leavers was highlighted as an issue that needed to be progressed.

An issue relating to systems error was raised (where all data was not migrated from one system to another), and had resulted in some young people being missed out of the system.  Members were reassured that this issue had now been resolved and all young people had manually been transferred to the new system.

In conclusion the Panel noted that development of the Local Offer was on-going and would be reported back to the Panel on completion. There had been a delay in revising the Pledges to Promise, due to the pending recruitment of a participation officer.

The Panel Resolved to: Note the Draft Corporate Parenting Action Plan 2023/24 – Update