The Children and Families Overview and Scrutiny Committee were scheduled to meet on 17 July 2025 to discuss Gloucestershire Children's Services, social care performance reports, special guardianship and kinship arrangements, and the committee's work plan. The committee was also scheduled to review performance data and future meeting dates.

Introduction to Children's Services and the Ambitions Plan

Ann James, Executive Director of Children's Services, was scheduled to provide an introduction to Children's Services and the Ambitions Plan. This was to include an overview of the service's improvement journey and the role of the Ambassadors for Vulnerable Children and Young People.

The presentation, as detailed in the report pack, was scheduled to cover:

• The context of children's services in Gloucestershire.
• The structure of the services.
• The legal framework within which the services operate.
• Ofsted inspections and the service's improvement journey.
• The vision and approach of the service.
• The services provided.
• Plans for continuous improvement, including the Ambitions Plan and the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Local Area Improvement Plan.
• The role of the Ambassadors for Vulnerable Children and Young People in co-production.

The presentation was also scheduled to introduce the team, including Ann James, Director of Children's Services, Paul Shallcross, Director of Safeguarding and Care, Kirsten Harrison, Director of Education, and Rob England, Director of Children's Commissioning and Partnerships.

The legal framework was scheduled to be outlined with reference to:

• Children Act 1989¹
• Children Act 2004²
• Children and Families Act 2014³
• Care Standards Act 2000⁴
• Adoption and Children Act 2002⁵
• Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000⁶
• Crime and Disorder Act 1998
• Education Act 2002 and 2011
• Chronically Sick and Disabled Person Act 1970
• Associated regulations and guidance

The presentation was also scheduled to cover the council's vision:

A great place to grow up where children and young people thrive and live lives of choice and opportunity.

This vision is underpinned by four objectives:

• Equity
• Access
• Inclusion
• Quality

The services provided by Gloucestershire County Council were scheduled to be presented under three headings:

• Safeguarding and Care
• Education
• Commissioning and Partnerships

The Ambitions Plan was scheduled to be presented as being founded on a practice framework and standards, and aligned with the National Framework for Children's Social Care.

The presentation was scheduled to include a summary of the government's reform programme as detailed in the Keeping Children Safe, Helping Families Thrive – November 2024 Policy Paper, and the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill (Dec 2024).

The role of the Ambassadors for Vulnerable Children and Young People was scheduled to be explained, including their role in training for county councillors, membership of the Corporate Parenting Group, and contribution to the Participation Annual Report.

Annual Report on Special Guardianship and Kinship Arrangements

Tammy Wheatley, Head of Service Corporate Parenting and Fostering, was scheduled to present the Annual Report on Special Guardianship and Kinship Arrangements. The report provides an overview of different types of kinship arrangements, Gloucestershire's performance in this area, support available for kinship arrangements, and national developments.

The report was scheduled to include information based on data from 31 March 2025. It was scheduled to exclude details relating to private fostering arrangements, which are covered in a separate Private Fostering Annual Report.

The structure of the Kinship Teams was scheduled to be outlined, including the roles of the Kinship Assessment Team (KAT) and the Kinship Support Team (KST).

The report was scheduled to define kinship care as care provided by family or friends who step in to care for a child when their parents cannot. It was scheduled to highlight the benefits of kinship care, including emotional well-being and educational outcomes.

The types of kinship care arrangements that were scheduled to be discussed are:

• Kinship fostering
• Child Arrangement Order
• Special Guardianship Order
• Private Fostering

The report was scheduled to outline Gloucestershire's approach to kinship care, highlighting the importance of permanence and belonging for children. It was scheduled to emphasise the council's commitment to supporting kinship carers and ensuring they have access to the support they need.

The support available to Special Guardianship Order (SGO) carers was scheduled to be outlined, including financial support and access to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF).

The support available to kinship carers was scheduled to be outlined, including advice, guidance, training, support groups, and financial allowances.

The report was scheduled to include statistics on kinship foster care and SGOs in Gloucestershire, including the number of households providing kinship foster care, the number of SGO assessments and orders granted, and the types of support provided to SGO carers.

National changes in kinship care were scheduled to be discussed, including the government's Kinship Care Matters strategy and the Kinship Care: statutory guidance for local authorities.

Achievements in Gloucestershire's kinship care services were scheduled to be highlighted, including the Mockingbird scheme, engagement events with carers, improved training, new assessment processes, the Designated Carers Scheme, and improved joint working.

Current priorities for kinship care in Gloucestershire were scheduled to be outlined, including finalising and launching the Kinship Local Offer, recruiting a local Kinship Ambassador, embedding new assessments and support plans, adopting the Kinship Pathway on Liquid Logic, and developing community partnerships.

Introduction to Social Care Performance Reports

Paul Shallcross, Director of Safeguarding and Care, and Anna Gravelle were scheduled to provide an introduction to social care performance reports. This was to include an overview of the role of the committee in scrutinising the data.

Quarter 4 2024/2025 Performance Report

Ann James was scheduled to present the Quarter 4 2024/25 Performance Report. The report provides a strategic overview of the council's performance in children's services.

The report includes scorecards on:

• Children's Social Care
• Education

The Children's Social Care scorecard includes measures on:

• Quality Assurance
• Contact Activity
• Children in Need of Help & Protection
• Children in Care
• Care Experienced Young People

The Education scorecard includes measures on:

• Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs)
• Pupil Absence
• Early Years Settings
• Pupil Exclusions
• Pupil Suspensions

The report also includes a Children's Strategic Risk Monitoring Report, which identifies key strategic risks and their potential impact on children's services.

The risks identified are:

• Failure to develop sufficient placement capacity
• Insufficient workforce capacity in Children's services
• Increasing EHCP demand and capacity threaten outcomes for vulnerable children (SEND)
• Ineffective Social Care Practice

Work Plan

The committee was scheduled to review its work plan and suggest items for consideration at future meetings. When making suggestions, members were asked to consider the reasons for and expected benefit of scrutiny's involvement, and which area the item comes under:

• Overview
• Scrutiny
• Information

The CFOSC Work Plan 2025 - Updated June lists future items for consideration, including:

• Progress with the implementation of the Families First Partnership Programme
• Supporting young carers in Gloucestershire
• Workshops, visits and member development sessions
• Visit to the Multi-agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH)

The committee was also scheduled to note the dates of future meetings: 11 September 2025 and 6 November 2025.