Issue - meetings

The report sets out what B&NES has purchased for our Children Looked After and the needs in the coming years.  

The Cabinet Member for Children’s Services introduced the report and said that it was important that the Council attempts to improve the lives of all children and young people, especially those within its care.

The Senior Commissioning Manager for Complex Care & Targeted Support addressed the Panel and gave a presentation, a summary of which is set out below.

The Sufficiency Duty: Requires Local Authorities to have ‘sufficient’ accommodation in terms of the number of beds provided, to secure a range of accommodation through several providers and have accommodation that meets the needs of its Children Looked After.

Pressures in the marketplace

• Increased overall numbers of children in care locally, regionally and nationally which adds pressure.
• Decrease in the number of fostering households.
• ‘Staying Put’ legislation, allowing young people to stay in their foster placements until the age of 24.
• UASC children, who are predominately 16 -17year-old males.

Needs

• Foster placements in central Bath and within a reasonable travelling distance of B&NES schools.
• Foster placements for children aged 14 – 17 years with complex and challenging needs, including mental health and self-harm.
• Residential step-down placements
• Residential children’s homes closer to B&NES
• Appropriate placements for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC)
• Solo/specialist foster and residential placements for our most complex children.
• Parent and baby foster placements

Numbers

Number of Children Looked After as at 31st March.

·  2017: 163

·  2023: 231

Number of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking children as at 31st March.

·  2018/19: 8

·  2022/23: 43

·   

Number of Children Placed with Independent Foster Agencies (IFA’s) (Annual total).

·  2016/17: 90

·  2022/23: 105

Number of Children Placed in Residential Children’s Homes (Annual total).

·  2016/17: 4

·  2022/23: 31

Number of Children Placed in 16+ Accommodation and Support (Annual total).

·  2016/17: 8

·  2022/23: 14

16 + Accommodation and Support: This type of placement involves support and accommodation, but no care element.  Care entails ‘doing for’ rather than supporting.  e.g. cooking and administering medication.  This is a significantly different type of support from residential children’s homes.  Support can range from a few hours a week to 24/7; fees can therefore vary dramatically. This has been unregulated until very recently.

Moving Forward

·  Continue to provide a core service in supporting social care teams; searching for placements, appraising offers made, negotiating costs and monitoring contracts.

·  Tendering for new 16+ accommodation and support DPS

·  Continue to chair the Southwest Children’s Services ‘Placements, Contracts and Commissioning Group’ to increase our range of placements from external providers and opportunities to develop the provider markets.

·  Work with South West Sufficiency Project

·  Work with Regional Care Co-operatives to improve sufficiency if selected.

Councillor Robin Moss said that he had seen the pressures involved in this work area from taking part in the Council’s Fostering Panel. He added that the Council needs to look at the offer it is providing for foster caring families in comparison to its neighbouring Local Authorities as well as the private sector providers.

The Senior Commissioning Manager for Complex Care & Targeted Support replied that Independent Fostering Agencies began working in the market  ...  view the full minutes text for item 106