The meeting noted four reports: on school attendance and exclusions, Enfield's strategy for autistic children, young people and adults 2025-2030, and emotional wellbeing & mental health support for children & young people. The Panel also noted their work programme for 2024-2025, and the date of their next meeting.

Falling School Rolls

Neil Best, Head of Education, Strategic Resourcing & Partnerships, presented a report that showed the continuing decline in school rolls in Enfield. He said that the live birth rate in Enfield has fallen by 21% since 2008, and this, combined with other factors such as outward migration and insufficient affordable family homes has led to a 4% drop in the number of school pupils in the borough since 2018. This is creating budget difficulties for Enfield's schools, and has led the Council to consult on a draft Pupil Places Strategy, entitled “Strengthening Education Provision in Enfield”. The aim of the strategy is to ensure that there are enough school places available across the Borough to allow parents to choose a school for their children, whilst simultaneously reducing the overall number of places available in Enfield to match the declining birth rate. This will involve working with community schools, academy trusts, and diocesan boards to reduce each school's 'Published Admission Number'¹ over a number of years. The most acute pressure on places in the borough is for children with Special Educational Needs, particularly those with speech, language and communication needs, those with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs, and those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This is being exacerbated by the planned closure of Addison House, a residential children's home, which is leading to a shortage of places for children with ASD in particular. This shortfall is being addressed through the creation of 23 new specialist units within mainstream schools in the Borough, including two new special needs schools that are planned to open over the next two years. Members of the Panel asked a number of questions about the plans, including if any assessment had been made of the impact of the recently announced plan to charge 20% VAT on private school fees. Officers confirmed that no assessment had been made, and there was no evidence that parents of children in private schools were considering applying for places in state schools. They also confirmed that the draft strategy does not envisage closing any schools, as they feel the situation in Enfield is not as serious as in some other London Boroughs, such as Hackney.

Safeguarding Children's Partnership Annual Report 2023/24

The Panel noted the Safeguarding Children's Partnership Annual Report for 2023/24. The report was introduced by Bharat Ayer, Head of Safeguarding Partnerships, and Mellissa Morland, Children’s Safeguarding Partnerships Manager. Ms Morland highlighted the work that the Enfield Safeguarding Partnership has been doing to prevent neglect, abuse, and exploitation of children and families , and the partnership's priorities for the 2024/25 period. During a discussion of the report, Peter Nathan, Enfield's Director of Education, was asked about the future of the Enfield Inclusion Charter. He responded that the charter has been very successful in signing up schools, and that they intend to expand the charter's remit to focus on inclusion in a broader sense, as, it is however broader than this and includes other protected characteristics . A number of questions were also asked about the work of the Safeguarding Ambassadors, who have launched a video on their experiences of being stopped and searched by the Police . Members of the Panel asked if they could view the video, and Bharat Ayer agreed to circulate it, or to arrange a visit for Councillors to meet with the Ambassadors at a Youth Centre in the Borough.

Annual Children's Statutory Complaints Report

The Panel also noted the Annual Children's Statutory Complaints report, which was introduced by Will Wraxall, Enfield's Complaints, MEQs & Corporate Functions Manager. Mr Wraxall reported that 18 Stage 1 complaints had been received in relation to children's social care in the year 2023-24, and that this figure is a reduction on the previous year's figure of 29. The number of complaints resolved at Stage 1 also fell, however, to just over 50% of the total, down from nearly 70% the previous year. In response to Members' questions, Mr Wraxall explained that, the main theme for Stage 1 complaints was social worker interactions and quality of service delivered. He also provided an overview of the complaints procedure, and the actions the Council is taking to avoid complaints, stating that the Council is trying to, maintain excellent service at the first point of service contact and engagement .

Enfield's Strategy for Autistic Children, Young People and Adults 2025-2030

The Panel received a report asking them to review Enfield's Strategy for Autistic Children, Young People and Adults 2025-2030. The report was introduced by Suzy Francis, Educational Psychologist and Strategic Lead for Children and Young People’s Mental Health at Enfield Council, who was joined by three other officers. Ms Francis explained that the report was intended to gather feedback from the Panel ahead of the strategy being formally approved by Councillor Alev Cazimoglu, Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care, and Councillor Abdul Abdullahi, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, in January 2025. In her introduction, Ms Francis explained that, autistic people have neurological differences resulting in different ways of experiencing the world , and that Enfield Council recognises this type of neurodiversity as a difference and not a disease or due to brain damage . The strategy, she explained, sets out seven priorities to improve the lives of all autistic people in the Borough, and in doing so it will consider the National Strategy for Autistic Children, Young People and Adults 2021-2026, which was produced following the passing of the Autism Act 2009.

Emotional Wellbeing & Mental Health Support for Children & Young People

The Panel noted the report on Emotional Wellbeing & Mental Health Support for Children & Young People, which was introduced by Suzy Francis, Educational Psychologist and Strategic Lead for Children and Young People’s Mental Health at Enfield Council. The report provides an overview of how the Council and other stakeholders are working together to promote emotional wellbeing in Enfield's schools. It is based on the iThrive framework, which was developed to transform mental health services for children and young people in England. Ms Francis explained that the framework provides a way to understand a child's needs, and what sort of support is appropriate to meet those needs. The report shows that there is a strong network of support in Enfield for children with mild to moderate mental health difficulties, but that some areas of the service, such as access to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), are still being developed. In particular, Enfield's participation in the NHS Lead Provider Collaborative, a national programme to integrate mental health services for children and young people, will provide more intensive support for children with complex needs, including those requiring inpatient care, in the coming years. This will see additional support provided in the community to reduce the need for hospital admissions, and will lead to the creation of a Pan-London system to meet the needs of children who do require inpatient care.