Agenda and minutes

There were no Declarations of Interest made by Members at this point in the meeting.

The minutes of the previous meeting of the Children and Young People’s Social Care and Services Scrutiny Panel held on 14 February 2023 were submitted and approved as a correct record.

(Report to Follow)

The Scrutiny Panel will be asked to consider and approve the content of the draft final report and determine recommendations for submission to the Executive.

The Panel was asked to consider the Draft Final Report on its review ‘Supporting Young People to Prepare for Adulthood and Independence’, a copy of which had been circulated to Members and contributors prior to the meeting.

The report set out the terms of reference and the subsequent evidence gathered by the Panel during the course of the review.

Proposed conclusions were circulated to Members prior to the meeting and were agreed as follows:-

A)         The Panel recognises that preparing young people for adulthood and independence is a corporate parenting responsibility and that the Council and its partners must work together to ensure this task is shared equally.

B)         The Panel heard a range of examples of how services across Council directorates work together and in partnership with external agencies to support young people to become independent.

C)        Whilst Members acknowledge the improvements identified in the findings of the Ofsted Monitoring Visit to the Leaving Care Service (November 2022), they did express concern at the areas still requiring improvement.

Term of Reference A – To consider how the Council seeks to secure employment or training for young people with care experience and/or special needs

D)        The Panel is satisfied that the EET service (work readiness) is providing good support to young people to help them into Education, Employment or Training, with an above England and North East average of delivering the September Guarantee, although the percentage of 16 and 17 year olds in Middlesbrough who were NEET is slightly higher than the North East and England averages.

E)         Middlesbrough Community Learning is often regarded as Middlesbrough’s ‘Adult Education Provision’, however, this is not strictly the case.  The Teams within MCL are comprised of skilled, dedicated staff who are passionate about helping individuals to achieve their goals in relation to education and employment. The Teams offer advice, guidance and signposting in relation to a wide range of pathways available to young people, as well as adults, with support specific to the individual’s needs.

F)         The ‘50 Futures Programme’ has been successful in providing work placements for young people within Middlesbrough Council, and in external placements with trusted local employers.  Most referrals to the 50 Futures Programme are received from the Apprenticeship and Alternative Provision Teams. 

G)        The Managers of the Apprenticeship and Post-16 Alternative Provision Teams (MCL) attend the NEET Clinics and have forged good working relationships with Personal Advisors and Social Workers, particularly with the Pathways and Early Help services, for those young people who were not looked after but were still looking for the same opportunities.  There are other areas within Children’s Services and within other areas of the Council that are not aware of MCL and the ways in which they could potentially help more young people.

H)        The Panel notes the involvement of the Apprenticeship and Post-16 Alternative Provision Managers in developing an Action Plan with the Head of the Virtual School which will involve speaking to students who are unsure of what they want to do  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22/49