The Sub-Committee endorsed the Youth Justice Plan 2024-2026 and agreed to note and monitor the new Children's Social Care Workforce Development Strategy.

Youth Justice Plan 2024-2026

The Sub-Committee considered the Youth Justice Plan 2024-2026.

The Cabinet Member for Safer Communities, Dr Mahamed Hashi, introduced the plan, highlighting that the Council was looking to take a child-centric approach and that it would involve families in the planning.

The Sub-Committee discussed a number of the Plan's performance areas, highlighting that a multi-agency approach was required.

Officers from the Children and Families Directorate explained that a lot of work had gone into including the voices of the children and families who the plan would be working with. They highlighted a number of areas of progress since the last Youth Justice Plan, but expressed concern about continuing issues with some targets, particularly relating to the use of remand and custody. Officers highlighted that these were areas where the Council did not have direct control, because the decisions were made by external partners.

Sharnike Ennis, Co-Chair of the Lambeth Youth Council, welcomed the plan and noted that:

It was a good sign that there was a reduction in first-time offenders and that it was positive that the Plan was aiming to help those entering that service.

The Sub-Committee raised the issue of the high level of First Time Entrants (FTEs) to the Youth Justice System. Andrew Carter, Corporate Director for Children, Families and Education, explained that:

There was a positive effort on the development of preventative work to ensure a reduction in first-time entrants.

Mr Carter highlighted a number of these preventative initiatives, including the Turnaround Programme, which works with children who are displaying risk factors that suggest they may be likely to enter the Criminal Justice System. Mr Carter noted that Lambeth's FTE rate was higher than its statistical neighbours and London as a whole, but that it was hoped that the preventative work being done would help to slow the rate of increase.

The Sub-Committee discussed the issue of knife crime in the borough. Councillor Hashi, Cabinet Member for Safer Communities, explained that the issue was being considered by the Community Safety Partnership and the Violence Against Young People Partnership, and that work was being done to understand the complex reasons why young people carry knives.

Councillor Hashi and officers highlighted the work that was being done to support young men in the borough. In particular, they mentioned the SAFE Programme and the Barbershop Experience in Lambeth. The SAFE programme works with boys in secondary schools across the borough. The Barbershop Experience works with young men in the setting of a barber shop.

The Sub-Committee also discussed the issue of young people who are not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET). Officers explained that central government guidance defines suitable education as over 25hrs per week, and that many of the children who were recorded as being NEET were persistently absent from school.

The Sub-Committee asked for the Council to develop targets for the reduction of FTEs that are benchmarked against the authority's statistical neighbours and London as a whole.

Children's Social Care Workforce Strategy

The Sub-Committee considered the Children's Social Care Workforce Strategy.

Councillor Ben Kind, Cabinet Member for Children and Families, introduced the strategy, explaining that the Council was investing in growing its own social workers and that it was hoping to improve the resilience of the workforce.

Councillor Kind acknowledged that there were recruitment and retention problems affecting social work teams across the country, and that Lambeth was no exception. He noted that Lambeth was competing with other boroughs for workers.

Officers from the Directorate for Children and Families explained that work was being done to develop a structured career path for social workers in Lambeth. They also noted that social work is a stressful profession, with high levels of attrition. The Sub-Committee agreed that management had a role to play in creating a positive and supportive working environment for social workers.

The Sub-Committee heard from two frontline social workers who had experienced Lambeth's recent workforce issues. The workers expressed their thanks for the support that Lambeth had provided to them. They appreciated the positive work environment, but acknowledged that there was a heavy workload and that some cases were very complex, which added pressure to their work. They stressed that team and manager support was important, but that it was not always consistent. They noted that the Lambeth Social Care Academy was working to improve staff stability.

The workers praised the Academy's induction programme, which included shadowing experienced staff. They explained that the Academy also offered support to existing staff, including coaching and education opportunities.

When asked about retention, the workers noted that some of their colleagues had moved to other authorities to work. They explained that stress was a key reason why people left, and that while the Academy had worked to address this, it remained a significant issue.

The Sub-Committee discussed the issue of golden handcuffs, which would prevent workers from leaving Lambeth for a set period of time. Mr Carter explained that this would not be legal. The Sub-Committee felt that the Council should consider what it could do to make a more attractive offer to social workers graduating from the Academy, in order to retain them in the borough.

The Sub-Committee asked officers about the Council's international recruitment campaign. Councillor Kind explained that this was only one part of the strategy, which was also looking to grow Lambeth's own social workers and improve retention rates by providing better support and career opportunities.

The Sub-Committee discussed pay rates for social workers in Lambeth. Officers confirmed that the Council was now more competitive since updating its rates. They noted that other authorities paid more, and that while Lambeth was in the upper half of London boroughs for pay, there was a danger of entering a pay race, which could have negative impacts.

The Sub-Committee discussed the price cap for agency social workers. Officers explained that the price cap was not a new idea, as the London Pledge had been in place since 2022, and that it would likely be extended nationally.

The Sub-Committee asked officers about flexible working. Officers explained that it was offered by the service and that work was being done to improve the working culture and support for social workers. They noted that there was a focus on ensuring that management reinforced the authority's commitment to improving the service.

The Sub-Committee asked for targets, trends and benchmarks for social worker recruitment and retention for the next meeting.