Agenda and minutes

County Councillors Malcolm Barron and Peter Steen were permanent replacements for County Councillors Jayne Rear and Andrew Gardiner.

County Councillors Bernard Dawson and Barrie Yates replaced County Councillors Matthew Tomlinson and David Smith for this meeting only.

Apologies were received from County Councillor Jennifer Mein, Councillor Gail Goodman and Councillor Stella Brunskill.

Members are asked to consider any Pecuniary and Non-Pecuniary Interests they may have to disclose to the meeting in relation to matters under consideration on the Agenda.

None were disclosed.

Resolved: That the minutes from the meeting held on the 10 April 2019 be confirmed as an accurate record and signed by the Chair.

The Chair welcomed Dr Sally Richardson, Head of Inclusion to the meeting. The report presented provided an overview of the progress made in response to the outcomes of the joint local area SEND inspection in Lancashire since the previous updates to this committee in July 2018 and January 2019. It was also intended to provide a brief summary of the preparation for the re-inspection of the local area that was anticipated later this year.

It was reported that a SEND Partnership Board had been established and an Improvement Plan produced supported by detailed delivery plans. The Board would monitor the Improvement Plan which set out the priorities for action, timelines and leadership responsibilities. In addition, the Board would report bi-monthly to the Lancashire Health and Wellbeing Board on progress.

Members were informed that there was now a clear governance structure for improvement in place across the local area, with accountable officers for SEND in the local authority and the Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs).

The committee was advised that a co-production strategy had been developed with parent carers and the Personal Online Evaluation Tool (POET) survey broadened to include those receiving SEND support. The results of the survey were fed back the SEND Partnership Board. The Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) process had been reviewed and a Quality Framework agreed. It was highlighted that children and young people with an EHCP and at risk of exclusion were being closely monitored and additional support provided.

Concerns were raised regarding the length of time for completion of EHCPs. The committee was informed that around 80% of EHCPs were completed within the 20 week timeframe. It was reported that there was an increasing demand for EHCPs which further challenged this timeframe.

Members enquired on the relationship was between Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) and Special Educational Needs District Officers (SENDOs). It was reported that each SENDO was assigned to a school and met with the schools and the SENCOs termly so there was regular contact.

In terms of the key performance indicators detailed in the Improvement Plan, members raised concerns that information on the national averages was not included which impacted on the ability to gauge performance.

Regarding the actions not started in the Improvement Plan, a request was made for further detail to include a provisional start date.  It was also felt that there was a need for this to come back to the July meeting of the committee, including the key lead officers from the thematic groups detailed in the Improvement Plan to report on progress.

Resolved: That;

1. The SEND Improvement Plan be considered.
2. The first assessment of progress on the newly implemented plan be considered.
3. The Improvement Plan be updated to include provisional start dates.
4. The updated Improvement Plan be included for the July meeting of the committee with an invitation to lead officers extended.

The work plan for the Children's Services Scrutiny Committee for the 2018/19 municipal year was presented.

The committee was reminded that planning was underway for a joint work programming session (for the municipal year 2019/20) for members of both Children's Services and Education Scrutiny Committees.

Resolved: The report presented be noted.

An item of urgent business may only be considered under this heading where, by reason of special circumstances to be recorded in the Minutes, the Chair of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency.  Wherever possible, the Chief Executive should be given advance warning of any Member’s intention to raise a matter under this heading.

There were no items of Urgent Business.

The next meeting of the Children's Services Scrutiny Committee is Wednesday 3 July at 10:30am, Cabinet Room C, County Hall, Preston.

The next meeting of the Children's Services Scrutiny Committee will take place on Wednesday 3 July 2019 at 10:30am in Cabinet Room 'C' (The Duke of Lancaster Room) at the County Hall, Preston.