The Scrutiny Children & Young People Sub-Committee met on Tuesday 19 March 2024 to discuss updates on Health Visiting services, education standards, and performance dashboards. Key decisions included a commitment to explore incentives for recruitment and retention in public nursing and a request to add Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) and SEND provision to the work programme for the upcoming year.

Health Visiting Service Update

The Sub-Committee received an update on the Antenatal and Health Visiting Service in Croydon. Deborah Kelly, Chief Nurse of Croydon Health Services, and Matthew Kershaw, Chief Executive of Croydon Health Services, presented the report, highlighting improvements in performance, recruitment, and retention. They acknowledged that while progress has been made, the service is still on an improvement journey.

Key points discussed included:

• Cultural Change: New leadership has been instrumental in modernising systems and processes within the Health Visiting service, with staff now largely on board with the changes.
• Performance Targets: While targets for New Birth Visits are not 100%, the service aims to visit every child, employing a risk-based approach to resource deployment. Information on missed visits would be provided post-meeting.
• School Nursing: The School Nursing Service prioritises areas of greatest need and provides supplementary support, working increasingly in an integrated way with Health Visitors. The effectiveness of the service will be measured by developmental milestones in children's school lives.
• Locality Model: The move to a four-locality model aims to create larger, more skilled teams to better respond to needs across Croydon. This transformation is intended to improve the triage and assessment of need, ensuring resources are targeted effectively.
• Mandated Checks: While New Birth Visits and 6-8 Week Checks are now compliant, efforts will focus on improving performance for 12-month and 2-2.5 year reviews. The national shortage of Health Visitors has been a significant factor in performance, but overall improvements have been noted since June 2023.
• Family Hubs: The integration of public nursing with Family Hubs is a key aim, with the first Family Hub launched at Woodlands Children's Centre. The Department for Education funding model supports this transformation over three years.
• Missed Visits: For families who miss a visit, the service will absolutely find a way to connect with these families in some form.
• Recruitment and Retention: The Sub-Committee requested that the Council work with Croydon Health Services to explore possible incentives to aid recruitment and retention for public nursing.

Education Standards 2023

The Sub-Committee reviewed the summarised performance of children and young people in Croydon schools for the academic year 2022/23. Shelley Davies, Director of Education, and an Interim Head of Education Services presented the report.

Key discussions included:

• Attendance and Persistent Absence: While the report initially contained an error regarding persistent absence rates, unvalidated data indicated a slight improvement. The Council has attendance improvement advisors and holds regular meetings with schools focused on attendance. From September 2024, schools will have a statutory responsibility to share attendance data with the Council.
• SEND and Attendance: Unmet Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) needs can contribute to persistent absence. Innovative work is being undertaken at the earliest opportunity to address emerging needs through various support services.
• Voice of the Child: The voice of the child is being incorporated into work on persistent absences, particularly for looked-after children through their Personal Education Plans (PEPs). Student panels are also part of quality assurance visits to schools.
• School Engagement: The Council's support and challenge role involves open conversations, partnership working, and sharing best practices to encourage schools to utilise the services available.
• BTECs and T Levels: The provision of BTECs and T Levels is a school-led decision based on finances and teacher recruitment, though discussions are ongoing with colleges and schools to ensure pathways meet young people's ambitions.
• Disproportionate Exclusions: The issue of disproportionate exclusions for Black Caribbean pupils was raised, with the access to education team focusing on this in conversations with individual schools. The Council intervenes to review exclusion processes and works with governors on the appropriateness of decisions.
• Impact of COVID-19: The Croydon Education Partnership is working to mitigate the effects of the pandemic, providing additional support for behavioural issues and wellbeing.
• EHCPs and CAMHS Wait Times: The percentage of EHCPs issued within 20 weeks is performing at a high level. It was clarified that not all EHCP assessments require a CAMHS assessment.
• Parent and Child Voice in SEND: The views of parents and carers are sought through Croydon Active Voices and SENDIASS. The Council acknowledges that provision is not always where families want it to be and is committed to improving communication channels.

Early Help, Children's Social Care and Education Dashboard

The Sub-Committee reviewed the performance dashboard for Early Help, Children's Social Care, and Education services. It was acknowledged that a dip in performance for indicator M33 was seasonal and had improved in February 2024. Concerns were raised about high caseloads (indicator W1a), which are being closely monitored, with factors such as agency staff numbers and Assessed and Supported Year in Employment (ASYE) social workers noted as potential influences.

Scrutiny Work Programme 2023-24

The Sub-Committee noted the draft work programme for 2023-24 and considered items for the 2024-25 programme. It was concluded that EHCPs and SEND provision in the borough should be included in the Work Programme for 2024-25. The Chair acknowledged the departure of Josephine Copeland, Non-voting Teacher representative, and thanked her for her contributions.