Agenda item

The Panel will receive an update on this item from the Directors of Adult Social Care & Children & Young People.

The Director of Adult Social Care, Complex and Specialist Commissioning addressed the Panel, a summary of her briefing is set out below and will be attached as an online appendix to these minutes.

Covid19 and Support to Individuals and Providers

We have continued to see an increasing rise in the number of people with care and support needs and staff supporting these people with Covid19. We are working closely with providers to support them alongside our colleagues in Public Health and across the wider Partnership.

We have had confirmation that PPE will remain free until the beginning of June extending this from the end of March.

We are working closely with providers and are supporting as much as possible the roll out of the vaccination programme which is underway across B&NES.

Update from Safeguarding Adults and the Quality Assurance Team

The Council have been participating in work undertaken by the LGA on the impact of Covid-19 on Adult Safeguarding.

Monthly reporting was provided on a voluntary basis by 92 Local Authorities who hold adult social care responsibility. The national data closely aligned with our experience in B&NES - safeguarding concerns dropped markedly during the initial weeks of the COVID-19 lockdown period, only to return to and then exceed normal levels in June 2020. 

The report noted a slight increase in concerns relating to domestic abuse, self-neglect and psychological abuse. Locally we did not see an increase in domestic abuse safeguarding concerns but did experience an increase in self-neglect issues.

BCSSP Strategic Plan

The BCSSP is developing its strategic plan for 2021-2024. To do this, the current strategic plan is being reviewed and reflected on to ensure learning is captured and where necessary, actions progressed.

The work from the first 12 months of the BCSSP is being utilised to identify priorities for the partnership and a development day is being scheduled for March to consult with partners on those priorities and transcribe them into (SMART) actions for the BCSSP subgroups. This will be shared with the Panel.

The Director of Children & Young People addressed the Panel, a summary of her briefing is set out below and will be attached as an online appendix to these minutes.

Thanks to Staff

Thanks to all our staff across Children’s Services, our schools and colleges and our commissioned services for their hard work and commitment to supporting all children and young people across B&NES. Our offer has remained in place as the responsibility has not lessened during lockdown.

Social Care

Children Social Care are actively supporting all families open to Social Care, so it is very much business as usual. We are continuing with face to face visiting for all children and young people unless risk assessment indicates this is not appropriate. The Local Authority Children Centres remain open and our Youth Offending Service continue to provide direct interventions for our young people at risk of offending in Broad Street. Connecting Families continues to deliver a comprehensive programme of support.

Young Ambassador

I am delighted to say that our first Young Ambassador has started in post and we are currently recruiting a 2^nd Ambassador. Following a successful event in November 2020, our next Children in Care Celebration Event will be Thursday 3^rd June 2021.

Kevin Burnett asked if during the pandemic any backlogs had occurred with regard to Children in Need or Child Protection.

The Director of Children & Young People replied no and said that the service has continued to deliver Children in Need reviews and Child Protection Conferences, the latter are generally being held virtually.

On behalf of the Panel the Chair thanked both Directors for their briefings and for the work carried out by them and their respective teams in these difficult times.