The Children, Young People and Families Scrutiny Panel are scheduled to meet to discuss educational attainment, a framework for belonging in schools, child exploitation, and the performance of children's services. The panel will also look at the action log and work programme to track progress and plan future activities.

Child Exploitation

The panel will receive an update on the work of services in Plymouth to respond to children who go missing and are at risk of child exploitation.

The report pack states that Plymouth City Council has three services working directly with adolescents in need of protection and support from exploitation:

• Be Safe
• Edge of Care and 16+ Homeless Service
• Youth Justice Service (YJS)

The Be Safe team is responsible for completing all Return Home Conversations (RHCs) for children who are reported missing. The Edge of Care Team consists of social workers and family practitioners who provide intensive support. The Youth Justice Service delivers its core statutory service with a focus on preventing offending and re-offending.

According to the report pack:

These crucial services recognise that children who present as homeless, enter the criminal justice system and are on the edge of care, often due to family breakdown, are at increased risk of going missing and being exploited.

The report pack states that last year children aged between 10 and 17 years were reported missing and known to adolescent services. The report pack also includes data on Return Home Conversations, and states that Plymouth is consistently performing above the national average across all key performance indicators. However, the report pack also notes that finding ways to engage children who are at risk of exploitation and who are going missing can be challenging.

The report pack also contains data on children assessed as being at risk of Child Criminal Exploitation and Child Sexual Exploitation.

The panel will also be informed of the processes and safeguarding measures in place, including notification and intelligence sharing, Return Home Conversations, exploitation screening, and multi-agency support. The Daily Intelligence Briefings (DIB) are attended by representatives from various agencies, including Be Safe, Edge of Care, Youth Justice Service, Police, Health, Families First Children's Service, Education and Community Connections, to review missing incidents and other significant events pertaining to risk of child exploitation.

The Philomena Protocol, a joint police and Children's Services process to support quick, effective responses when Children in Care go missing, continues to be used in Plymouth.

The report pack states that next steps include:

• Integrating Adolescent Services with partners to ensure closer alignment of Be Safe, Edge of Care, and Multi Agency Youth Justice team to improve responsiveness and consistency.
• Offering earlier intervention and support to Families First Partnership, where early risk indicators of family breakdown and exploitation are identified.
• Extending hours to include evenings and weekends to improve flexibility and timeliness of RHCs.
• Working with partners to strengthen reporting capabilities.

Plymouth Attainment Report

The panel will receive a report providing a high-level overview of educational outcomes across the city. The report will draw on the latest available data to highlight patterns of achievement, progress, and areas requiring attention. The report pack notes that the report is based on unvalidated data, and findings should be interpreted with caution until final datasets are confirmed.

The report pack states that the Education, Participation and Skills Service has the key responsibility within the council for monitoring, evaluating and reporting on the standards of attainment and achievement, inclusive practice and safeguarding in all Plymouth schools.

The report pack also notes that there are established and strong partnership arrangements in place through the city's 'place-based approach'¹, which are utilised to enable collaboration and working together to support parents and children.

The report pack includes data and analysis of:

• Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP)
• Year 1 phonics screening check
• End of Key Stage 2 national curriculum assessments
• Key Stage 4 results
• Key Stage 5 results

The report pack also includes information on children in care at Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5.

A Belonging Framework for Plymouth and the Place Based Plan

The panel will discuss the Belonging Framework, which aims to support school improvement in Plymouth by placing belonging at the centre of how children engage, attend and achieve. The report pack states that the framework helps schools create inclusive cultures where every child feels safe, recognised and valued.

The framework focuses on eight core areas where belonging can be strengthened:

• leadership and school values
• curriculum and pedagogy
• classroom culture and relationships
• pupil voice and agency
• transitions and pathways
• inclusion and targeted support
• family and community engagement
• attendance and engagement

The report pack also includes information on supporting white working-class pupils in Plymouth.

The panel will also discuss the Place Based Plan for Plymouth 2025 – 2026 Priorities, which aims to understand and address the complex causes of attendance decline. The plan brings six interlinked priorities together under one citywide commitment: to act early, work collaboratively, and deliver ambitious, evidence-informed interventions.

The six strands are:

• Predictive Risk Model and Resilience Enablement Framework
• Belonging and connection
• Alternative support and pathways
• Communication friendly environments
• Transition
• Vaping prevention and Risk Education

Performance Scorecard

The panel will receive the Q1 2025/26 Performance Report, which shares key performance data information related to Children Services (Children, Young People and Family Services and Education, Participation and Skills).

The report pack includes data on:

• Referrals and re-referrals
• Children in need
• Children subject to a child protection plan
• Looked after children
• Care experienced young people
• Ofsted outcomes
• Absence monitoring
• Education, employment and training
• Key stage outcomes

Action Log and Work Programme

The panel will review the action log to track progress on previous resolutions. They will also discuss the work programme for 2025/26 to plan future activities.