To note the contents of the report and make recommendations to Cabinet.

The Head of Commissioning - Adults and Children reminded Members that in 2017 Cabinet approved a new performance framework to monitor 25 key indicators biannually, with each Overview and Scrutiny Panel reviewing the progress of its relevant performance areas on a quarterly basis. In 2017/18 Children’s Services had 13 indicators; of these, five had met or exceeded their target, six were just short and two were below. Five of the performance indicators had been removed from the 2018/19 performance framework. Of the eight indicators being reviewed by the Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Panel, five were on or above target, two were below target but within tolerance, and one – regarding the percentage of two to two-and-a-half year-olds to receive a review from a health visitor – was off target. Indicators on or above target included the percentage of schools in the Royal Borough that were rated good or outstanding by Ofsted, and the decrease in the number of children on protection plans.

Regarding the reviews of children, the Head of Commissioning - Adults and Children informed the Panel that the percentage of children being reviewed was 56 per cent, up from 40.5 per cent in 2017/18. However it remained an area of focus for the Council to increase this figure still further.

The Chairman noted that one of the indicators to miss its target in 2017/18 related to the ranking for Free School Meal Attainment cohort, and asked how the Council was looking to improve the ranking. The Director of Children’s Services stated that it would be a few months before the latest indicative data would be available, although the provisional data indicated that there had been a reduction in the cohort of children who were eligible for free school meals. Because of previous improvements, it was now harder for the attainment gap to be closed even further. The Director of Children’s Services informed Members that the Free School Meal Attainment cohort remained a key focus for the Council. The Cabinet Member for Children’s Services said this issue had been discussed in detail at the School Improvement Forum.

Regarding the percentage of two to two-and-a-half year-olds being reviewed, the Director of Children’s Services informed Members that this was from a health visiting service that the Council was now providing; previously it had been provided by the Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust. Members were told that the families of all eligible children had been given the opportunity of a face-to-face assessment with a health visitor but a significant proportion of parents had declined the offer. The most vulnerable families tended to accept the offer but those in more affluent wards did not. The ward with the lowest takeup was Bray. Families had indicated that they would receive feedback from elsewhere, for example nurseries, on how their children were progressing and if there was any cause for concern. Trials of running the assessments early in the morning and post rush-hour had been run without a great deal of takeup. The Director of Children’s Services said that this did allow the opportunity for weekend clinics to be run and for greater flexibility. Overall the Director of Children’s Services stated he was satisfied those who were most vulnerable were accessing this review, and that it was not an overall area of concern despite the indicator missing its target. Across the south east the takeup was on average 77 per cent. However some local authorities reported a takeup of up to 98 per cent. The Director of Children’s Services stated that this was due to some authorities having alternative ways of providing the assessment, such as through paper-based surveys, whereas the Royal Borough preferred for the assessments to be done face-to-face with a healthcare professional. Ways of making the service more attractive to residents were being looked into, but the Council was not committing to anything until all options had been explored.

Cllr Wilson raised the attainment gap and stated his belief that tackling this was of the utmost importance to the Council. He asked why the performance framework focused on early years rather than support for children across the age spectrum, stating that performance should be tracked over a longer period of time. The Director of Children’s Services stated that this was a long-term focus for the Council. He stated that he had recently addressed all of the new teachers in the Royal Borough and had told them that one of their responsibilities would be to identify disadvantaged pupils and understand what they could do to help them. Schools were now expected to provide evidence of the impact of expenditure on pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Director of Children’s Services stated that although there was a focus on early years pupils, there was also a focus on key stage 4 children. Responding to a question from Cllr Luxton about teachers who did not detect children who were disadvantaged, the Director of Children’s Services stated his belief that he was satisfied that all schools in the Royal Borough had a suitable performance management system in place and sufficient opportunities for training and development.

Cllr Wilson stated that it was worth highlighting in the report that there were no schools in the Royal Borough that had inadequate Ofsted ratings, or were in special measures. The Director of Children’s Services stated that the Council’s School Leadership Team was key to this as they would assist schools prior to an Ofsted inspection, even those that were Academies and did not come under the Council’s jurisdiction.

Cllr Wilson asked about the inclusion metric regarding the collaborative working performance, which had not been included in the report. The Director of Children’s Services stated that this would be included in the Education Report at the end of the year, and it would be going to the Health and Wellbeing Board. It was agreed that the report would also be considered by the Panel at its February meeting.

It was RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY that the Panel noted the report and:

i) Endorsed the 2018/19 Performance Management Framework, outlined in table 1 and appendix A and;

ii) Requested relevant Lead Members and Heads of Service focus effort to improve performance in areas of current underperformance.