Meeting documents

1 THE ISSUE

1.1 This report details the 2003/04 review of the Children and Young Peoples Services Plan 2001/02 and updates the plan's strategic objectives and inserts new targets

1.2 The Children's and Young People's Services Plan is a mandatory requirement under The Children Act 1989. It should be a three-year plan but the 2001/02 Plan was for one year as suggested by the Government guidance issued in May 2001. This guidance required a plan for all children who could experience social exclusion, not just those children `in need' under the terms of The Children Act 1989 The Council Executive and The Council received a 2002/03 review of the interim plan in June and July 2002, with the expectation of publishing a new plan in April 2003. We are still awaiting new guidance for this plan, so this Review brings up to date the 2001/2 interim plan.

1.3 There are plans for targeted groups of children which need to be considered as parts of the Children`s and Young People's Services Plan and further plans which include socially disadvantaged children within their targeted population. The Plan thus cross-referenced or summarised 27 other plans

2 RECOMMENDATIONS

2.1 The Executive is asked to note the results of the review.

2.2 Recommend the Council to approve the proposed updates to the strategic objectives and revisions to targets for the period until the publication of the next plan.

2.3 Delegate its publication to the Strategic Director of Social and Housing Services and to make any consequential minor amendments necessary.

3 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

3.1 Publication costs are within Children & Family Service budget.

4 THE REPORT

4.1 The production of children's services plans by local authorities was made mandatory in the Children Act 1989 (amendment) (children's services planning) order 1996. Bath & North East Somerset's first Children's And Young People's Services Plan 1997-2000 was published in 1997 and reviewed during 1998 and 1999. An interim Plan was produced for 2000/1 because new government guidance was due. Draft guidance was issued in March 2000 and final guidance in May 2001. Therefore the 2001/2 Children's And Young People's Services Plan was intended for only one year in the absence of definitive guidance.

4.2 There have been considerable changes in children's services planning since 1996. There has been an expansion of planning requirements from central government departments, requiring more service specific outcomes and detailed targets for service developments.

4.3 The drafting of the Children's And Young People's Services Plan was overseen by the Children's and Young People's Strategic Partnership which reports to the Health Improvement Partnership.

4.4 The decision to review the interim Children's and Young People's Services Plan for 2003/4, rather that draft a new 3-year Plan, was taken by the Children's and Young People's Strategic Partnership for the following reasons:

· The Government set up a cross-departmental Children's and Young People `s' Unit which wants to establish a National Children's Strategy for all children, not just those `vulnerable' (at risk of social exclusion).

· Bath and North East Somerset were placed in the third wave of The Children's Fund, to become available in April 2003, to fund additional preventative services for children aged 5-13.

· Connexions West of England, the new service for young people aged 13-19 aimed at improving educational achievement and take-up of further and higher education, training and employment opportunities, and which replaces the Careers Service, started up in the former Avon area in April 2001.

· The NHS is producing a National Service Framework for Children, of which two sections, Services for Disabled Children and Services for Children in Hospital, are available. A consultation paper on the whole Framework, entitled Getting The Right Start, was published in March 2003, with a deadline date of July 2003 for responses.

· A requirement has been placed on local authorities in partnership with other statutory, voluntary and community agencies, to produce a Local Preventative Strategy for all children aged 0-18 years and to put in place mechanisms for the identification, referral and tracking (IRT) of children and young people at risk of social exclusion. These initiatives are two sides of the same coin, the IRT will inform the Preventative Strategy which will ensure that every child possibly `at risk' will be assessed for services for themselves or their family.

· The Laming Report, following the public enquiry into the death of Victoria Climbie, recommended changes to the organisation and structure of child protection services. These proposals will be addressed in a Government Green Paper to be published during 2003.

Therefore a review of the 2001/2 Children's And Young People's Services Plan has been undertaken. It is anticipated that a longer term plan will be written for 2004 onwards.

4.5 The Children's and Young People's Strategic Partnership membership comprises:-

· Lead officers for 14 plans which target children and young people

· Lead officers for other plans which affect children and young people

4.6. The Children and Young People's Strategic Partnership has formal links with the

Local Strategic Partnership.

5 CONSULTATION

5.1 A consultation event for the 01/02 Children's And Young People's Services Plan was

5.2 All plans which contribute to the Children's And Young People's Services Plan have

plans for participation of service users, and carers where appropriate, within them.

5.3 Innovative ways of involving and enabling Children and Young People to contribute to

service planning and consultation are continually being explored.

Examples of this are:-

5.4 The Children and young People's Strategic Partnership has included in its Terms of Reference that in any consultation or participation exercise involving children and adults, the children's views would have equal weight with the adults' views and have required all agencies involved in the Partnership to adopt this principle.

5.5 Extensive consultation carried out by the Connexions Service during the past year has been taken into account.

5.6 The Review will be presented to the Health Improvement Partnership in September 2003.

5.7 This report was sent to the Trades Unions for comments on 22^nd August 2003. Any comments received will be reported to the meeting.