The Delegated Decisions by Cabinet Member for Children and Young People meeting on Tuesday 14 July 2026 approved the use of the Families First grant to support children's social care reforms. No other significant decisions were made, with no questions from county councillors or petitions and public address received.

Families First - Children's Social Care Reforms

Councillor Sean Gaul, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, approved the use of the Families First grant in Oxfordshire to support the delivery of Children's Social Care reform. This decision aligns with the grant conditions set by the Department for Education and delegates authority to the Director for Children's Services, Delia Mann, to undertake all necessary activity to utilise the funding. The Families First programme is a national initiative aimed at improving outcomes for children and families by providing earlier, more joined-up support and strengthening child protection decision-making. Oxfordshire has already begun implementing reforms through pilot activities.

The programme is supported by a ring-fenced grant of approximately £6.4 million per annum for the next two years, reducing to £5.5 million by 2028-29. The funding will be used for integrated family help, strengthened child protection arrangements, family-led decision-making, specialist and targeted support, and kinship care and reunification support. The report highlighted that the council is required to formally approve the use of this grant through its governance framework for Key Decisions. The proposals are intended to support the council's ambitions to improve outcomes for children and young people by providing earlier support and strengthening safeguarding arrangements. The decision to approve the use of the grant does not create an additional ongoing commitment from the council's base budget. The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 provides the legal mandate for these reforms, which must be fully implemented by March 2027. Failure to comply with the grant conditions could result in financial penalties or enforcement action from the Department for Education.

The meeting also confirmed the minutes of the previous meeting held on 17 March 2026. There were no declarations of interest, questions from county councillors, or petitions and public address submitted for this meeting.