Transcript

Transcript

And can I first of all ask if we've got any apologies? Well, firstly, I've got, I think, John Holland, but Sarah, you're welcome here. And Jerry, Jerry's apologies, Sarah's apologies, but Bill, welcome. So lovely to have you here. Jonathan, apologies, I've got some of these apologies, but are there any others? No? Okay. Thank you. So can I ask then if anyone has got any interest to declare either pecuniary or non-pecuniary on the agenda items? That sounds like a no. So we'll move on to the minutes of the meeting which are pages 5 to 10, so we'll just run quickly, page 5, page 6, page 7, 8, and 9, and page 10, so nothing to report on that. Can I ask if that's the true and correct record of that meeting? Thank you all. Thank you. Back to the agenda then. The next is public speaking and I've not been informed of any. So we will move swiftly on. Here's the challenge. We've got a few agenda items and I've got about half a battery on my laptop. So we'll see how we go, shall we? So firstly, over to Cam for the first agenda item, which is the Education Capital Program. And I think you're sharing this with Peter, aren't you? Yeah. Thank you. Thank you. So I will kick off and do the fluffy bits and hopefully Peter will fill in regarding the monies. So the paper before you this afternoon, there are currently 14 live capital projects. Six in the north and Nanitna Bedworth and eight across the central and certain areas of the county providing both primary and secondary and specialist places. This is quite an important paper because actually it sets out the capital program over the next five years. It delivers on school places and ensuring that we've got sufficient spaces in the right areas. And so we've been working really hard. And really hard across the county working with our schools. And also our districts and boroughs as well, where planning applications are required in order to approve particularly new schools. The additional provision for cent facilities, for instance, in various schools within the report is a really important step, ensuring young people have the same opportunities in maintained schools. And again, that is really valuable. It's really important that children remain within their own communities. And last note from me really about this report is I just want to draw your attention on page 22 about alternative provision. This is much needed. We still don't know when the provision is going to be coming through from the DFE. And therefore, the part that's been suggested in Consil is really, really welcome, particularly as we've seen a rise in exclusions rise to 129%. So I think it's really important that we actually start looking at plan B whilst the DFE decide where they actually, when and where they're actually going to decide to provide that provision. So over to Councillor Butlin on the money. Thank you, Ken. I'll just draw your attention. This is a significant investment for the future in terms of making sure that there are places apart. But eight of these projects of the 16 will also go to full council for approval because they are above a certain amount of money. But the three significant schemes that kind of draw your attention to is lights on heat primary school, which is an expansion of 91 to 420 places, including special resource and provision for 14 learners who attend at a cost of 16.467 million. The next big scheme is the relocation and expansion of from 105 places to 420 places at Shottery, St. Andrew's C of E primary school, including a specialist provision for eight learners with sand at a cost of 15.573 million. And finally, what the final big one is an allocation of 5.347 million to meet the increased cost of delivering mountain guards primary school above the level already approved in the capital process. This is a good news story in many respects because all those smaller schemes are also significant in what they achieve and their best value for money and principals have been applied to them as well. The other thing I've got to draw your attention to is in terms of finding the money, we've had to draw the money from all different resources because there was not sufficient money from the usual kind of direct education grants. So going forward, and it's subject further debate later on, I proceed, there is an inadequacy of 106 funding and the planning system delivered the resources required to provide core infrastructure. Over the last two or three years, we've had high inflation and a lot of those 106 agreements were basically set and agreed at a time when there was no inflation. So we're basically going forward having experienced inflation. There's generally a shortfall and some of that capital has had to go somewhere. We've come from somewhere else. So we've got to put an inflationary guarantee into future 106 agreements that are drawn up. The other one I'd draw your attention to is lack of resources from government to close funding gap. They have also basically plateaued the amount of money that comes from us on a 10 million pound per year basis for the kind of provision. That also does not take into account the inflationary experience that we're experiencing in terms of the provision of those places. So there needs to be a debate and also one which we think we can address, but the other one needs to lobby and back to government in terms of basically getting that extra funding to increase, get that increased cost. But as a scheme, and all those projects, 16 projects, so we'll be able to see it and kind of take us well into the future if we can't score provision. And both can and me are willing to take any questions. Thank you very much. Some very good news here and definitely the nearest one from me I suspect is probably going to be the growth around getting light on Heath, which is a huge growth and this was always part of the proposal. It's going to be much worse because the trick I guess, and this might be something for conversations with local members, I'll bring you in, Bill. Thank you very much for indicating. The trick is always about when it's built out, when you stop populating it and the running costs. I always remember going back to Gordon Collet's day and was it rugby? No, what bish school was it? No, it wasn't bish school. We had the new school that basically got built out before the houses were occupied. Do you remember? Okay, so what we don't want to do is find ourselves in that very difficult position that actually local people can't get into this local school when it's built out. Very tricky. Bill, you indicated. Yes, it is very much a good news story. It's particularly impressed given that we've grown by extra 10,000 children in the school age in Worwickshire, which who obviously need to be accommodated. But also particularly pleased that most local chottery, light on Heath and mite and gardens, there is Sen provision being built in at this stage and that's going to be, I think, enormously valuable in terms of that area where you want more and more to be trying to integrate Sen provision with ordinary provision and also as much as possible avoiding, and I'll come onto it later, but avoiding independent, having to use independent resources. So, yes, I think it's essentially a good news story. It's also one where it shows we are preparing for the future. Thank you. Sarah. Thank you. It was about the new alternative provision. I mean, I think it's really needed and absolutely would support it because we really don't have any, you know, that that's ours in the county. I suppose my one concern is it's kind of coastal is really the edge of the county and I know that it says kind of children from young people from non-eaten and bedwith as well and it's quite a track from bedwith. I'm kind of hoping you can tell me this is the first of many of the DFE will give us some money and, you know, and that we'll start to move kind of down through the county so that other young people in the county will also get that level of support as well. So, just to correct one point which may get misconstrued and I'm sure you didn't mean it, we do have lots of provision that is ours in the county on the send. Not least the one that we opened two years ago which was the Warraiture Academy and rather a lot more as well which we've been building. But there is a program of trying to ensure that we've got provision attached to schools. This has started that program but I wouldn't want anyone listening to think that we haven't got a lot of Warraiture County Council send provision. It's just that the volume and demand is getting more and more but I'm sure Cam will correct on that point. Thank you, Cam. I've got some control in my button for me. Just want to be clear, the provision at Colesville is for alternative provision, not resource provision. It's where children are being excluded from schools. Yeah. So, I just want to be absolutely clear. And, you know, as the report says, and I've mentioned already, you know, we've seen an increase of 129%. That's huge. Majority of the exclusions are happening in the North. And that includes the Newton-Begworth and therefore it's really critical that we've got obviously the pod in the right place serving the children that actually need it or the young people that need it. Again, we are looking at other areas. We're looking at other areas where we can set up and also, you know, we are in talks with the DFE and have been for a few, I want to say a couple of years, but I think it's more about that now regarding an alternative provision. And I think the last time we had a discussion with the DFE was mostly at Martin. So, we're not sure about that. And we need to have further discussions with DFE to confirm their position. So, for me, this is really a welcome. It's not, you know, it's a stopping gap. Let's put it that way. But actually it's a well-needed provision and I think the investment that would be really well-worked. Yeah, really welcomed. What's that? Thank you for clarifying alternative and sense. Sorry. If I equally got it confused. But thank you, sir. Thank you for the question. I've got no more questions. So, it is back to you, Cam, just to... Thank you. Ask Cabinet to endorse the recommendations, and I believe there's seven of them, and I can't find what page they are on the line. Thank you. But to ask for your agreement and approval, please. Thank you, Cabinet. Can you agree? I agree. And then... So, the next one is a gender item through the establishment of specialist resource provision. Again, Cam, this is you. Specialist resource provision. This report contains four projects for approval, where funding is required, and agreement for their addition to the educational capital program. As part of the delivering better value program, which is the next paper, this demonstrates that we're ahead of the game, and we're already started to look at and engage with schools on providing this provision. So, currently, the council is seeking to increase the number of specialist resource provision places over the next five years, and the current position is 200 currently, and we're looking at moving to over 500 by 2028. And that is a phenomenal amount of investment, and I think that sets against us, hopefully, making a saving of 152 million in the long term. So, it's well needed, and it's really important that we have it in the right areas. And just for, you know, further, just to demonstrate where it currently currently has 18 specialist resource provisions, 16 primary and two secondary, with two in North Warraiture, five in the Bedworth, six in Rugby, two in Warwick and Lemington area, and three in the Stratford-upon Avon area. So, I just wanted to point that out, really, to demonstrate that, actually, it's a spread across the county, it's not just in one particular area. It's also requested that Cabinet approves the establishment of a specialist resource provision at Briar Hill Infant School, which is in Lemington. This is at no additional capital cost to the council, and finally, Nicholas Chamberlain's School, which is in Bedworth to agree the addition of 0.90 million to the capital program to support the delivery of the project. I'm open to questions, Chair. Thank you very much. There's a lot of synergy in these three papers, so, again, this is a commitment from the council to step up this area of need. Are there any questions? Yes, Sarah. Thank you. A couple of questions, so I'll try and put them sensibly. I suppose one of the questions I've got, you know, increasing the specialist resource provision, what are you kind of defining of the measures of success in this? You know, is it less transition into further specialist education, independent specialist education? I know one of the factors is trying to keep young people close to their community. I know that's absolutely one of the factors, but I guess in that kind of where are we looking, what are we expecting to see as that? And I suppose my other question, and I'm really pleased in infant school in there. You know, I've long said that, you know, the earlier we can intervene, the better the outcomes, that's absolutely, you know, acknowledged by every single kind of educational specialist. Have we got any thought moving forward around some specialist nursery provision? Because I know that it's been highlighted numerous times, you know, to me, that at the moment we haven't really got that specialist nursery provision, and I think the earlier the better, and I just wondered if, I mean, I think this is good. Are there any plans for the future really, Ken? No further questions at the moment, so back to you, Ken. Sorry, my right-hand man's not pointing the button on at the time. So just to come back to you, sir, Councillor Feeney, there's a couple of things. We're working through an early year strategy, which is looking at that. And just before I came to this meeting, we talked about, I've had a meeting whereby we talked about the uptake of the entire two months for early years, and at the moment we're at 88%, which is again to 83, which is national, so that's huge. But we do recognise that we do need specialist nursery provision. And again, we're working with those providers to see where the need is and how we work with them. And that will be part of that early year strategy as well, because as I've mentioned before, that is all that is working together. I hope that answers your question. Are there any more comments or questions? I've got none. I'll give it to the next question, I think. Thank you. Okay, Ken, it's you. Thank you, Chair. I nearly forgot to ask Cabinet for their approval. Those recommendations are moved on. So please may I have Council's Cabinet's approval for the recommendations, please. Can we agree? I agree. Thank you. Okay, so the next one is Gender Item 4. This is Send Delivery Better Value Program. And I think that's the last of your current crop of 3, so come to you. Yep, everyone. We're really happy. I can tell. So yes, there's two recommendations here, but just a bit of self-esteem. The DBV Program, we're one of 55 local authorities that have been approved. And also we finally got the funding approved in March. I'm getting nods of 1 million. So therefore, we're really, really pleased that we actually got that money because a lot of time and work and commitment had been done in the background in order to gather the information to go to the DFE and be awarded the money. So I'm thrilled that we finally got it. As part of that package or the program, it actually lists that we set against four themes. The first being establishment of more send resource provisions. Well, hopefully the last two papers have shown and demonstrated that we're already on that journey. The second is further to roll out of inclusion framework trial. We've already started doing this in rugby and also in Bedworth. This has proved to be working really, really well. And therefore, we're looking at continuing the offer for the time being. A workforce development program. This has been designed with school leaders to maintain support, confidence for sporting children with ECHP plans. And again, this is really, really important as we increase our resource provisions. We also need to make sure that actually we've got people there to be able to work and provide a service in those schools. And last but not least, the digital infrastructure, which is around focusing on investment and development on the systems supporting children with ECHP plan. So in my mind, I'm envisaging this to be the end-to-end process of from beginning to end and analyzing and updating us when the next ECHP plan review is up. So for me, that will save time in the long run. So what I do need to, that's around the first recommendation then, is endorses the full projects. As I've explained, the second really is slightly more detailed in that cabinet will recall that back in December 2022, we took on, we approved a consultation to give for the send. And that was approved and the consultation took place. However, that was in the consultation finished and completed in 2023. Since then, our own priorities, the DBV plan and also our financial situation has actually superseded what that original consultation went out for. Therefore, the second recommendation is really around that piece and agrees that the projects and the approaches arising from the delivering better bunny program work and set out within this report should be supersated proposals put forward in December 22 on the local send offer. So, Chair, I'm open to questions around any part of the report, really. I think, Bill, this was your moment. Yes, I mean, we can see that it's, we're having the budget, the deficit is one that's going to be an issue and we really want to make sure we're getting best value. But not just for Warrickshire as an institution, but for the children who need the service. And my concern is that from, this is anecdotal from talking to parents of send pupils is that some of the independent provision at the very high end doesn't necessarily isn't necessarily providing best value. It's enormously expensive, but it's still not actually providing wonderful education. Now, people teaching in a state school have to be qualified. As I understand it, people teaching in an independent school do not have to be qualified. I just wondered if we had figures on how many of the staff at some of the independent schools, particularly I've got one in particular in my mind, but I'm not going to mention any names. But I'd be interested to know how many are, because certainly in one case, we're being, I went into the figures. And one of the providers, independent providers, makes a 26% profit on the provision, which is money that's not going to help the children. It's not going to, it's coming out of the pockets of our council taxpayers. But really, my real concern is not that, so much as that money is not actually going on the children, and it may not be going on the staff either. We may be, it may be a case that you've got staff who are not qualified, not being paid for what they're doing. At the same time, you may have children not getting adequate provision, and in some cases, quite some real issues have come up. And yet we're paying enormous sums of figures of 80,000 or so per child per annum. And it's a concern that we need to look into and make sure we are actually getting best value for money from the independent providers. I suspect that independent providers are always going to be needed for some of the really, really complicated cases. Because as we know, Sen covers a vast variety of different issues, children with different issues and different problems. But it is the ones who are most, who have the biggest issues, that are the ones who may be affected by being sent to independent schools, that it is enormous cost to the county, but at the same time, not getting the service that they should be getting their entitled to. But one thing that I thought would be aware of checking it, to some extent would be how many qualified or unqualified people are they using in these independent schools? So Bill, just to come back on that and to try to round this off, and I'm sure Cam will do a far better job than I asked, but all schools, all independent schools have to be inspected by the inspector for independent schools. Not off the stairs, it is the inspector for independent schools. And you will be aware this is parent choice, largely some of the issues that we have to contend with, and there may be more, it's your children, and it may be us who are having to put Bill for these. But this is one of the reasons that we are all hugely concerned about the budget in this area. It's exactly the same concerns that you've just expressed that we have all been expressing, leading up to the budget process this year. The inspector, when a child gets in the HC plan, and perhaps the parent or the carer concerned may ask that the author be taken to the independent inspector, not the independent inspector of schools, but the inspectorate who makes a judicial decision one way or the other. That is their choice, the parent choice and the inspector's choice. It isn't necessarily one that we haven't a great deal of say, and I'm being careful it won't work here, because we do stand up and try to put forward the case. And my belief, and I believe that is the case of many of us, my belief is that wherever possible children should be educated in their own community, because their own community be that locality or school, their own community represents the life that they will lead or do lead. And largely, their peer support, their family support is in that community, and they will thrive far better in that situation. And you've just touched on, is it always right that they go to a boarding school, not always right. Children need to be part of a community that loves and befriends them and supports them. And part of society is how we respond to the kaleidoscope that is our society, and we are all better for it. So that's my view, and I think that's one that we've expressed quite frequently. Sarah, and then I'm going back to Kam, unless there are any other, and Peter, Sarah, Peter, then Kam. Thank you. Just 1.5, 1, sorry, 1.5, 1, that is right, of the, the courts says that proactive high needs capital funding will therefore be given to resource provision. I mean, obviously, we've just set up the wonderful workshop academy, which is, you know, autism specific, and I'd hate to think that I suppose I'm questioning what the word priority means, because if we should need another resource such as the academy, I'm hoping we're just not going to say no, because we're going to own how special resources provision. And my other one around that, that particular paragraph, it says that there's a particular shortage of secondary resource provision places absolutely get that. My worry is quite often in secondary, the relationship between the child and the school can be completely broken, and although we'd like to keep them very, very close, I take it, you know, one of the things we'll look at is, are they kind of managed transfers into secondary resource provision, not just putting them in the same school where they may already have quite a barrier to learning in that area. And then the other one was around the workforce development program. I'm really keen on this. I think that it's come across in a number of comments from some parents that, you know, particularly in early years, but junior, rather than kind of very early years, but particularly in junior, some schools haven't quite got a grasp about supporting children, particularly in that pre EOCP kind of space. And so I'm really keen that we make sure that that's meaningful, that development program, and that, you know, we work with all partners, whether they're academies or mainstream, you know, maintained to make sure that that's in there because I'd hope for our children who are in academy schools to somehow get not quite the same level of support that hopefully going forward our children in our maintained schools were. Basically kind of exceeded its budget, and so we've got an accumulative deficit from SDND, and that accumulative deficit has kind of realized itself in quite a significant sum that's held in reserves, which is, I think, the last time I looked so approaching 32 million pound. We also passed a cabinet a while back that we would no longer kind of serve that deficit onto the reserves, and we will then, if we do not bring the spending on SDND along with the provisions made, we will be running actually a deficit on our accounts. The other aspect of it is that all those three papers that you've seen before us today, basically are made provision for SDND spending and provision. Mainstream provision of SDND is important and a very important part of that provision. If we can keep as many as children with SDND needs in their communities, in their local schools, that can only be a better outcome for them in the long term. We are now trying to consciously making them kind of provision for specialist schools, et cetera, and as Bill Gifford has purported to, there is a private sector out there as well. To a large extent, whether they do or don't go to that private sector, as is kind of an easy-as-pointed act, it's sometimes out of our hands. It's the parents' choice, and parents' choice at the moment has the upper hand in terms of where we send these children. So, SDND has been a problem for us for quite some time. The provision of the need has been extra banana ability to kind of finance it for quite a while. We are making full grants in terms of increasing those mainstream provision and all those specialist ones that are inside our control and inside the county itself. So, hopefully, by passing these three papers today, we're making a considerable effort towards making and bringing that overspend it under control by doing this. And also getting better outcomes from our children as a result, because we do not want children being bused all over the country at either end of the day. You hear of children with SDND needs, and we're having to embark on an hour, an hour, an hour, and a half journeys either end of the day. That cannot be good. So, hopefully, this is the three papers here, and this one, particularly, will go some way to basically kind of providing some better SDND provision within the funds that we've got. No more? A few questions, nephew. Two questions. I just want to pick up one of your parts of your question is quite challenging in that. Where a relationship is broken down between parent, school, and child? Obviously, we need somebody in there to do that, and that's when the local authority steps in. Often, the child and the parent want to move schools because their relationship is so broken. But having said that, the child is the only two seconds in, and there are different scenarios. So, when you talk about managed moves, this is where part of the FAAC, the Fair Access Protocol, comes in where we try and place a child, one, as close to a home as possible, and two, where they will be happy. And thirdly, it's a shame when a school and the family and the child breaks down. I think it's a real shame. Majority of the cases our children would send, you know, it's a fact. Or who have special needs in terms of, you know, so, you know, so I just think we are working on that. We're working with schools in how we try and, you know, lower the numbers or even try and bring it to zero. But it's not easy. We have two of the 40 schools in the county, and each, you know, each work differently. So, that we are working on that. We've got officers working in schools to try and, you know, work with parent, child, and school in order to try and calm those things down. And obviously, Izzy and Peter have hopefully answered your own questions. Thank you, Chair. Can we agree those? Thank you. Thank you very much. Thanks for that. So, and changing the subject slightly. The next paper is the War It's Your Bus Service Improvement Plan and detail. So, Jan, can we ask you to introduce this, please? Yeah, thank you. So, this paper has been brought forward in front of you as a result, originally, of the BSEP+ funding that we awarded last year for 2324 and ran into this year 2425. And last September, we brought a report to Cabinet to look at the spending for 2324. And we said we'd bring a further paper to look at this year's spending, and that's what this paper is actually doing. So, not only is it doing that, it's also bringing in an additional 3.394 million pound of Phase 3 network north BSEP funding, which has also been allocated to the county. So, therefore, we've now got a two-year program where we have a total of 5.46 million to spend, and this report actually takes all that into account. You'll find through several apprentices in the report, there's progress on the delivery of the enhanced partnership scheme. There's an update on the delivery of BSEP+ funding for 2324 last year. And you should note that the x18 strapped upon Avon to Coventry Bus is, which we're now running in evenings, is now up and running, and that was done in the A's in the stagecoach and we're all Shakespeare Theatre. You'll also find an updated watch BSEP plan, which includes the new funding, and finally it shows our updated aspirations that we have going forward. It's also worth noting that in this report, we have a new Zebra Fund, which is the Zero Emissions Bus Regional Areas Fund, and we have been successful in a bid to rank two of that fund. And we're going to get an extra 4.57 million pound capital grant contribution from the DFT as a result of our successful bid. That's going to provide 27 all-electric buses on commercial routes across Washington, operated by stagecoach, Midlands, and more details of that scheme we brought forward in a report, which I hope to bring in July. It's important that we get this bit done today because we have to submit a new BSEP to the Department for Transport by the 12th of June to enable the securing of the funds to be released for 2425, and that is just under 5.5 million pounds. I want to thank the officers for the incredible amount of work that they put into this paper, and into all the bids. We're getting some tremendous funding brought in by the hard work of the offices, which is enabling us to enhance the bus service for everyone. And that is one of our priorities, and so it's a new story, and happy to take questions. Thank you. Are there any comments, questions in Margaret? Thank you. Thanks very much, Chairman. I just wanted to add my support to this plan and give an example of the sort of thing it can help with. So I've been working with Katherine Free, managing director of broadband at the hospital over the last year, trying to improve bus access to the hospital for both staff and for patients, and we've had some really positive results out of that. Just an example, we've now got a direct bus for the first time, a direct bus from Avastin to Georgia, the hospital. We've got an additional bus from Benworth, direct bus to the hospital. We've got, we're having, what do you call those, information screens, real-time information screens in the bus stations and in the hospital. We've also changed the times of the bus service, so that it meets the shift times of the workers in the hospital. And I have to say, I've got to thank the offices that have worked with us on this, and I'm going to name them, because they've been so good. So Richard Sweeney, Nigel White, Dan Jeans and Clive Jones, have been absolutely fabulous, so thank you very much for all the help you've given us. And it's made a real impact, it will make a real impact, and there will be lots of communication, thank you, Jay, on this. Thank you, thank you very much. Tim? Yeah, firstly, I'd reiterate Margaret's endorsement of those officers. I sit on the buses working group as one of the main members on that, and they're excellent, they're really moving this forward. If I may, I would just offer my endorsement to this paper as well, it's really, really positive to see. And in so many of our communities where we need an integrated transport plan that integrates, not just, obviously, people want to continue to use their cars, and we've got freight on our roads, but we want more active travel, and we want public transport. This is a new critical part of the jigsaw, and so it's really, really good to see this coming forward, and the more we see the plan being delivered, and improving people's lives, and supporting the economy, and supporting enriching their lives, if you like, through public transport, the better, but not fully support it, thank you. Great, Sarah. As a member of the panel, I also support it, and I'd also like to pay tribute to Councillor Sinclair, who's been doing some work over and above what the rest of the panel have in working with bus service providers. I'm going to say about advertising, that's probably not quite the right word, but that's in my head, that's what you do to promotion, that's the word promotion, promotion, and I should be declared an interest, because obviously my division is one of the places that might benefit from it. So apologies, I should have declared an interest, but genuinely, I think there's some real positives, and we know we've got some work to do, but the whole group are keen to do it, and the officers, as they've said, are excellent, very supportive. Well, I think that's so far so good, and Bill. Yes, you didn't want to miss the words of the one bus user. I came on the X-18 this morning, and I've said extremely good bus, we arrived on time, and it's very full, and it's what we would really like to see all our buses doing, which is arriving on time, and being full. But I have in recent months, because my wife was in hospital, I had to go from Lamington to what I saw think of as Wall's grave, but the university hospital government didn't work, and that could take me, it needs to allow sometimes as much as two hours to do that journey. And so I've encouraged to hear Margaret Bell's comments about trying to improve, and I suspect the people down in Stratford, it's going to be an extra hour on that. There really does need to be much better provision for people, and very glad to hear that work is being done on that, but to get people to and from hospital, because it's actually a time when people, even car drivers may not be able to drive and therefore have to get. So that's something that's good, I think it's good to see the work being done, and yes, the recommendations that I'm sure will be coming forward will be accepted out. And just to say that 3.5 and 4.1 about the net zero, the electric vehicle, and getting up to getting numbers of people using the buses up to what they were before the COVID, but I would like to see them going well beyond that, because we need to get people to realise, actually, bus travel is a sensible way of moving around. Thank you. Bill, thank you. One more? Heather? Yes, I just really wanted to come in and support a demand-led or demand-responsive transport throughout, and glad to see that going forward. I know it takes a lot of promotion to people to understand the process and how they pick up the buses and all of this kind of thing. But I really think that's a goal to achieve, particularly in our rural areas, so that there are bus services for people who live out of reach of the commercial routes. But I also wanted to put in a clear, I saw in the report about bringing the demand-responsive, the community transport, all together in a way, organizations such as VASA, they have to spend a lot of money on the admin around these things. And I think being able to bring it together could bring those costs down, and I did see a piece in the report about that. So I would really welcome that, because I think there is something about joining up those community services, particularly if you're talking about journeys from Stratford into Wall's grave, and the demand-responsive transport would be a really good exercise. Absolutely, and the other end of the scale, you know, students getting to and from, I think that's another area that there's a demand that we should be responding to. Absolutely, and I also would like to say, I love seeing a reverb electric buses rolling up in Brinklown and taking people to Wall's grave hospital. So, yeah, that's really good. That's in rugby. So, thank you for all your nice comments, and also some constructive comments as well, which I'll take away. And yeah, the demand-responsive transport has been absolutely great, especially the Indigo Plus that was finalist in two awards, last year in the city awards, came top in the one category. And not only that, but we've got a national academy in the United States that are looking at demand-responsive transport, also contacting this county to ask us about the Indigo Plus service. So, it's getting recognition internationally. I think we're going the right way. This report is going to help things, and I'd like the cabinet to approve the recommendations as laid out and paid 79. Can we agree there? Thank you. That's great. Right, so this is the last paper in public documents, and this is the number six back to CAM. It's the Educational Attainment Working Group report, and I know that Brett, who chaired this Brett Beetham, wanted to be here, but he's not so well. He's cold through something anyway, not so well, but I think you're going to take it forward, and I think there are one or two people here who are on the group who might contribute to CAM to you. Thank you, Chair. Just before I begin, there is a revised recommendation. My voice is going now. And that is that Cabinet considers the content of the report and endorses the recommendations of the Educational Attainment Working Group subject to alignment with current budget for governance and policy. So that's the revised recommendation, I believe, all Councillors and Cabinet members will have received a copy of that if they haven't. Okay, good. So just want to place my thanks on record to all the members that the cross-party members that were on this working party, and also to Leicestershire County Council for their time and commitment. Because actually the information that they gave us was really, really informative of what they do in their county, and actually it was on a level path on some of the works that we were doing, and obviously we picked up on best practice. Also, as part of the working group, Councillors went and met schools where attainment figures were really good, and I thank those schools for hosting us. Again, some fantastic work done in those schools, and also, again, best practice being shared amongst other schools that are where attainment isn't doing so well. All in all, there are recommendations that have been brought before you, and they are on pages 102 and pages 103. I'm happy to take questions, Chair, and thank you very much, and can I also thank the group, some of which are here, who may have put a lot of time and effort into this report as well. Are there any comments or any questions on this? Yes, sir. Yes, I've read the reports several times, and I'm a bit confused if I'm honest. Sorry, apologies, it may just be me. We talk a lot in here around disadvantaged pupils, and we talk an absolutely recommendation, one absolutely fantastic, I think that's a brilliant recommendation to lobby for children to get the free school meals if they are entitled to them without having to go through processes to get them. That's absolutely brilliant, very sensible, and I think absolutely enhancing scrutiny of strategies and promoting opportunities. I think where I was left a bit confused is, did we find as a result of our enquiries that the majority of the issues were because children came from what we would call deprived backgrounds, wanted a better word. But we also then talk about mental health provision as well, and I'm kind of a bit lost about what did we find, it's not quite clear in the document, but I absolutely think that, you know, lobbying for letters of stain, you've got me at it now, don't you? Legislative change, that's what it is. It is absolutely key, you know, making sure that children get the support that they should have from day one, absolutely brilliant. So I think for me it was just that kind of slight confusion, I guess I'm not quite sure whether we found that the majority of, I suppose, end of achievement, end of attainment, what do we call it these days, is because of kind of financial background, or is it, are there other reasons as well that we're then going to go on and work on a bit more? We've got one of the working group here, it's not more than one, but Margaret. Thank you. Yes, we did look at disadvantaged children across the piece, there's some interesting things came out of that. Being disadvantaged is not and should not be a defining factor in your education attainment, and a number of schools absolutely kicking the trend there. And these children have got really high attainment. The other thing to say is, some of the really successful schools, if you look underneath their figures, they might be very successful on the surface, but if you look at what happens to their disadvantaged children, it isn't as good as it should be, and we need to make sure that those children aren't lost in an average, and that did come out. I should say, although there are only four recommendations here, there are lots and lots of discussion. But Johnny Kerry actually came to the meeting, and I think we were reassured that there's lots of policies that are in place already to address a lot of the issues that we found, so they don't pay any recommendations. Thank you. Thank you for cleaning that one, Margaret. Back to you, Cam. Nothing further to add, other than a thank you to all. Please, can you approve the revised recommendation, as I've mentioned earlier? Can we agree with that? Yes, thank you. That's helpful, and thank you all who were involved in that. Can I move us then too? Do you only have the words there? Can we have a lot of them? Can't remember it. Okay. That members of the public be excluded from the meeting for the items mentioned below on the grounds that their presence would involve the disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1972. Can we agree with that recommendation? Thank you.

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