The Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee of Islington Council met on Tuesday 15 September 2026 to discuss a range of important issues concerning the borough's young people. Key topics included an update on the council's lifelong corporate parenting strategy, provisional school results for the academic year 2025/26, and a comprehensive performance report for the fourth quarter of 2025/26. The committee also reviewed its work programme for the upcoming year.

Lifelong Corporate Parenting Update

Councillor Sheila Chapman, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Families, presented an update on the council's commitment to lifelong corporate parenting, a strategy designed to provide continuous support to care-experienced young people well beyond statutory age limits. The report highlighted progress in securing safe and affordable housing, with schemes like the House Project and Next Steps programme supporting young people into independent living. A significant commitment has been made by the council's housing department to allocate 50 one-bedroom properties annually for care-experienced young people, though a shortfall of approximately 120 young people on the waiting list was noted.

Improvements in mental health support were also discussed, with plans to introduce 'Champions' within mental health services to act as dedicated points of contact for care-experienced young people. The report detailed the Family Business Model, an employment initiative that partners with local businesses to offer ring-fenced apprenticeships, internships, and work experience. While progress has been made, securing permanent roles and apprenticeships has taken longer than anticipated. The council has also been recognised as a Fostering Friendly Employer, offering additional paid leave to employees who are foster or kinship carers.

Headline Provisional School Results 2025/26

The committee received a positive overview of the provisional school results for the 2025/26 academic year. Across early years, phonics, Key Stage 2, and Key Stage 4, Islington's performance generally met or exceeded national averages. Notably, the Good Level of Development in early years increased by 2.8%, and phonics outcomes saw a 5.5% improvement, moving Islington up 38 places in the local authority rankings. At Key Stage 2, combined Reading, Writing, and Maths results at the expected standard were 6.8% above the national average. GCSE results also showed improvement, with 27.8% of results achieving grade 7 or above, a gap of 1.2 percentage points wider than the previous year compared to the national average. Vocational and Technical Level qualifications saw 21.1% of entries achieving the top 'Starred Distinction' grade, significantly outperforming the national average of 13.0%. While overall results were strong, the report indicated that Islington was not always on par with London averages or its statistical neighbours, with areas for further focus identified, particularly in mathematics at Key Stage 2 for higher standards.

Quarter Four Performance Report 2025/26

The committee reviewed the Quarter Four performance report for 2025/26, which covered a broad range of indicators related to children and young people's services. A significant increase in children's social care contacts was noted, with 14,966 contacts made during the financial year, a 6% rise from the previous year. The report highlighted that information requests from other agencies constituted the largest proportion of these contacts, indicating strong multi-agency safeguarding activity. Domestic violence remained a significant reason for contact, alongside parenting capacity difficulties and child mental health concerns. Encouragingly, the proportion of contacts progressing to children's social care reduced, suggesting that more families are receiving appropriate support at an earlier stage through targeted services.

The report also detailed trends in re-referrals to children's social care, placement stability for looked-after children, and youth engagement rates. While overall attendance figures showed a slight improvement, persistent absence rates in both primary and secondary schools remained a concern, particularly for vulnerable groups. The number of electively home-educated pupils also saw a notable increase. In relation to youth justice, the number of first-time entrants remained slightly above the London and England averages, and repeat offending rates were also a concern. The report noted a rise in reported domestic abuse offences, with ongoing work to develop a new VAWG Strategy.

Work Programme

The committee reviewed its work programme for the upcoming year, noting that topics such as SEND reform, school attendance, and the children's workforce would be revisited. A specific request was made to include an item focusing on mathematics and English in schools, which was agreed to be incorporated into the January meeting.

The meeting also included a discussion on the Scrutiny Initiation Document, which was formally agreed to commence a review. The committee also noted the minutes from the previous meeting and received a Chair's report. Public questions were taken at the end of each agenda item.