Agenda item

For decision.

To receive the Children’s Scrutiny Panel’s Final Report into Out of Area Specialist Provision.

The Chair of the Children’s Scrutiny Panel was invited to present the Panel’s Final Report into Out of Area Specialist Provision.

The Board was advised the investigation sought to understand why the Council used out of area specialist provision both from a special educational needs (SEND) and complex needs social care perspective.

The Chair stated the report had derived several conclusions, which included the Panel’s satisfaction there were sound processes in place where out of area provision was required and that Middlesbrough had the lowest use of independent special schools in the Tees Valley.

The recommendations contained in the report were outlined for the Panel:

a)     That the Panel be provided with regular updates (every six months) on

Children’s Residential Placements using key performance indicators to benchmark and monitor improvements in reducing the use of out of area provision – including distance of placement from home, length of time in placement, cost of placement and the long-term solution plans together with targets to achieve this.

b)     That the revised SEND and Inclusion Strategy 2026-2030, which should align with the Government’s SEND reforms, be presented to a future meeting of the Children’s Scrutiny Panel, within the 2026/27 Municipal Year, setting out how this would impact on Middlesbrough.

c)     That Children’s Services introduced a structured Workforce Development Programme across Children’s Social Care Teams, aligned to the SEND and inclusion model, and that this be presented to a future meeting of the Children’s Scrutiny Panel within the 2026/27 Municipal Year.

d)     That the Panel be provided with an update, within the next six months, on the Regional Care Co-operative pilots, setting out how this would shape Middlesbrough’s transitional arrangements to a Regional Care Co-operative.

e)     That, in the shorter term, Children’s Services continued to develop a regionalised approach, working with relevant partners in the region, to attract new foster carers and enhance training opportunities for new and current carers to improve local sufficiency, and that the Children’s Scrutiny Panel be provided with an update on activity within the next six months.

The Chair thanked all those who participated in the review and invited questions from the Board.

A question was raised about why Middlesbrough had a higher percentage of children with an Educational Health Care Plan (EHCP) (6%) than the national average (5.3%). It was clarified the Panel had not explored this issue and it was agreed that a response from the service area would be sought.

A Member queried what action was being taken to bring down the number of children classed as looked after. It was, again, clarified that the Panel did not explore this issue as part of its review and that the service area would be approached for a response.

Following a query about the nature of EHCP’s the Chair of the Panel clarified they were issued to pupils who required additional support than that available through Special Educational Needs support. It was also clarified there was an assessment process that needed to be followed to issue an EHCP.

A Member drew the Board’s attention to page 44, paragraph 37, of the report and references to 84 children looked after outside Middlesbrough. The Member queried what the total cost was for placing children outside of the area and whether the Council had an open budget for this activity. The Director of Finance clarified budgets in this area were not broken down for out of area placements. The Chief Executive further clarified that processes in place to understand young people’s position in the care system were as sophisticated as they could be and that there were times the Council had no option but to take a young person into the care system. It was also clarified that while budgets for this area had growth built into them this was not unlimited. Instead, budgets were set which included forecasting between three to five years. Budgeting for care was made more complicated if external providers were required. It was stated the most effective way to reduce some care costs was to change the provider-based market. The Chief Executive stated that the introduction of the Regional Care Co-Operative was a benefit in this regard.

It was also queried whether Artificial Intelligence tools were used to predict young people’s entry into the care system. It was clarified that demand modelling was used rather than Artificial Intelligence tools. It was also noted the Council’s Data Team had received training on the relevant data modelling tools used for this purpose.

The Chair of OSB asked whether the Panel had received sufficient input from relevant Executive Members and Senior Management. The Chair of the Children’s Scrutiny Panel commented that officers had provided a great deal of information and that the Panel would always welcome further input from Executive Members.

ORDERED that:

1.     Children’s Services be approached for a response to the query regarding Middlesbrough having a higher percentage of children requiring an EHCP than the national average.

2.     Children’s Services be approached for a response to the query in relation to what actions were being taken to reduce the number of children looked after in Middlesbrough.

3.     That the recommendations contained in the Final Report be endorsed and referred to Executive.