To note the report and approve the recommendations.

Kevin McDaniel, Director of Children’s Services, explained that this would be the last report referring to the performance indicators, as a new interim outbreak control plan had been introduced in July as a result of new ways of working brought in due to the Covid19 pandemic. The outbreak control plan was developed partially to enable services relating to family safeguarding to continue. The Panel was told that of the 14 old performance indicators referred to in the report, eight had met or exceeded targets, three had fallen just short but were within tolerance, and three were outside of tolerance and required improvement.

Cllr Story asked how people receiving care in their homes was being kept under review. He stated that keeping people in their own homes, while desirable, could lead to their needs becoming more complex and this could impact negatively on their wellbeing. Hilary Hall, Director of Adults, Health and Commissioning, said frequent reviews to ensure the right package of care was being delivered were taking place. A decision had to be made based on all the issues involved and there was no one size fits all approach. Feedback would be provided to the Council by either a social worker or domiciliary care worker. If it was felt a person’s needs were changing then a more frequent review would be prompted.

Cllr Story asked about the status of family network meetings. Kevin McDaniel explained there was a requirement for the Council to bring extended families together to find solutions to young peoples’ needs and support. Family group conferencing had been used for a number of years but these required a suitably qualified person and over time it had become increasingly difficult to find qualified people. The network meetings now made it possible to respond in a more timely manner.

Cllr Tisi noted that health visitors were able to continue with 6-8 week reviews in spite of Covid19, and asked for clarification on whether these were carried out to a suitable standard. Kevin McDaniel said reviews were undertaken using video calls; if any concerns were raised at that stage then arrangements would be made for a Covid secure visit to be made. For example as the weather was usually good it was possible for reviews to be done outside. Kevin McDaniel said there was a higher than usual level of engagement from families wanted to use the video calls. The majority of reviews were now able to be taken face to face again.

Regarding the measure of completing Education Health and Care Plans within 20 weeks, Kevin McDaniel explained this was a national measure. It was noted that 90 per cent of assessments in the Royal Borough were being completed within this timeframe. If there were delays it was often at the parents’ request, to ensure the right information was collected. Kevin McDaniel told the Panel that across the 19 areas in the South East Group of Directors of Children’s Services, which he chaired, performance in terms of meeting the target varied between 96 per cent and two per cent.

Cllr da Costa asked about the performance indicator relating to the percentage of carers assessed or reviewed in the last 12 months. Hilary Hall explained that this related to people providing care for family members and it had not been possible for formal reviews to be carried out during the pandemic. Informal contact had been made with carers during lockdown, with carers being invited to offer evidence. Now that restrictions were being eased a greater number of formal assessments were able to take place.

Regarding increased use in alcohol dependency services, Hilary Hall stated that although the increase had been noted it was not putting pressure on the high end of the support service. The public health team were doing more work on this, and this would ultimately influence the future strategy of the alcohol and drug services.

The Panel thanked Kevin McDaniel and Hilary Hall for the work their teams had done throughout the pandemic, particularly in terms of helping vulnerable residents during very difficult circumstances.

RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY: That the Panel noted the report and:

i.              Noted the 2020/21 Adults, Children and Health Overview and Scrutiny Panel Q1 Performance Report in Appendix A.

ii.            Noted that from Q2 onwards performance of measures relating to the Interim Council Strategy will be reported, along with the measures included in Appendix A which will be grouped by lead service.

iii.           Requested relevant Lead Members, Directors and Heads of Service to maintain focus on improving performance.