Building Our Promise Community
North Lanarkshire Council · 29 September 2022
Back to Policy and Strategy Committee — 29 September 2022 and its agenda
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North Lanarkshire Council Policy and Strategy Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref AG/JL Date 29/09/22 Building Our Promise Community From Alison Gordon, Head of Children, Families and Justice/CSWO E-mail gordonal@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 01698 332001 Executive Summary Following publication of The Promise by the Independent Care Review in February 2020, cross-party commitment to support delivery was made by North Lanarkshire Council in August thereafter with the intent of working across council services and with the Scottish Government, partners and care providers to deliver the necessary changes. Two years on this report recommends that as the next step in our Promise journey, partners reaffirm their commitment through a Promise Pledge and the hosting of a conference to explore key issues and opportunities including new approaches and joint work with local communities to foster a sense of shared ownership and accountability towards improving lives and outcomes for children, young people and their families. At a time where pandemic impacts and the current cost-of-living crisis continue to impact disproportionately on children, families and young people in greatest need, including those with experience of care, it is clear that momentum and drive towards #Keeping the Promise in North Lanarkshire can only by a united effort by all services and partners. Recommendations The Policy and Strategy Committee is requested to: 1) Note progress to date in North Lanarkshire by the Children’s Services Partnership in implementing The Promise, including the establishment of a core Promise Team; 2) Endorse the recent commitment by North Lanarkshire Community Planning Partnership Strategic Leadership Board to examine where partners can support delivery of The Promise in North Lanarkshire; 3) Approve that a joint conference be organised as a vehicle to reaffirm all partners’ commitment to The Promise through a ‘Promise Pledge’, to inform the both future direction and development of services and a building of a ‘Promise Community’ with a report on the outcomes of the conference submitted to a future meeting of this Committee. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Support all children and young people to realise their full potential Ambition statement (7) Enhance collaborative working to maximise support and ensure all our children and young people are included, supported, and safe
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1. Background 1.1. In February 2020 the Independent Care Review published a series of reports, under the collective championing umbrella of ‘The Promise,’ designed to transform the lives and experiences of children, young people and families in and around the edges of the care system and associated support services. 1.2. The Review’s findings and recommendations were informed by contributions, evidence and feedback from more than 5,500 people, half of them children and young people who had first-hand experience of care, and also staff, volunteers, statutory bodies, partner agencies and organisations involved in providing care, support or advocacy services on behalf of children and young people. 1.3. The Promise is structured around five underlying principles and foundations: • Voice Children must be heard and listened to in all decisions about their care; • Family Wherever possible, families should be supported to stay together and the focus for local authorities and partners should be on looking at how we keep children out of care and within their own families; • Care Where it is not possible for a child to remain living with their own family, they must stay with their brothers and sisters where safe to do so, and they must belong to a stable, loving home; • People Children’s services staff and people in the wider community who look after children must be well supported so that they in turn can provide compassionate care and decision making; and, • Scaffolding The services, systems, decision making and governance processes, along with accountability arrangements, that surround children’s services must be more supportive and responsive. 1.4. The main Promise report and supporting reports to deliver on each of the above principles: The Plan; The Money; Follow the Money; and The Rules, can be found at https://www.carereview.scot/. 1.5. The Promise Plan 2021-24 published in March 2021 set out early objectives and primary tasks, followed in May 2021 by the Change Programme, effectively setting out a delivery plan and a range of actions for the first phase of the programme under the key priority areas of ‘a good childhood’, ‘whole family support’, ‘supporting the workforce’, ‘planning’ and ‘building capacity’. These reports can be found at www.thepromise.scot 1.6. The following year, in March 2022, the Scottish Government published ‘Keeping the Promise Implementation Plan’ containing 80 actions and commitments to significantly reduce the number of children in care and deliver The Promise’s ambitions over the next 10 years. (A copy of ‘Keeping the Promise Implementation Plan’ is available on the Scottish Government website .) 1.7. All political parties, partner agencies and many wider organisations across Scotland have committed to the implementation of the Promise. North Lanarkshire Council passed a motion in August 2020, committing to working with the Scottish Government, partners and care providers and partners to deliver the necessary changes and ensure that children and young people in North Lanarkshire and across Scotland “grow up loved, safe and respected to ensure that they realise their full potential.” 1.8. Actions to deliver on The Promise are firmly embedded within the council’s current Programme of Work and progress reports are regularly submitted to the Education and
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Families Committee on a range of related strands of work under the umbrella of PoW 44.1 -Keeping the Promise: Care Foundation and PoW 80.1 – Keeping the Promise: Support for families, children and young people. A Children’s Champion’s Board providing a forum for interaction and planning between young people with lived experience of care and senior leaders is also well established and well attended and as outlined below North Lanarkshire’s current multi-agency statutory Children’s Services Plan is framed around the Promise creating, in the language of the Promise, a solid foundation got future work. 2. Report Delivering the Promise in North Lanarkshire 2.1. The Promise echoes many of the shared ambitions of The Plan for North Lanarkshire. North Lanarkshire Children’s Services’ Partnership developed and structured the most recent Children’s Services Plan 2021-23 around the foundations of the Promise with multi-agency task groups focussing on the key elements of Voice, Family Support and Care (Promise Partnership) as well as on Mental Health, Wellbeing and Resilience. 2.2. A core Promise Team has been established which includes development workers with lived experience of care and this Team has successfully bid for a small grant to support activity to raise awareness of the Promise and another to support young people with care experience reconnect with families and those important to them, both funded via the national Promise Partnership administered through Corra. North Lanarkshire has also been selected as one of only three areas in Scotland partnering with the Promise Team nationally to undertake further work on Human and Economic Cost Modelling (HECM) to support a further understanding of how money is invested currently and to support the changes required for earlier intervention and preventative work by shifting spend upstream. We have worked hard to make connections across other local and national programmes and to ensure the Promise principles underpin all of our improvement activity, wherever possible joining up and maximising the benefits of work undertaken under the umbrella of a range of temporary national funding streams. These include the Scottish Attainment Challenge, the Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Framework, the National Drugs Mission Fund and most recently the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund, the challenge across these being to support sustainable transformation. 2.3. Specific examples of work undertaken to date relating to priorities within the Promise Plan 21-24 include: 2.3.1. Language and Record Keeping: ‘Scotland must change the language of care. Language must be easily understood, be positive and must not create and compound stigma’ the Promise page 87 Stigma and ‘othering’ can be sustained, often unintentionally, by the language we use. The Care Review heard from children that the words used by the workforce to describe their lives, like ‘unit’ and ‘placement’ and ‘contact’ and ‘respite’ and ‘LAC’ (looked after child), are not the same as those used by their non-care- experienced peers. They told the Care Review that this language compounds a sense of being different, can exacerbate low self-esteem and is stigmatising.
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In partnership with care experienced children and young people, a video and guidance for managers and practitioners across the children’s services partnership has been produced. Awareness raising sessions by the Promise Development Workers have taken place with a limited number of managers and practitioners, with further role out planned. Case file audits will be used to evaluate impact of the guidance in improving practice in the use language within records. Further developments include a focus on how we capture memories for care experienced children and young people which will accompany them throughout their care journey and beyond, photographs, letters, memory boxes are now being used and developed in partnership with young people. 2.3.2. Brothers and Sisters Call to Action: Scotland will stop the practice of separating brothers and sisters unless for reasons of safety. Relationships between brothers and sisters will be cherished and protected across decision-making and through the culture and values of people who care for them. Promise p62 Development is this area is not without challenge. Keeping larger family groups together if they need to be removed from their parent’s care is an example, however, a revised framework for assessing family time, has been implemented, with the voice of children and parents central to how we can be more creative in our approach, while keeping children safe. Further policy and practice developments will be developed in partnership with children and young people, their families and carers including foster and kinship, to ensure maintaining significant relationships is central to planning for children and young people. 2.3.3. Health Calls to Action: Every child ‘in care’ in Scotland will have access to intensive support that ensures educational and health needs are fully met. Local Authorities and Health Boards will take active responsibility tpwards care experienced children and young people, whatever their setting of care, so they have what they need to thrive’ Promise ps 51&89 A review of the process for health needs assessments for care experienced children and young people has been undertaken. Included in the review was the development of an information leaflet for children, young people and their parents outlining the importance of the health needs assessment and highlighting the benefits and resource that can be provided to support healthy development. Current KPIs in this area focus on agency performance with respect to numbers of health needs assessments undertaken. An impact evaluation will be agreed to collate qualitative data on the more fundamental question of how the health needs assessment is improving health outcomes for care experienced children and young people, through a more collaborative approach to this with children, families and carers, The mental health and well-being needs of care experienced children and young people and others is part of a suite of developments being taken forward by through Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Support Services Framework. Developments include ‘Lets Introduce Anxiety Management’ and ‘Living Life to the Full’ programmes as well as the expansion of capacity for out- of-hours support offered through social work intensive service,
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The impact of trauma on the emotional wellbeing of care experienced children and young people is well documented. Accessibility to good mental health services when needed, throughout childhood, continues to be a priority for the partnership across children’s services with co-design key to ensuring support is delivered flexibly and in a way which meets needs. Our Promise development workers and care experienced young people have been working with a Senior Officer to design new supports an earlier this year presented to a national event, Tending the Light, on their scoping of needs, The additional capacity being created within Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, (CAHMS), should prioritise care experienced children, young people and their families aligning with the Promise for community-based services (health) to offer intensive therapeutic interventions, proportionate to the needs of children, young people experiencing care and their families. In support of this our Promise Development Workers are working with NHS Lanarkshire’s staff and Promise Board, 2.3.4. Education Calls to Action: Right to Education The Promise Plan 21-24 demands that schools know and cherish their care experienced children and that school improvement plans recognise the needs of care experienced children with robust tracking of progress so that support can be provided early. It also demands an end to both formal and informal exclusion of care experienced children, access to all subjects and exta- curricular activities and support towards positive destinations. The Virtual School in NL has had a positive impact on meeting the needs of care experienced children and young people. Additional short-term resource of 70k has been agreed for the Virtual School from Covid recovery funds to bridge a reduction in funding allocation from the CECYP Grant due to a decrease in the number of children experiencing care, mainly care at home, during the pandemic period. The Virtual School has continued to develop vocational opportunities with a wide range of partners. Where possible, vocational learning is accredited, and young people achieve qualifications to support future career choices. A video has been produced outlining the children and young people’s experiences and the positive impact on their wellbeing. Forest School and Outdoor Learning has been a successful approach in engaging a number of children and young people in learning packages, tailored to meet individual needs. Engagement and attendance in these activities continues to be high. Young people enjoy the experience of being outdoors and all participants work towards a qualification. Feedback from young people, their families and schools indicate a positive impact on relationships, emotional regulation, and readiness for learning. Ongoing work with schools towards fulfilling the ambition of The Promise to end school exclusions has resulted in significant reductions over the past three sessions . • 48% reduction in exclusions for care experienced learners • 59% reduction in days lost due to exclusion for care experienced learners • 39% reduction in number of care experienced learners excluded
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As an area of historical challenge for North Lanarkshire, this will continue to be a focus for the Virtual School. The Virtual School has initiated and implemented a Promise Champions model in schools across the authority, with schools being recognised for their promotion and work to deliver on the ambitions of the Promise. Currently two clusters have been involved in the Keeping the Promise pilot (over 200 school staff). The model, which has attracted national interest, was developed in collaboration with the Promise Development Team and will continue to be embedded across the authority. Importantly a range of approaches have been developed though the virtual school, both with respect to relationship- based practice and interventions with children and young people and linked work with families which provide a template for wider capacity building within education services to meet the needs of those children who whist not care experienced may struggle within a school setting and families who may also feel alienated from education. This learning has, and will continue to inform, wider developments including the intensive element of the council’s summer programme and the model for the recently established cohort of family engagement workers within the education services, established in response to falling attendance figures post pandemic, 2.3.5. Contextual Safeguarding Links to Calls to Action on Support, Peer and Community Support and Youth Justice within the Promise Plan. When risk outwith the family is identified, the contextual safeguarding approach supports a shift in practice and culture in North Lanarkshire in which child protection professionals and partners actively take steps to make the places in which young people have experienced abuse safer. A multiagency steering group was established and an audit of practice comprising a review of processes and consultation with staff undertaken. In addition, the Promise Development Team with the support of Who Cares Scotland provision in North Lanarkshire, held consultation and engagement with young people in relation to their experience of service responses to risk of harm outside the family. A Young Person’s Safeguarding Panel is now established. The panel considers young people at significant risk of harm outside the home and is co-chaired by Police Scotland and Social Work. It has representation from across council services (CLD, education, community safety, housing) as well as from partners to ensure a holistic response. The panel adds value to case planning with young people by agreeing actions to address risks in locations or contexts for young people. Each situation is evaluated by members so that any issues can be addressed immediately. The panel is currently looking at ways in which we can streamline processes, explore how we measure outcomes in a more qualitative manner and identify key themes to allow focussed training where required. Training has now been rolled out across the partnership with sessions having been offered to all partner agencies and to other relevant professionals. An online learning module for managers and practitioners will go live in the next few months, to further embed contextual safeguarding in practice. A
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practitioners’ forum is in place to offer support and a space for sharing practice and learning. Education and Families is carrying out a self-evaluation specific to the approach and its impact on young people at risk of harm outside the home and/or who are reported missing. 2.3.6. Family Support Links to Calls to Action within the Promise Plan on Family Support, Peer and Community Support, Family Therapies, Service Integration and Youth Justice High quality whole family support, which recognises and mitigates the impact of poverty and adversity, is fundamental to supporting all children and young people achieve their potential in line with the ambitions of the Plan for North Lanarkshire. It is also fundamental to the delivery of the Promise. The Council and its partners are ambitious in working together to create more flexible, wrap around, cohesive and integrated support for families to ensure that every family who needs support gets the right support at the right time and to fulfil children’s rights to be raised safely in their own families, wherever possible. Developments to further these wider ambitions include: • The expansion of Family Group Decision-Making • A range of support offered through the Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Framework, including through cluster-based partnerships between the Community and Voluntary Sector and schools using the • Investment in family engagement workers • A multi-agency review of support to children and young people in conflict with the law • Whole Family Wellbeing Fund As a key part of its commitment to keep The Promise, The Scottish Government’s 2021- 22 Programme for Government committed to investing £500 million of Whole Family Wellbeing Funding (WFWF) over the lifetime of the Parliament to support the development of holistic whole family support services. It also sets out the ambition that by 2030, at least 5% of community- based health and social care spend should be going towards preventative whole family support measures. In July 2022, the Scottish Government announced its allocation of ‘Tranche 1’ of the WFWF for Children’s Services Planning Partnerships. The aim of the fund is to transform the way family support is delivered by ensuring families can access seamless and holistic support that is wrapped around their individual needs, and crucially prevent needs escalating to the point that child may become looked after. North Lanarkshire has received a grant of £2.351 million for 22/23 to be overseen through the governance of the Children’s Services Partnership (CSP). 2.3.7 In addition to the above a range of other work is ongoing including on housing pathways and innovative work with national third sector partners and Police Scotland towards eliminating the use of restraint and reducing the criminalisation of young people, in particular within our children’s houses, a specific call to action within the Promise Plan, The vision of the Promise with respect to peer and community support and service integration will also inform the design and operational model for the community hub roll
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out in North Lanarkshire whilst we will continue to use the ‘Calls to Action’ within the Promise Plan 21-23 to benchmark progress in all areas. Working in Partnership 2.4. The work undertaken locally is making a significant impact in supporting positive change, however to date, the majority of this has been led through Children’s Services and in order to fully achieve the transformation required we must galvanise commitment and change across partners, adult services and within our communities. To this end, North Lanarkshire Community Planning Partnership’s Strategic Leadership Board has considered a series of reports and presentations on The Promise at recent meetings where partners have reviewed how, both individually and collectively, they can support delivery of The Promise in North Lanarkshire. Included within the Partnership’s agreed actions is the proposal to organise a multi-agency conference with the specific objectives of awareness raising; exploring issues and lived-experience of children, young people and their families who have direct experience of the care system; and in turn, drawing on this and wider learning nationally, to strengthen integration amongst partners and local communities in delivering better joined up and more inclusive services for care experienced children and young people – now and into adulthood. 2.5. This report describes the proposed conference in more detail and seeks approval from the Policy and Strategy Committee for council services as appropriate to engage in supporting delivery of the conference. Building our Promise Community 2.6. With a working title of ‘Building our Promise Community’ the primary objective of the proposed conference is to foster and develop shared ownership and a shared commitment to support children, young people and their families and deliver on The Promise’s actions, commitments and objectives. 2.7. If we are to deliver effectively on the ambitions that children and young people are actively engaged in decisions about them and that services are delivered compassionately and in ways that meet children and young people’s needs, keeping families together wherever possible, then it is essential that we develop a shared understanding of these needs and develop collaborative approaches with joint accountability and commitment to make a difference. 2.8. Similarly, in the same way that ‘It takes a village to raise a child1’ our Promise commitments do not end when a young person turns 16 or leaves school, nor should they end at 26, the statutory parameter for after care services. We should have an ongoing commitment to support each child and young person to develop, find their independence, move on in the next chapters of their lives and reach their full potential within a caring and inclusive community. To this end the conference will also explore the role and contribution of Adult Social Work Services, the voluntary sector, partner agencies, especially where care experienced young people interact directly with these through Health, Housing Services, employability support services, Police Scotland and Justice Services. These services equally have a role in ensuring a holistic approach to support for families, particularly those who face this most significant challenges and to consider the impact on children and young people in their decision-making. Importantly, there is also an opportunity to work through the Community Boards and 1 African proverb. African culture recognises that parenting is a shared responsibility - a communal affair - not just the concern of parents or grandparents, but of the extended family. Uncles, aunts, cousins, neighbours and friends can all be involved and all have a part to play.
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Local Outcome Improvement Plans to identify where local services and solutions can provide inclusive and ongoing nurturing and support. 2.9. North Lanarkshire community planning partners have signed up to supporting the conference and it will be organised by a sub-group of the Promise Team referenced above with direct involvement by care-experienced young people. The planned timescale is during November this year2, reflecting partners’ commitment, and to allow emerging findings and recommendations to inform the development of the 2023/24 programmes of work for the council and partners. The indicative programme already includes a mix of keynote addresses and thematic workshops to explore the issues and opportunities summarised below. • National direction and learning Reinforcing our commitment to The Promise and considering best practice and learning from the national Promise Team, the Independent Oversight Body, other areas and locally developed pilots or initiatives. • Health and wellbeing Ensuring access to health and wellbeing services at all stages in children and young peoples’ development that are responsive to needs, including health and wellbeing supports for the wider family. • Housing pathways Providing a range of affordable options specifically tailored to individual young peoples’ need and preferences. • Human and economic cost modelling Targeting resources, staffing and budgets differently to make a genuinely transformational and sustainable shift in children’s services and outcomes and identifying where this leads to long term change and increased resilience and capacity within families. • Justice services Addressing the factors that result in a disproportionate number of care experienced young people ending up in the criminal justice system. • Community support Identifying places in every community for parents of young children to meet other local parents, stay and play with their children and have access to support and advice, along with ongoing supports and facilities in each stage of children’s lives as they grow up and move on. • Collective ownership and contribution What could partners and communities contribute and can we commit to a ‘Promise Pledge’ for North Lanarkshire? 3. Measures of success 3.1. In the short term successful delivery of the conference and the outcomes, recommendations and direct actions that stem from the event will provide tangible measures of success and help to set future direction. A report on the conference outcomes will be submitted to a future meeting of this committee. 2 November is identified as the provisional timescale subject to identification and availability of a suitable venue.
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3.2. Ultimately success will be demonstrated through reducing the number of children and young people in care and improving the lives, opportunities and potential of children, young people and families in North Lanarkshire. Further successes will be achieved through increased collaborative working, better integrated service delivery, early intervention and improved outcomes for children and families – all provided and supported through a strong ethos of shared ownership and accountability amongst partners and communities. 4. Supporting documentation 4.1. Links to the Promise, Promise Plan and related national documents are incorporated into section 1 of this report. Alison Gordon Head of Children, Families and Justice/ Chief Social Work Officer
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5. Impacts ( http://connect/report-template-guidance ) 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☒ No ☐ A combined Equalities and Fairer Scotland Duty Impact Assessment will be undertaken by the sub-group to ensure the conference and associated outcomes promote inclusivity. If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts have been discussed and agreed with Financial Solutions? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? The proposed conference will be delivered within existing resources. 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts have been discussed and agreed with People and Organisational Development? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts have been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic Solutions? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐
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5.6 Technology / Digital impact Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Where the impact identifies a requirement for technology, has an assessment been carried out (or scheduled) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☒ No ☐ Risks associated with delivery of The Promise are contained in the existing service risk register and a separate exercise will be completed to identify risks linked to the conference, however at this stage it is anticipated that any risks will be minor and should be mitigated through effective conference planning and reporting.