Agenda Document Pack - Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee - 19/09/2023
Midlothian Council · 19 September 2023
Back to Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee — 19 September 2023 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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Notice of Meeting and Agenda Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Venue: Council Chambers/Hybrid, Midlothian House, Dalkeith, EH22 1DN Date: Tuesday, 19 September 2023 Time: 11:00 Executive Director : Place Contact: Clerk Name: Democratic Services Clerk Telephone: Clerk Email: democratic.services@midlothian.gov.uk Further Information: This is a meeting which is open to members of the public. Privacy notice: Please note that this meeting may be recorded. The recording may be publicly available following the meeting. If you would like to know how Midlothian Council collects, uses and shares your personal information, please visit our website: www.midlothian.gov.uk Page 1 of 154
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1 Welcome, Introductions and Apologies 2 Order of Business Including notice of new business submitted as urgent for consideration at the end of the meeting. 3 Declaration of Interest Members should declare any financial and non-financial interests they have in the items of business for consideration, identifying the relevant agenda item and the nature of their interest. 4 Minute of Previous Meeting 4.1 Minute of meeting of 20 June 2023 submitted for approval 5 - 14 4.2 Action Log 15 - 16 5 Public Reports 5.1 Adult Health and Social Care Q1 202324 Performance Report 17 - 22 5.2 Childrens Services Partnerships and Communities Q1 202324 Performance Report 23 - 30 5.3 Corporate Solutions Q1 202324 Performance Report 31 - 48 5.4 Education Q1 202324 Performance Report 49 - 64 5.5 Place Q1 202324 Performance Report 65 - 84 5.6 Midlothian Council Q1 202324 Performance Report 85 - 94 5.7 Lawfield Primary School Inspection Report 95 - 104 5.8 Moorfoot Primary School Inspection Report 105 - 112 5.9 Care Inspectorate Inspections of Day Care of Children August 2022 April 2023 113 - 122 5.10 Newbyres Care Home Inspection Report 123 - 154 6 Private Reports No items for discussion Page 2 of 154
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7 Date of Next Meeting The next meeting will be held on 7 November 2023. Page 3 of 154
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1-1 Minute of Meeting Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 4.1 Performance Review and Scrutiny Date Time Venue Tuesday 20 June 2023 11.00 am Council Chambers, Midlothian House Present: Councillor Milligan (Chair) Councillor Curran Councillor Drummond Councillor Imrie Councillor McCall Councillor Russell Councillor Smaill Councillor Virgo Councillor Bowen (Virtually) In attendance: Grace Vickers, Chief Executive Kevin Anderson, Executive Director Place Fiona Robertson, Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Joan Tranent, Chief Social Work Officer & Chief Officer Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities Morag Barrow, Director of Health & Social Care: Midlothian HSCP / Chief Officer to Midlothian IJB Derek Oliver Chief Officer Place Saty Kaur, Chief Officer Corporate Solutions (Acting) Nick Clater, Head of Adult and Social Care Services Grace Cowan, Head of Primary Care & Older People's Services Janet Ritchie, Democratic Services Officer (Minute) Hannah Forbes, Democratic Services Assistant Page 5 of 154
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1 Welcome, Introductions and Apologies Apologies for absence were received on behalf of Councillor McEwan, Councillor Pottinger and Councillor Winchester 2 Order of Business The Order of Business was as detailed in the agenda. 3 Declarations of interest No declarations of interest were received. 4 Minutes of Previous Meetings 4.1 The Minute of the Meeting of the Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee held on the 14 March 2023 was submitted and approved as correct record. 4.2 The Action Log updates were noted and Mr Clater advised that he would provide updates on Items 5.1 and 5.2. Councillor Imrie highlighted that since the Penicuik Centre closed there has been a lack of updates for the Covid booster and Rosewell centre staff advised that they were very quiet. He also pointed out that if you do not have a car there is no public transport for the people in Penicuik to get to the Rosewell Centre. Ms Barrow provided an update on the vaccination uptake and advised that the Penicuik Centre was only up to December 2022. Ms Barrow also advised that there was a reduction in allocation from Scottish Government this year and they have been unable to finalise accommodation plan but advised the team have performed well and they will be continuing to look at this moving forward. 5. Reports Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.1 Adult Health and Social Care Performance Report 2022/23 The Head of Primary Care and Older People’s Services and the Head of Adult Health and Social Care Outline of report and summary of discussion The Head of Primary Care & Older People's Services, Grace Cowan and The Head of Adult Health and Social Care, Nick Clater provided an overview of the Adult Health and Social Care Performance Report 2022/23 highlighting some of the key achievements and challenges as contained within the report. Page 6 of 154
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Thereafter responded to questions and comments with regards to the following: • The number of sick days and the reasons for these absences – in responding it was confirmed that this is managed according to policy and and staff engagement. It was also highlighted that this is particularly high within care at home, and this is not unique to Midlothian and a brief overview was provided of the supports in place to address this. • Ms Barrow in responding to a question regarding Bonnyrigg Health Centre provided an update on the situation with regards to Legionella species found in the water and provided an update on the works taking place. Ms Barrow also confirmed that communication will be put out when the GP practices are fully back in. • Growing our own staff within this service – in responding Ms Barrow provided an update on the work with schools and colleges and advised that it is still very challenging in recruiting. Decision Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.2 Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities Performance Report 2022/23 Chief Officer Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities Outline of report and summary of discussion The Chief Officer Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities, Joan Tranent provided an overview of the Performance Report 2022/23 highlighting the main achievements and challenges contained within the report. Ms Tranent also advised on the challenges with increased number of sickness absence across the team and the supports in place to address this. Thereafter responded to questions and comments with regards to: • Referrals to Children Services and the referrals from Police Scotland and it was confirmed that if Police Scotland attend a household with children, they will submit a referral and Ms Tranent provided an explanation on the screening work that needs done and the work planned over the summer to try to resolve some of the issues with duplication in referrals. • Recruitment and the challenges in workforce competitive salaries and it was confirmed this was a big piece of work to make sure it is equitable across the service and Ms Tranent provided an explanation of the ongoing work regarding grading of staff and confirmed that a social work agency were looking at nationalising this. Decision Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the report. Page 7 of 154
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Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.3 Corporate Solutions Performance Report 2022/23 Chief Officer Corporate Solutions (Acting) Outline of report and summary of discussion The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions (Acting) provided an overview of the Performance Report 2022/23 highlighting some of the key successes and provided a summary of the emerging challenges as contained within the report and expressed her thanks to the staff across the directorate who have worked extremely hard this year. Thereafter Officers responded to questions and comments raised with regards to: • The Capital Plan prioritisation paper and planned works which will come forward to next council and projects under review and it was confirmed that this was a work in progress and will be brought forward to next Business Transformation Steering Group. It was confirmed by Mr Anderson in responding to a further question that the current projections within the existing capital expenditure plan is 4% but with the addition of the projects it will take it to 5.1% by 27/28. • Positive comments were made on the hybrid system. • Staff absence levels and the policies in place to support staff and Ms Kaur confirmed that there was no data to confirm that changes in sickness absence was due to working from home. • New computer management system and the customer service platform and the ongoing work to transform the customer experience. • Procurement Strategy and small areas of work which need to go through the procurement system and when equipment is required who has authority to sign this off and it was confirmed that procurement should be there to advise and work with services on this. It was also confirmed a manager was appointed to the procurement service. Decision Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.4 Education Performance Report 2022/23 Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Outline of report and summary of discussion The Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships provided an overview of the Performance Report 2022/23 advising that session 2022/23 was a positive year and provided an overview of some of the achievements and challenges. Page 8 of 154
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Thereafter responded to questions and comments raised by Members with regards to: • Attendance and Ms Robertson provided an explanation on the system in place to look at attendance and provided some of the reasons why children were not in schools, and this was similar picture across Scotland. It was also noted that a further report on the analysis of the attendance could be brought back in required. • In response to a question with regards to the attainment figures and the average percentage figures shown on the table on P71 of the pack, Ms Robertson confirmed that she would get this checked and provide feedback. • Updates on the Education Reform Consultations – with regards to SQA and if this building will be retained within Midlothian. Ms Robertson advised she does not have this information at present but will take this question away. Decision Ms Robertson will provide: • a further report on the analysis of the attendance in schools • Feedback on the attainment figures • Update on the Education Reform Consultations Action The Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.5 Place Q3 Performance Report 2022/23 Chief Officer Place Outline of report and summary of discussion The Chief Officer Place provided an overview of the Performance Report 2022/23 outlining the main achievements and brief overview of the areas of improvement. Councillor Smaill advised that Tynewater Community Council expressed their congratulations on the effectiveness of the Pothole Pro and he commented positively on the improvement to the rural roads. Decision Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.6 & 5.7 Midlothian Council Q3 Performance Report 2022/23 and Half Year Balanced Score Card Executive Director Place Outline of report and summary of discussion 5.6 Midlothian Council Annual Performance report provides a summary of the information from the individual Performance Reports presented by Officer and 5.7 The Balanced Scorecard provides an overview of performance in line with the Single Midlothian Plan. Page 9 of 154
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The Chief Executive, Grace Vickers highlighted that on the balance scorecard out of the 113 indicators, 23 were off target and provided a brief explanation on the indicators which were off target. The Chief Executive expressed her sincere thanks to the staff across all services for their hard work this year. Councillor Virgo also expressed his thanks to all staff for all their hard work during this very challenging time. In responding to a question raised by Councillor Virgo with regards to Midlothian’s growth and how this is being addressed, the Chief Executive advised that Midlothian’s is growing at a rate of 13.8% and the nearest local authority, East Lothian is growing at the rate of 8.8% and advised there is a Cosla demographic group which are meeting to look at groups falling and growing in demographics. The Chief Executive also advised on the productive meeting with Government and Officers from Midlothian and East Lothian on the direct impact this is having on local authorities. Decision To note the contents of the reports. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.8 Inspection of Cherry Road Resource Centre Head of Adult Services, Health and Social Care Outline of report and summary of discussion This report advised on the outcome of the inspection of Cherry Road Resource Centre and the actions that are being progressed to address the areas for improvement identified in the inspection report. Cherry Road Resource Centre is a Day Service, operated by Midlothian Council that provides support for adults with Learning Disabilities. It caters for individuals with complex learning disabilities and physical disabilities in addition to their Learning Disability. In March 2023 the Care Inspectorate conducted and announced a short notice inspection of Cherry Road Resource Centre. A copy of the report is contained in Appendix B of this report. In presenting this report Head of Adult Services highlighted main areas for improvement and the actions in place to address this. He also advised this was the first inspection under the new criteria and the comparison were outlined in the report. Mr Clater advised on the positivity and warmth in Cherry Road and that this was a good report. Thereafter Mr Clater in responding to a question raised by Councillor Imrie with regards to maintenance and a book to log and record actions, advised that this will be in place going forward and provided a brief explanation on why this was not in place but highlighted that management were now aware of the importance of this. Page 10 of 154
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Decision The Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the outcome of the inspection of Cherry Road Resource Centre by the Care Inspectorate. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.9 Inspection of Burnbrae Primary School Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Outline of report and summary of discussion This report outlines the outcome of the above inspection as carried out by Education Scotland in January 2023. First inspected in November 2020, then returned in March 2020, HM Inspectors published a letter on Burnbrae Primary School and Nursery Class. The letter set out several areas for improvement which were agreed with the school and Midlothian Council. HM Inspectors returned to the school to look at how it had continued to improve its work and published another letter in February 2022. In January 2023 HM Inspectors visited the school again. The report is now published on the Education Scotland website. The school has made progress since the original inspection, especially to practice in the provision classes, across early years and in P1. The local authority will now provide a report on progress within one year of this inspection. This report will inform any decision made by Education Scotland regarding further engagement. Ms Robertson advised they were pleased with the progress in the school since the original inspection in 2020 and expressed her thanks to the Teacher, her staff and the families for the positive improvements that have been made at Burnbrae Primary School. Decision The Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee: (i) Noted the content of the inspection follow through report. (ii) Congratulated the pupils, parents and staff connected with Burnbrae Primary School on the key strengths highlighted in the report. Action Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.10 Inspection of Danderhall Primary School Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Outline of report and summary of discussion This report outlines the outcome of the above inspection as carried out by Education Scotland which was communicated in their report of April 2023. Page 11 of 154
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In February 2023, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited Danderhall Primary School. The report was published on 24 April 2023, and is available on the Education Scotland website. Education Scotland are confident that the school has the capacity to continue to improve and so we will make no further visits in connection with this inspection. A permanent Head Teacher has been appointed and will take up post in August and will pick up the next steps as identified by HMI and local authority. Mr Robertson expressed her thanks to the Acting Head Teacher for leading the school during session 2023 and the additional duties undertaken with the inspection at that time. Decision The Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee: (ii) Noted the content of the inspection follow through report. (iii) Congratulated the pupils, parents and staff connected with Danderhall Primary School on the key strengths highlighted in the report. Action Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.11 Inspection of Sacred Heart Primary School Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships Outline of report and summary of discussion This report outlines the outcome of the above inspection as carried out by Education Scotland which was communicated in their letter of May 2023. In February 2023, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited Sacred Heart Primary School. The report was published on 9 May 2023, and is available on the Education Scotland website. As a result of the inspection findings Education Scotland thinks that the school needs additional support and more time to make necessary improvements. They will liaise with Midlothian Council regarding the school’s capacity to improve and will return to carry out a further inspection of the school within one year of the publication of the inspection letter. Ms Robertson highlighted that an action plan has been created and additional support provided to accelerate improvements across the school. The interventions will be closely monitored to ensure impact and an update can be provided in the Autumn if required. Page 12 of 154
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Councillor McCall advised for transparency she had a family member attending this school and further commented on her disappointment in reading this report and after visiting the school felt it was not a fair reflection on how the school operates and asked what supports are getting put in place to support the school in making these improvements. Ms Robertson in responding advised that there has been a number of changes to the school prior to the inspection and as Director had contacted Education Scotland to advise on the changes that had taken place within the school, however they advised they would still go in to inspect and Ms Robertson advised on the plans in place for the school to ensure the planning is relevant for the children and that they were working with the staff on the actions that will be taken in the classroom. She also advised that as Sacred Heart is a joint shared headship with St Matthew’s they will ensure there is consistency in the quality of the planning and that the action plan for the school could be shared if required. Councillors commented that in the past there were very good reports for this school, and it was agreed that an updated report would be brought back within 6 months. Decision Ms Robertson will provide an updated report to the Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee in 6 months. Action Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships 6 Private Reports No items for discussion 7 Date of the Next The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 19 September 2023 at 11.00 am. The meeting terminated at 12.33 pm. Page 13 of 154
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Action Log Date of Meeting Item No Item Action Action Owner Expected completion date Comments 14 March 2023 5.2 Adult Health and Social Care Q3 Performance Report Update on the Covid seasonal booster programme and why some of the centres had been closed in particular Penicuik Nick Clater/ Grace Cowan April 2023 Recommended for closure We are reliant on what the Scottish Government and their recommendations for who is eligible for specific vaccines. We have no permanent venues for vaccinations as it stands, Penicuik, in particular, was only a short-term venue for the A/W period 14 March 2023 5.2 Adult Health and Social Care Q3 Performance Report The number of leisure centre memberships and the actions managers were taking to encourage this would be reported back to Members Nick Clater April 2023 Recommended for closure Members across our estates is approximately 4350. Monthly promotions every month to encourage customers to take out memberships. We have reinstated our most popular membership, Fit in 8 for the month of June and July where customers can get an 8 week membership for the price of 4 and should they stay with us after the promotion, their joining Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 4.2 Page 15 of 154
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Date of Meeting Item No Item Action Action Owner Expected completion date Comments fee is waivered to encourage customers to stay with us. Looking to rebrand our membership packages in the near future and modernise what we offer and how we offer it. Swimming promotions will be launched at the end of June for the first time ever to encourage more families and children to use our pools and convert some of these customers to members 20 June 2023 5.4 Education Performance Report • A further report on the analysis of the attendance in schools will be provided • Clarification would be provided on the attainment figures. • An update would be provided on the Education Reform Consultations Fiona Robertson April 2023 20 June 2023 5.11 Education Performance Report An updated report will be provided on Sacred Heart Primary School in 6 months Fiona Robertson December 2023 Page 16 of 154
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1 Adult Health and Social Care Quarter 1 Performance Report 2023/24 01. Progress in delivery of strategic outcomes The Midlothian Integration Joint Board (IJB) plan and direct delegated health and social care services for the people of Midlothian. Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) oversees the delivery of all the services delegated to Midlothian IJB. The aim of integrated health and social care is for the people to experience more joined up treatment and care. To achieve this, all the services within Midlothian HSCP must make progress towards the aims of Midlothian IJB Strategic Commissioning Plan, work alongside the Community Planning Partnership, and contribute to the strategic aims of both NHS Lothian and Midlothian Council. Adult Social Care Services What we do Adult Social Care services protect and improve the wellbeing of the people and communities of Midlothian. They help people get the support they need in the right place, and at the right time. We work in partnership with people to contribute to sustaining thriving communities. We provide information, education, and support to help people take positive action to prevent ill or worsening health and wellbeing. When people need our support, our intervention should help people achieve the things that matter to them. We have ‘Good Conversations’ with people, provide personalised care, promote self-management, and ensure well coordinated services across health, social care and the third and Independent sectors. Social work services in Midlothian are delivered jointly by Midlothian Council and Midlothian Integration Joint Board. Adult social work and social care services, including justice social work, are delegated to Midlothian IJB. This means we are part of integrated health and social care and overseen by Midlothian HSCP and IJB. Adult Social Care therefore contributes to the Midlothian IJB Strategic Commissioning Plan, the strategic aims of both NHS Lothian and Midlothian Council, and contributes to the work of the Community Planning Partnership through the Single Midlothian Plan. How we do this To meet the needs of people and communities we will need to deliver on the strategic priorities of all our partners. We have identified a number of similar themes and priorities that we must work together to achieve. We need to: - Provide more preventative care - Understand how peoples’ and communities’ needs have changed and build the right offers of support - Ensure effective and efficient services while also maintaining quality - Improve socio-economic, health, wellbeing, and personal outcomes Community Planning Partnership and the Single Midlothian Plan Adult Social Care contribute to the ‘Single Midlothian Plan’ to work with the Community Planning Partnership members to achieve more together than health and social care can do alone. We lead the 'Midlothian will be Healthier' thematic area with 4 multi-sector projects. 1. Midlothian Care and Support Community Co-operative 2. Falls prevention and support 3. Digital self-management platform 4. Early Identification and Support for People Living with Frailty Adult Social Care is leading on the first of these projects to explore and define the demand for and the benefit of Midlothian Care and Support Community Co-operative that facilitates personalised support for carers, identifies local assets, and enhances local economic value. Last year, 17% of carers did not feel they had a say in the services provided for the person they look after. This number rose to 31% for those caring for someone due to substance use. 38% of carers did not feel services were well coordinated and described additional stress caused by having to speak to several organisations to get support. Carers in Midlothian told us they would like to see more services in their local communities at a time that suits them and was provided in one place. We anticipate that a Community Cooperative will help carers find the right support, in the right place at the right time. Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 5.1 Page 17 of 154
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2 Third Sector The Scottish Government considers the Third Sector to be equal partners in health and social integration. There are at least 700 voluntary sector group and organisations in Midlothian, and 228 registered charities (voluntary organisations or community groups) who identify their main operating area to be Midlothian. Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership contracts services from approximately 40 organisations to support people and communities. This is approximately 33% of the total Adult Social Care budget. Third Sector Interfaces (TSIs) also play a key role. TSIs provide the third sector with a single point of access for support and advice. Our services Adult Social Care covers a wide range of services. This plan brings together the priority actions of the 7 main areas that plan and deliver integrated care and support: - Adult Services This service includes Learning Disability, Physical Disabilities, Long Term Conditions and Sensory Impairment, Unpaid Carers, and Welfare Rights. Our Learning Disability services work with approximately 450 people. In Q1, Over 100 people came along to the Beacon in Gorebridge on Wednesday 3rd May for a free and fun Health event for people with a Learning Disability and their carers. There were workshops, activities, and stalls with plenty of ideas and suggestions about how staying fit and healthy can really help people to lead a full and independent life. Whilst the event concentrated on fun, with a smoothie bike and kic dancing session at lunchtime, the Fair emphasised serious underlying messages about how we can tackle the health inequalities experienced by people with a Learning Disability. This included the trial of a new accessible website to support informed decision making around attending screening, and advice on early detection of health issues, safe and healthy relationships, oral health, access to health services, vaccination, and exercise programmes that we can build into our daily routines. The event was organised by the Health and Social Care Partnership in partnership with the Midlothian Learning Disability Providers’ Forum, People First Midlothian, Midlothian Sport and Leisure, NHS Lothian, and the local area coordination service, and was part of 2023 Learning Disability Week.’ Challenges with Learning Disability services consistently focus on budgetary pressures. The IJB commissioned an external review of our services within the context of our budgetary pressures and this is due to report to the IJB in August 2023 (Q2) with recommendations. Ongoing challenges also remain regarding transitions of young people with disabilities into services and the lack of specialist care providers for some very complex packages of care. We are in the process of recruiting to a specific Transitions post that will work across Adults and Children’s Services. We acknowledge through this that there is a need to improve the processes. Q1 saw the start of a themed Care Inspectorate/HIS inspection of our services for people with Physical Disabilities, Long Term conditions and their carers. This will conclude in November/December 2023. - Older People This service includes Newbyres Care Village, Extra Care Housing, Older Peoples’ Social Work, Older Peoples’ OT, Care at Home, Rapid Response/MERRIT, Day Services, and Respite. For the purposes of this plan, Older Peoples Services includes Highbank Intermediate Care Facility and the InReach Social Work Team. The Older Peoples’ Service ensures that people over 65 receive person-centred care to live well in their community for as long as possible. This includes a range of service offers, support and equipment to help people live independently at home. These services provide support that often means people don’t need to go to hospital, or supports people recover in their own home when they leave hospital. Our services provide a combination of residential and non-residential care, both at home, in care homes, and in extra care housing. Some older people need more support to live at home. Our teams also provide social care support on discharge from hospital for all adults. Our dedicated Inreach Social Work Team, who work to support assessment of those who have had a hospital admission, ensures quick timely access to assessment, care and advice for patients/client and carers/family around future care needs and support to take forward when required care home choices. The main challenges within Midlothian are in relation to sufficient care home placements, with only 474 beds (both self funding and standard funded beds). This number of beds is below the national average against age demographic and means vacancies within Midlothian geography are limited – this presents the needs for families to think of placements out with Midlothian. Page 18 of 154
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3 Highbank can provide rehabilitation for people who would benefit from additional support after leaving hospital. There are 40 beds in this facility. Q1 saw the phased reintroduction of respite provision at Highbank with an initial 2 beds opening for respite use. This will be monitored closely and the plan is to, over time, progress to 4 and then 6 beds. The challenge of reintroducing respite provision again, after the 3 years of no respite and the use of all 40 beds as intermediate care resource to support flow, is the loss of 6 beds for flow capacity. As we are moving into planning for winter pressures we need to monitor the impact of this so there is a balance between flow and capacity. - Justice Service and Protection This service includes Justice, Community Justice, Duty Social Work, Adult Support and Protection, and Public Health. The Justice team supports people involved in the Parole and Pre-release process including the preparation of Criminal Justice Social Work Reports and pre-release reports. The team supervises people aged 18 and over who are subject to Community Payback Orders, Parole, Life and Non-Parole Licences, Extended Sentences and Supervised Released Orders. Our Unpaid Work service works in partnership with Food Fact Friends in Penicuik have developed a re-distribution scheme for household furniture and white goods. Food Fact Friends have secured two years of storage space and Unpaid Work are regularly collecting furniture and white good donations from members of the public that would otherwise have ended in landfill. The purpose of the scheme is to allow immediate access to those in need to safe furniture and electronic goods like fridges and freezers rather than having to wait for grant applications to be considered and processed. To support the scheme Unpaid Work staff and clients renovate furniture and PAT test electrical items to ensure that they are safe to use. This project has had three benefits: 1) those in need have immediate access to goods 2) We are preventing items going to landfill 3) Clients are being upskilled in renovating furniture and also obtaining a PAT testing qualification. Staffing can be challenging in Justice. In terms of staffing we lost two experienced social work staff. This has placed some pressure on the rest of the team whilst new staff were recruited. These new staff start on the 14th and 28th August 2023 which will restore the capacity of the Justice Service over what is traditionally a busy period for Justice work in Q2. Social Workers in the Duty Team support people aged 16 and over with crisis interventions, urgent and planned assessments, development of adult care support plans, reviews, and short-term interventions. The Adult Support and Protection (ASP) Team provides support and protection for people aged 16 and over who may be at risk of harm. The ASP Team uses the ‘three-point test’ to identify people who are: • unable to safeguard their own wellbeing, property rights or other interests • are at risk of harm, and • because they are affected by disability, mental disorder, illness, or physical and mental infirmity, are more vulnerable to being harmed then those not so affected. The ASP Team works to keep people safe by considering all suspicions, disclosures or actual harm are acted upon. This helps us provide the right support to protect vulnerable adults in Midlothian, by developing outcome focused care plans. The ASP Team continues to see a high demand (216 referrals in Q1, compared with 235 in Q1 of 2022/23). Whilst this demand is successfully and safely managed, it has prompted a look at how Adult Protection referrals are managed more generally and what support needs to be given to the small specialist team from the wider system within Adult Social Work. A trend of rising referrals will create significant challenges in a small area such as Midlothian. - Public Health The Public Health Practitioners work to support services to improve wellbeing and reduce health inequalities for the people of Midlothian. The team support staff to design and deliver services that support early intervention and prevention, and make connections and share good practice about how to avoid inequalities, monitoring and evaluating long term, population level outcomes. The Health Inclusion team works directly with vulnerable people in the community to understand what matters to them and live the lives they choose. - Mental Health and Substance Use This service includes Integrated Mental Health Teams and Substance Use. This service works in partnership with people to achieve their personal health and wellbeing goals. This includes prevention and early intervention activity, assessment, treatment, care and support. Being trauma aware and a Good Conversation approach are central to delivering person-centred care. These teams work with a wide range of partners across health and care including the third sector, peer services and volunteers. Page 19 of 154
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4 Over Q1 the Dementia Team, which is an integrated Council and NHS Team, have been nominated for Team of the Year in the NHS Lothian Celebrating Success Awards (due to be held in September 2023). The Substance Use Service successfully implemented the first 5 Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) Standards. These Standards are key drivers in the work to reduce drug deaths in Scotland. Adult Mental Health services continue to provide robust care and treatment at home and bed performance remains under Midlothian’s bed allocation at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital (ie. We use fewer bed than we are allocated). Q1 also saw an increase of 33 per cent compared to Q1 of 2022 for individuals accessing digital support through Midspace. - Midlothian and East Lothian Drug and Alcohol Partnership (MELDAP) MELDAP plans, commissions, and funds a network of services for people affected by their own or someone else’s alcohol or drug use. Support is available for families and adult carers, and recovery-focused services are provided to address people’s alcohol and drug use. These include residential rehabilitation, recovery services to reduce isolation, and opportunities to be supported into education, training, volunteering, and employment. - Learning and Development The Practice Learning and Development team design, develop and deliver training and learning opportunities across Midlothian HSCP and Council services. The team offers accredited Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQ) assessment across a number of subjects and supports apprenticeships. In Q1, the Learning and Development Team had some significant successes: • a higher number of staff engaging in a range of learning and development opportunities; • 16 people undertaking Open University Social work modules; • 8 staff undertaking postgraduate courses including leadership and management; • 89 staff undertaking SVQ’s at any one time across levels 2, 3 and 4. A challenge has been the decrease in the uptake of staff attending training courses planned i.e. staff agreeing to the training course place and then not turning up due to operational pressures in their services. Work is underway to structure training courses in a more creative way (smaller groups, less time out of the workplace etc) to offset this. 02. Challenges and Risks We must develop a whole-system approach to service design and delivery. This relies on shared decision-making, and shared responsibility for outcomes that enable proactive and consistent approaches to performance and quality improvement. We have recognised we must do more to support the workforce. This means investing in the wellbeing, training, and development of our workforce, including our third sector partners and unpaid carers. We must continue to improve the coordination of care and find ways to share information between services. We will have to make better use of existing technologies and provide people with access to accurate information and services. Our resources The budget for Adult Social Care Services is managed directly by the Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership. Resources have been stretched due to salary increases for our staff and our commissioned services, and a larger population with more complex needs. The challenge in recent years has been finding the right balance between meeting people’s needs in times of crisis while also supporting people to take action to prevent ill or worsening health in the future. We know the whole population programmes of prevention and early intervention activity will reduce pressure on emergency services in the future. However, it can be difficult to distribute and prioritise resources that allow for more community services. This is because we need to keep people safe in times of crisis and this can be unpredictable. All services have a duty to ensure we deliver Best Value. This means we ensure resources are well managed, to improve services, and deliver the best possible outcomes for people and communities. Our workforce We must ensure we have the right staff, in the right place, at the right time. Good Workforce Planning will ensure that our workforce has the knowledge and skills to deliver health and care in the future. The Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership Integrated Workforce Plan for 2022-2025 recognises local and national challenges and describes how we will respond. Page 20 of 154
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5 Our workforce is our greatest asset. We must invest in developing a skilled, flexible, and adaptable workforce to support people and communities to achieve the outcomes that matter most to them. We must plan in partnership with other sectors to ensure we have an integrated workforce, fit for the future, that puts people at the heart of all we do. We have highly skilled and experienced teams within Midlothian Adult Social Care. However, we face staff retention challenges, particularly in relation to Mental Health Officers. We are focusing on staff engagement and experience and increasing staff development opportunities. Succession planning will be supported by a new local Career Development Toolkit. Our communities Midlothian is a great place to live, work, learn, and relax which all contribute to good health and wellbeing. This includes our green spaces, villages, towns, and the transport we need to move between them. Midlothian’s population has grown every year since 2006. In 2018 there were 39,122 households in Midlothian. This is projected to reach 52,266 by 2040. In Midlothian, the proportion of people aged 75 and over is predicted to grow by over 40%. The number of people aged between of 30-59, and 0-15, has also increased. Towns and communities in Midlothian are organised across 15 community council areas. More people live in Penicuik, Bonnyrigg and district, Mayfield and Easthouses and Dalkeith and district than other areas (2011 census). Information about each area can be found in the Midlothian profile 2022. Midlothian also has wide range of green spaces and wildlife habitats including one Local Nature Reserve; one Regional Park; four Country Parks and two Woodland Trust sites, with active transport links between places and to and from Edinburgh and other surrounding areas. The Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) is how the Scottish Government identifies deprivation in Scotland. SIMD data is organised into 10 data zones, from the most to the least deprived. In Midlothian, approximately 31,522 people live in a zone that is considered to be the most deprived. While not everyone living in a deprived area will experience high levels of deprivation, we know there is a link between deprivation and poorer health outcomes. This means people who live in the most deprived communities are more likely to die younger. People living in the most deprived areas of Midlothian are 30% more likely to need a prescription for anxiety or depression, and 24% of children live in poverty. We know that families that include a person with a disability are more likely to be financially disadvantaged than other families. The largest local employer is Midlothian Council. Other employers include public sector organisations, a mix of sole traders, micro enterprises, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Over 50% of the working age population work in Edinburgh. There is a thriving local Third Sector, which is supported by the Third Sector Interface (TSI). There are at least 500 formal groups or voluntary associations and other community planning partners. It is estimated that approximately 56% of the population volunteer informally. More information on the health and social care needs of the Midlothian adult population can be found in the Health and Social Care Partnership's Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. Page 21 of 154
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1 Children's Services, Partnership and Communities Performance Report 2023/24 • Quarter 1 01. Progress in delivery of strategic outcomes Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 5.2 Page 23 of 154
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4 01. Progress in delivery of strategic outcomes The Promise The Promise lead has now commenced in post and will progress Midlothian’s Promise Strategy and plan. They will work to engage all partner agencies to ensure shared responsibilities as corporate parents. A series of Promise engagement/awareness raising will be rolled out across the Council and Partnership and will include Elected members. Youth Justice In preparation for the summer holidays a multi agency team of staff met to plan interventions over the summer period. There have been and continue to be concerns around groupings of young people meeting at Hardengreen where we have McDonald’s who offer free internet, this coupled with free travel has led to incidents at Tesco’s. Police, LRT, and staff from education, children’s services and CLLE including our voluntary sector colleagues as well as staff from the shops involved are working together to reduce the risk to the public and also looking at initiatives with Saltire Soccer and others which divert youths to alternative activities. This is very much a multi-agency approach. Work has also been undertaken with over 1000 children in S1 & S2 on No Knives, better life’s. Summer Funding Programme At the end of June we received funding from Scottish Government which was to be utilised to support families to access activities over the summer which would also include getting access to food. Very swiftly we were able to meet with our 3rd sector colleagues and agree who would be in a position to offer to offer support. There were many vouchers and passes on offer to local amenities and also for activities further afield such as Edinburgh Zoo. During Q2 reporting we shall update on the impact this funding had and how many families benefited from this. Equally Safe: Scotland’s Strategy for Prevention and Eradicating Violence against women and girls, sets out the Scottish Government and COSLA’s joint vision to create a strong and flourishing Scotland where all individual are equally safe and respected. In support of this vision, Midlothian has committed to developing an ambitious strategy to help ensure all women, children and young people living in Midlothian are equally safe. The development of this strategy offers an opportunity to bring together and building on a range of strategic activities that have been progressed across Midlothian in recent years that aim to tack gender inequality. The Improvement Service are supporting us to develop a strategy. To date there have been several meetings with the leadership across the Council chaired by Chief Officer of Children’s Services to take this work forward. Referrals: Work is being progressed around gaining a clearer understanding on how all referrals come into the service. This is a large piece of work involving many stakeholders. The outcome of which shall offer an overview on how many referrals come into children’s services and how many ‘referrals’ are actually just about information sharing. We shall also be able to gain a better understanding as to how many referrals will be directed to the Family Wellbeing Service. Within Q1 although there is a 9% increase in referrals from Q1 in 2022, within the last three months from Q4 2022, to Q1 23, there has been a 12% decrease in referrals which is positive and may be as a result of the work we have started. Family Wellbeing Service The service has had a significant amount of training on offer to the new workforce to ensure they have a good understanding of their role going forward. They are already working with over 100 children and young people. We have an independent person undertaking a review of what voluntary support we can buy-in to support this service. It is hoped this shall be concluded by the end of October. Arrival of Ukrainian Families and Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) We continue to welcome Ukrainian families into Midlothian adopting a holistic approach to the support on offer. We are confident that our steady and thorough approach to this work has ensured that we are robust in the work we are undertaking. Through a mandated rota we are committed to taking UASC as and when required. To date we have been able to identify suitable accommodate for them. Looked After away from home population The data evidences that our looked after population is continuing to decrease which is testament to the workforce ensuring that they support families to remain together, where safe to do so. The introduction of Page 26 of 154
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5 Family Group decision making, supports families to devise a plan which promotes families staying together with support from extended family, it is too early to advise if this is reason for this consistent decline in numbers. Conversely child protection registrations are rising, a high percentage of registrations are as a result of domestic abuse. We shall monitor this position going forward. Self-Directed Support We continue to work tirelessly to ensure that families had access to funding if assessed as in need . The summer period is often a challenge for families trying to identify sufficient resources for children with additional support needs. Our aim is to start planning for next year so that families are aware of what is available and have choice where their child(ren) can attend. Trauma Informed Training We remain committed to ensure all our staff are trauma informed this includes our foster carers. A rolling programme of training is being rolled out across the directorate and Council. Page 27 of 154
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6 GIRFEC Service Priority: More children and young people are safe, healthy and resilient - Please note that this is a new plan for 23/24 and therefore the progress at this stage is limited Service Priority Action 1: Ensure the Midlothian Wellbeing Service is aligned with other family supports across Midlothian Priority actions for 2023/24 • Ensure funding and resources are in place for 23/24 • Implement a formal launch of service across the Directorate • Develop process to understand family supports commissioned across Midlothian Service Priority Action 2: Promote the use of Self-Directed Support amongst families to empower them to have choice and flexibility. Priority actions for 2023/24 • Increase by 10% the number of families who take Option 1 to organise their own support Service Priority Action 3: Strengthen supports offered to Family Group Decision Making and Kinship supports to maintain children with birth/kin families Priority actions for 2023/24 • Increase the number of families who participate in Family Group Decision Making • Increase the number of families who have a Family Group Decision Making plan • Increase the number of Kinship assessment undertaken • Develop permanence process to formally secure children in kinship Service Priority Action 4: Implement the National Child Protection Guidance locally Priority actions for 2023/24 • Contribute towards the development of Lothian wide Child Protection Procedures Service Priority Action 5: Develop a pathway for children and families to navigate services in a timely manner Priority actions for 2023/24 • Develop a Single Point of Access across the directorate Service Priority Action 6: Strengthen mechanisms to support families maximise their income Priority actions for 2023/24 • Increase the number of families offered an income assessment Service Priority Action 7: Children, young people and their families experience high quality services Priority actions for 2023/24 • Ensure local Adoption Service will provide high quality care and support • Ensure local Continuing Care/Adult services will provide high quality care and support • Ensure Hawthorn Family Learning Centre will provide high quality care and support • Ensure 2 x Young People’s Care Homes will provide high quality care and support Service Priority Action 8: Strengthen the number staff who understand the importance of trauma informed practice Priority actions for 2023/24 • Increase the number of staff trained in using a trauma informed approach • Develop a timetable of events that offer training opportunities and development for all CS staff Page 28 of 154
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7 02. Challenges and Risks Q1 23/24: National Care Service: The ‘Bill’ which is currently in Stage 1 of the process is delayed and being considered with an expectation that the lead committee will provide a report at the start of 2024. CELCIS have been commissioned to undertake research around the inclusion of children’s services within the NCS. This work should be concluded by the end of the summer 2023. Poverty As families continue to be impacted by the cost-of-living crisis this is expected to lead to an increase in the number of families experiencing poverty. This also applies to workers on low incomes. We are assessing all claims that come into children and families from the Scottish Welfare Fund for early identification of families who may need additional support. Anecdotally we are hearing from our partners that families living in large private housing estates are also struggling with increased mortgage rates coupled with high energy costs and food bills. The impact is additional stress within family homes. Workforce: Midlothian continues to experience the same staffing issues encountered by other Councils. Despite the staffing issues we have continued to offer high quality services that ensure the safety and wellbeing of our children and young people within Midlothian. There continues to be a lack of experienced and skilled staff across the sector, and we are having to increasingly rely on locum workers. As reported in other quarters, this is a national issue and discussions have started around ‘A National Social Work Agency’ which would offer the same terms and conditions across Scotland, similar to that of Police Scotland and Education staff. This would benefit Midlothian if this approach were adopted. Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children We continue to ensure that we meet our mandated quota of unaccompanied children seeking asylum in Midlothian. The pressure upon us however to ensure that all these young people are looked after within Midlothian is significant. We, like many other local authorities shall need to begin to consider external and much more expensive placements out with Midlothian in the near future. As everyone will be aware the number of children and young people arriving in Britain, mainly Kent, is increasing week on week as the good weather encourages people to travel. Currently we have 8 young people aged 18-23 living in Midlothian who are classed as Unaccompanied asylum seeking young people and living in supported or independent flats but who still require support and 4 young people aged 14-17 who are with carers or in our residential houses. Increased numbers of children impacted by the delay in neurodevelopmental waiting times: There is a significant delay in families waiting for an appointment with CAMHS regarding neurodevelopment concerns. Not all cases will require clinical input from CAMHS however we are looking at how we can work together to consider how we best support families whilst on the waiting list. Sum of Count Column Labels Team <18 weeks 19-35 weeks 36-52 weeks >52 weeks Total Neurodevelopmental Midlothian 106 130 96 290 622 We have commenced discussions with our health colleagues around this data to consider how we can collectively support families sitting on this waiting list. The current demands and pressure are rising in all areas of work with children therefore we need to ensure we future proof our services to deliver sustainable options locally for children and young people with ASN and Complex and Enduring Needs. Foster Care Given the local and national foster care crisis we are about to commence a new advertising campaign to hopefully generate interest from prospective carers who may wish to consider caring for teenagers and unaccompanied asylum seeking children and young people. Financial Pressures Finance is an ongoing challenge and whilst Q1 reporting looks positive, the request for one placement within secure care or an additional external placement could potentially change our financial position going forward. Page 29 of 154
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1 Corporate Solutions will “deliver forward looking services fit for a modern 21st Century organisation and put the citizen at the centre of service redesign”. Corporate Solutions encompasses Finance, Human Resources, Digital, Customer & Communication, Legal & Governance and Corporate Resources. Corporate Solutions supports the whole Council delivering services to internal and external stakeholders; with responsibility for leading the Council’s Medium Term Financial Strategy and ensuring organisational compliance, developing the workforce, and advancing transformation. Transformation and opportunities Transformation Blueprint (2023-2028) As we move out of the pandemic into a new post pandemic world, we are committed to building on the learning and new ways of working that were adopted during this time, and renew our focus on delivering our key priorities at the most local level possible. Rooted in the creation of a wellbeing economy, the vision of our new 5 year strategy focuses on reducing inequalities at the same time as looking after the health of our planet. Specifically we have three main aims: • Individuals and communities have improved health and learning outcomes • No child or household live in poverty • Significant progress is made towards net zero carbon emissions by 2030 The pandemic has accelerated the financial challenges that we are facing. Reprioritisation and redesign is crucial to balancing the financial position, as well as preparing for further challenges and changes that we will face. The Blueprint sets out our challenges that need to be addressed over the next five years. We will continue to work to address the inequalities that our communities face, respond to the demands of being one of the fastest growing local authorities in mainland Scotland, and delivering our vision of being a great, green place to grow. Corporate Solutions Q1 23/24 Performance report Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 5.3 Page 31 of 154
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2 Transformation Blueprint Objectives 1. Support the Council to address the 5 year funding gap outlined in the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) 2. Follow the Money to ensure that the services we commission, contracts we manage and digital solutions we use deliver value for money. 3. Develop an organisational workforce that is flexible ensuring the all staff have the necessary skills to work effectively supported by digital technologies that fit for a 21st century workforce 4. Design a workplace for the future delivering services in a holistic and integrated way. 5. Drive forward multi-agency transformation to deliver systems-level change resulting in joined-up service delivery which improve outcomes. The Council’s transformation blueprint provides the framework for opportunities to change the way services are improved and delivered to be more efficient. Corporate Solutions has a particular focus on the delivery and acceleration of the Capital Programme, delivering digital first approaches, embedding automation to improve customer access to services and hybrid working. Page 32 of 154
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3 Aligned to the Transformation Blueprint, priorities for 2023/24, key work streams below: Short term: • Continued rollout and implementation of Customer Service Platform • Reviewing service delivery all across Contact Centre teams • Increased eBook promotion plan • Focused active promotion of library space, in particular to facilitate out of hours access for communities Medium term: • Rollout of the Hub & Spoke model with libraries providing and facilitating increased local service provision • Customer Engagement Strategy development including communications and engagement plan Long term: • Increase income within Registrars through alternative ceremony offer • Community and school library redesign; including the mobile library service Key achievements this quarter: Overall library visits (virtual and physical combined) have increased by 30% based on the same period last year with a 48% increase in physical visits. Library memberships remain steady with just under a third of the population of Midlothian registered as library members. A total of 1,321 events took place between April – June 2023 and 892 children’s library initiatives. Libraries welcomed Local History Month in May with a varied selection of activities from displays, class visits and treasure hunts to lectures and talks on topics including the history of fashion and folk music. The Reminiscence & Memories Scotland groups brought guest speakers to their regular scheduled sessions. In total, 33 activities and events were held with nearly 600 people taking part. Libraries also celebrated Bookbug Week again in May and this year’s theme was Bookbug’s Big Shoogle. 271 adults and 318 children enjoyed the shoogling fun sessions over the week. The Mobile Library launched a new route and name – Libby’s new route information can be found on the Council’s website. Channel shift work continues with the introduction of the ‘Contact Us’ module and grit bin service request application. A number of other service requests are in test phase and due to go live at the end of the summer. Customer contact volumes remains consistent compared to those figures for the same period last year. The contact centre service level agreement has been amended to be more reflective of call handling times with 83% of all calls answered within 120 seconds. Call abandonment rate has improved to 6% this quarter from 9% in Q4. Customer Engagement Page 33 of 154
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4 44,243 46,715 38,422 41,417 37,934 81,688 105,928 117,362 131,635 132,510 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of Library visits Virtual Phyiscal 31,814 33,016 33,769 33,569 33,384 504 949 530 473 442 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of Library memberships Child memberships - new Total 40,575 38,943 38,932 44,663 39201 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of Contact Centre calls Customer Engagement – performance measures 14.1% Customer contact received digitally (webform versus telephone) 83% of calls in Q1 answered within 120 seconds 3,106 Contact Centre Webforms received 13,583 Email contact handled this quarter Social Media 21k Midlothian Council Facebook followers 17.9k @midgov twitter followers 1,321 Library events held in Q1 892 Children’s library initiatives taken place in Q1 596 Library customers supported with digital queries in Q1 Library services Customer contact Page 34 of 154
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5 To achieve the Council’s strategic priorities we recognise that people are our most important asset. Our workforce strategy highlights that we need to attract the best talent, grow our own talent ensuring there are clear progression pathways, ensure our workforce feel engaged, valued and motivated and importantly, empower our staff to enable them to reach their full potential. Our workforce vision is to work as One Council using our knowledge, experiences and sense of shared endeavour to collaborate and think creatively and innovatively so that our people can deliver life-changing impacts for our communities. Our new ways of working mark a clear desire for cultural change and a shift towards a more agile and modern operating model. Our workforce are key to the delivery of the Transformation Blueprint. In order to ensure a thriving workforce areas of focus for 2023/24 will be: • Investment in Organisational Development through a focused programme of work • Completion of workforce plans in all services, with a particular focus in at risk areas • Rollout of the Wellbeing Strategy • Delivery of the Recruitment and Retention Strategy Key achievements this quarter: Midlothian Council maintained the Healthy Working Lives Gold Award for over 9 years, through involvement by a committee of dedicated employees volunteering their time and expertise to create and support wellbeing initiatives. Work has commenced on the development of our Wellbeing Strategy which will focus on the financial, physical, and psychological wellbeing of our workforce and ensure employees have access to advice, guidance and initiatives which support their health and wellbeing. The rolling programme of Wellness@Midlothian initiatives continues this quarter to ensure we are supporting the positive health and wellbeing of our staff. Wellbeing events and initiatives including on-site visits, webinars, e-learning and training have been organised for 2023 and a coaching programme is planned in for roll out later in 2023. Human Resources Page 35 of 154
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6 During April to June 2023, 19 wellbeing events were held covering financial education training, advice webinars and health with 124 staff attending. Wellbeing initiatives were communicated to all employees this quarter with promotion of free learning opportunities as well as promoting Carer’s week with training from Vocal and Alzheimer’s Scotland, raising awareness of the carers policy and supports available to. Other promotions included men’s health guidance, McMillan cancer support and promotion of volunteer week. Policy and Strategy: The Recruitment Strategy has been drafted and is being finalised for discussion, prior to communication and implementation. Further People Policy development work is ongoing with the focus on the most frequently used policies, including disciplinary and resolution. The Hybrid working policy is now complete for discussions with trade unions before publication and communication. Recruitment for the approved Organisational Development resource is underway. This role will be vital in taking forward key pieces of work, including around leadership and management, to upskill managers across the organisation. Progress is ongoing to develop and implement the work streams under our workforce strategy, progress on Blueprint theme 2 ‘21st century workforce’ is in development, with progress reporting planned for later in the year and the development of a refreshed MPM approval process has also been built into this theme. This quarter Job Evaluation was successfully brought back in-house with work undertaken and ongoing to streamline the internal processes and increase efficiencies. Human Resources supported case work remains busy, with employment relations cases successfully being resolved. Support with transformational service reviews continue to take up significant time for HR Business partners and the team. Page 36 of 154
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7 2.57% 2.84% 3.58% 2.86% 2.39% Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Gender pay gap between average hourly rate of pay for male and female (all employees) Scottish Average (3.51%) 2.7 4.8 7.8 11 2.9 1.3 2.1 3.8 5.6 1.5 3.2 5.9 9.5 13.2 3.5 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Average Sickness Absence days All employees Teachers Local Government workers 2.4% 3.6% 2.4% 1.96% 2.4% 0.0% 0.5% 1.0% 1.5% 2.0% 2.5% 3.0% 3.5% 4.0% Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 % of staff turnover . 6582327 1921 16-30 31-50 over 50 Human Resources – performance measures 140 Long term absence cases ongoing 141 of occupational Health referrals via OHIO in Q1 20 HR cases in progress 307 Physiotherapy referrals made on Q1 No. of staff by age group 1,173 (24%) Employees with over 15 years of service 129 Leavers in Q1 66% of employees are Midlothian Residents Employee Health and Wellbeing Workforce demographics 108 female employees in top 5% (120 in Q4 22/23) • 19 wellbeing events held this quarter with 124 attendees • 699 employees accessing mandatory ELearning courses • 1,346 employees accessing non-mandatory ELearning courses Page 37 of 154
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8 Digital solutions underpin the Transformation Blueprint. Key work streams for 23/24 include: • Review and refresh of the Digital Strategy • Development of Data Strategy and pilot the secure analysis of collective, operational level NHS & Council data • Continued rollout of compliance and cyber security protective measures, including attainment of PSN and Cyber Essentials certification, and actioning any related recommendations • Implementation of Microsoft O365 capabilities and applications • Supporting Neighbourhood Services in the delivery of their digital transformation project • Continue the roll-out of the Customer Services Platform solutions and driving “Channel Shift” • Equipped for Learning: upgrade classroom Audio Visual estate with interactive smart screens. Pilot Virtual Class delivery. • Upgrading Call Centre digital infrastructure elements (Netcall Liberty) • Refreshing / improving quality and coverage of corporate WiFi network • Ensure all digital aspects of Council operations are well supported and operational Key achievements this quarter: The Office365 rollout programme is continuing with the expanded MS Teams features (Collaboration Channels, Planner and file shares) deployed successfully to 3 pilot user groups. In addition, the core applications upgrade took place with Digital Services team trained, solution configuration complete, and Information Governance documentation in progress. User Acceptance Testing for Core Applications completed, and the enterprise-wide roll-out starts on the 10th July. Hybrid Working Programme – the online desk booking software has been procured, configured and successfully launched to staff in Mid House and Fairfield House, with the next phase being satellite offices nearly at launch stage. The Council Chambers were upgraded with modern, digital technologies and hardware to enable hybrid Council meetings. Digital Page 38 of 154
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9 Cyber Security resilience: Email phishing simulation exercise completed. Audits successfully passed and certification obtained for: • Cyber Essentials • Cyber Essentials PLUS • Public Service Networks (PSN) – audit complete and certificate achieved this quarter Core Infrastructure: Performance and security of remote-access to Council network improved through roll-out of new Global Protect solution. Education access and utilisation of the internet is now more secure via LightSpeed roll-out which blocks inappropriate websites, and alerts staff to any potentially concerning internet searches / usage from pupils, improving the safety for pupils. ForcePoint Cloud was successfully rolled out across the corporate network to enhance our internet security, significantly reducing the likelihood and impact of cyber threats. Technical Design Authority / Digital First Board: a new process has been developed to effectively govern and prioritise new digital projects – helping to ensure resources are being assigned to highest impact projects, and that digital project best practices are leveraged from the start. This process will now be piloted focusing on Neighbourhood Services digital transformation. Digital Maturity Assessment for Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP): Assessment was completed in collaboration with HSCP and Children, Young People and Partnerships as part of Scotland-wide HSCP digital maturity exercise. Assessment focus re-enforced our already identified priority focus areas/challenges and provided opportunity to highlight where Midlothian HSCP is leading the way across Scotland (e.g., Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease pathway) Client Engagement Sessions: Digital Services met with staff and head-teachers across several Midlothian Schools to gain valuable feedback on Digital Services performance and any issues/ opportunities they wished to discuss and highlight. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with areas for improvement identified. Page 39 of 154
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10 49 5 4 Planned In progress Complete Digital – performance measures Key Digital projects Service and Cyber security performance Progress of total number of Customer Service Platform modules 237,696 Midlothian Council Website visits this quarter 57% of IT helpdesk incidents complete within 48 hours this quarter 20% of cyber security training complete 100% of Cyber Essentials and PSN implemented 60% of Office 365 (phase 1) project complete 30% of total CSP (IT foundation and service modules) complete 10% of AI pilot and information governance project complete 15% of Neighbourhood services digital project complete 5% of Data Maturity project complete Page 40 of 154
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11 Key priorities for the service in 2023/24 • Redesign of business processes to achieve efficiencies across all of Corporate Resources • Making more use of current applications to enable self-service e.g. viewing Council Tax and rent accounts online • Continued upgrade of applications Key achievements this quarter: Business application upgrades were completed this quarter for TotalMobile, ITrent & Civica D360. In addition, significant performance enhancements were made to iTrent leave and time recording system, increasing system speed that benefits all corporate users. Business Services successfully rolled out a Print and Post service across the Housing Services team ensuring that customer correspondence in relation to Housing Services is sent out timeously, whilst reducing internal resource, postage and stationary costs required to do so. A new contract for Vehicle Telematics was awarded this quarter resulting in reduced costs for the support and maintenance of the application. The new contract also includes free replacement of hardware and potential for the introduction of mobile apps for driver safety and compliance. Other activities across Business Services included the successful completion of 2022/23 system year end processes and successful implementation of Teachers backdated Pay Award and associated backdated payments. The Revenues and Benefits team continue to support the cost of living crisis. Requests for crisis funding continue to remain consistently high, with over 45% of the Scottish Welfare Fund budget allocated in Q1. 1,783 applications were received for Crisis Grants and 364 for Community Care Grants. This demonstrates the significant challenge faced by our communities. 8,184 customer received help with housing costs through universal credit and 3,139 are receiving help via housing benefits this quarter. Corporate Resources Page 41 of 154
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12 45% of Scottish Welfare Fund budget spent in Q1. 7790 1783 4083 817161 24 3542 942 22/23 (annual) Q1 23/24 Number of Crisis Grants received awarded declined ineligible Grant applications deemed as ineligible are in general those that have exceeded the maximum amount of 3 applications in a year or customers who do not meet the set criteria for the award. 69 45 35 41 40 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 New claims 8343 8892 8956 8230 7584 2379 2415 2356 2542 2450 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of online transactions Rent Council Tax 77.88% of Revenue and Benefits customer paying by direct debit 10 17 12 5 12 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Change of circumstances 1457 364490 13821 0 946 226 22/23 (annual) Q1 23/24 Number of Community Care Grants received awarded declined ineligible Corporate Resources – performance measures £90,376.00 granted from Scottish Welfare fund for crisis grants £149,197granted for community care grants in Q1 Scottish Welfare Fund Revenues and Benefits Average processing times (days) Page 42 of 154
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13 Key priorities for the service in 2023/24 • Delivery of the 2024 UK Government elections including voter ID implementation • Review of the Council’s governance framework with revised Standing Orders and Associated Scheme(s) • Implementation of the new SAR portal • Development of the new Procurement Strategy, with a focus on social value, the introduction of a Council wide approach to Community Benefits, and an increased focus on local procurement • Aligned to the Transformation Blueprint, undertake a review of Contract and Grant Management Key achievements this quarter: Legal: Section 75 agreements settled with developers to enable housing developments to proceed together with in house legal fees received. Large scale property transfers as well as individual purchases to increase the Council’s housing portfolio in particular purchase of 11 buy backs, 53 affordable housing units at Roslin and land for 11 units at Pathhead. Provision of servitudes across Council land to enable development of adjacent housing sites. We received £519,532 in March as consideration for granting two servitudes at Oak Place, Mayfield which were required for a housing development adjacent to Council land. An additional 35 holiday pay claims were settled via ACAS leaving 438 outstanding. Work continues negotiating and concluding Settlement Agreements to allow staff to leave the Council. Delivery of employment law training was undertaken in Q1 to members of the Appeal Committee and arranging for the first meeting of the Committee to determine an appeal. Additional Special Needs Tribunal work is now in-house. Attendance in court to protect Council’s interests and to deliver suitable outcomes for children and vulnerable adults and input was provided to the Mental Health Law Review consultation. Procurement: A range of high value/complex contracts continue to be awarded and key activities include overhaul of Contract Database, insurance tender renewal, replacement window/doors supplier arranged and City Deal participation. A follow up further review of upcoming expiring contracts within Health and Social Care is in early stages to look at opportunities for which services are extended, and any consolidation opportunities for efficiency. Other activities include a procurement presentation to newly elected members and Spikes Cavell Data upload complete. The Procurement Service continue to work closely with the Economic Development Service to strengthen the relationship with local suppliers and deliver against the Local Procurement Strategy. Legal and Governance Page 43 of 154
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14 14.68% 16.81% 13.78% 19/20 20/21 21/22 % of procurement spent on local enterprizes (LGBF) 22 regulated procurement exercises undertaken this quarter 4 legal commercial transactions undertaken this quarter Legal and Governance – performance measures Access to information 364 257 311 405 345 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of Freedom of Information requests recieved 36 44 37 54 37 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of Subject Access Requests recieved Page 44 of 154
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15 A full review of quarterly performance data is available via Pentana (Browser login link - https://midlothian.pentanarpm.uk/login) Pentana Performance Dashboard Page 45 of 154
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16 Challenges and risks Financial position Council approved the 2023/24 budget at its meeting on 21 February 2023. Delivery is reliant on a combination of savings and service reductions and includes the use of retrospective service concession savings and earmarked Covid recovery reserves. Whilst the 2023/24 budget is agreed, the challenge remains to reach ongoing financial sustainability. Cost and income projections for future years will be embedded in the Council’s Strategic Blueprint which contains a range of transformation themes to drive towards a position of financial sustainability. Close working continues with the Business Transformation Steering Group to respond to the challenges. For Q1 2023/24 Financial Services continue to ensure the Council has robust financial management arrangements in place with completion this quarter of the 22/23 final accounts in advance of statutory deadlines. A full suite of financial monitoring reports for 22/23 were presented to Council in June thus completing the finance governance cycle for 22/23. Medium Term Financial forecasts through to 2028/29 were completed this quarter illustrating the extent of the financial challenge the council faces. Growing Council Midlothian is projected to have the highest percentage change in population size of all mainland council areas in Scotland. From 2018 to 2028, the population of Midlothian is projected to increase from 91,340 to 103,945. This is an increase of 13.8%, which contrasts with a projected increase of 1.8% for Scotland as a whole, with a 40.9% increase in older people over 75. In addition, Midlothian has 10 zones which fall into the most deprived areas giving a local share of 8.7% living in the most deprived areas in Scotland. This growth creates the opportunity to meet housing need with 25% of new homes being built in the affordable housing provision, in addition to the expansion in our Council house building. This construction directly supports employment and will see a steady increase in the value of Council Tax income received over time. To ensure Midlothian is ‘building back better’, this investment is also creating new jobs, apprenticeship opportunities, opportunities for businesses and communities and families hard-hit by the impact of the pandemic. These new opportunities help lead the way towards a better future for Midlothian. Midlothian’s approved Capital Strategy sets out the infrastructure required to meet those demographic pressures and includes the financial contributions Midlothian will make to the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. Encompassing five main themes the City Region Deal will bring significant investment across the regions with total investment of circa £1.3 billion across: Page 46 of 154
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17 • Data Driven Innovation: £751 million • Integrated Regional Employability and Skills: £25 million • Transport: £156 million • Culture: £45 million • Housing: £313 million Through the Data Driven Innovation strand the Deal will leverage existing world-class research institutes and commercialisation facilities in order that Easter Bush becomes a global location of Agritech excellence. The Easter Bush project includes significant investment in transport infrastructure along the A701/2 transport corridor. In addition, by improving on-site infrastructure at Easter Bush and transport infrastructure, The University of Edinburgh expects commercial partners will be able to co-locate at scale to commercialise Agritech breakthroughs. The Capital Investment Strategy sits centrally within the Council’s future planning activities and in doing so has to reflect the demands of Council services to ensure positive outcomes are achieved in the right place, at the right time for the maximum benefit to Midlothian. The extensive capital programme, totalling £0.8bn, delivers new schools, a record investment in council housing, improved community infrastructure, investment in the local transport network and in innovative developments such as the new low carbon heat network in Shawfair. Economic pressures Inflation, as well as rising energy costs, are affecting the construction industry in Scotland. The UK is experiencing unprecedented adverse market conditions, leading to significant rises in tender prices for a wide range of materials. There is evidence that inflation of between 10% and 15% beyond BCIS predictions is affecting projects. The pandemic has also accelerated financial challenges, and the growth from being the fastest growing local authority in Scotland places significant pressure on Midlothian to be able to deliver services to its citizens. In response to all these pressures, a range of reprioritisation activity is taking place, with a revised Capital Plan being considered by the cross-party Business Transformation Steering Group, and options to review what and how services are delivered as part of the savings measures to reduce the funding gap. Cost of Living Crisis Midlothian’s citizens are facing significant financial challenges. The impact on households is already being noted across the UK with 93% of adults reporting an increase in their cost of living in March 2023 (Office for National Statistics; Francis-Devine et al, 2022). The UK is currently facing an unprecedented wave of increasing prices, bills and tax challenges. The 41 year high inflation rate of 10.4% is the main driver of the cost of living crisis which has outstripped wage and benefit increases. The price rises will impact low-income households hardest as a larger proportion of their costs are on energy and food. The Resolution Page 47 of 154
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18 Foundation estimates that absolute poverty is set to rise in the short-run, from 17.2% in 2021-22 to 18.3% in 2023/24 (or an additional 800,000 people in poverty). As our citizens feel the impact of the Cost of Living Crisis, they will seek additional support from public services; in particular local authorities. To respond to this emerging crisis, the Council established a Cost of Living Task Force last year, which is chaired by the Council Leader and meets regularly to coordinate mitigating activities. National Care Service The estimated funding gap for the next three financial years does not include the associated costs of the Scottish Government’s National Care Services (Scotland) Bill. If enacted, the bill would have fundamental implications for the community and for Local Government itself. The wide reaching changes in the bill aim to deliver a National Care Service by the end of the parliamentary term, which will impact on all aspects of the work of the Corporate Solutions team, including financial implications, in both revenue and capital, our asset base, our workforce, governance and legal arrangements and our digital infrastructure and platforms. It will require an immediate focus for the foreseeable future, and this will inevitably have implications for other priority work at a time of continued resource constraint. Risk The Council’s Strategic Risk Profile is presented retrospectively to Audit Committee quarterly. The most critical risks to the Council are Financial Sustainability, Climate Change and the Change Programme. Corporate Solutions is key to the delivery of mitigating actions to these risks; through strategic planning and the Medium Term Financial Strategy and driving forward the Council’s transformation programme to derive change and redesign services. Page 48 of 154
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1 Education Performance Report 2023/24 ● Quarter 1 01. Progress in delivery of strategic outcomes Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 5.4 Page 49 of 154
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7 01. Progress in delivery of strategic outcomes 21/22: Midlothian Single Plan Priority Reducing the gap in learning outcomes Priority 1: Attainment and Achievement 1.1 Improve attainment within the Broad General Education (BGE) stages: Trend Data & Target 2017 2018 2019 2021 2022 Ave. (17-19) Target Pr Literacy 62.25% 74.68% 72.76% 65.75% 68.20% 68.86% 71.5% Pr Numeracy 71.14% 79.63% 77.77% 72.80% 76.05% 75.34% 72.0% S3 Literacy 76.73% 80.25% 86.80% 80.70% 69.90% 88.0% S3 Numeracy 88.81% 87.68% 89.56% 88.50% 88.68% 90.5% Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Completed activity 1.1.1 Develop and implement a raising attainment strategy - School Standards and Quality reports included evidence of approaches taken and progress made towards stretch aims. - School SIPs and PEF plans for 2023-24 reflect the strategy. - Plan for professional learning established in consultation with schools and networks and informed by analysis of SQR, attainment data and PEF reporting. - Analysis of SQR reveals moderation taking place in almost all schools/ASGs and plans in place to continue to build capacity and activity in session 2023/24. 1.1.2 Develop a full range of curriculum frameworks. - All schools engaging with revised Numeracy progressions to support planning, teaching and assessment. Almost all schools have taken part in training on new Literacy progressions. Numeracy and Literacy progressions endorsed by Education Scotland as good practice. - Finalised suite of wider curricular progressions piloted by schools and settings and will be used in all schools/settings from 2023/24. - Moderation activity plan in place for increased opportunities for session 2023/24 utilising Literacy, Numeracy and QAMSO Networks. - Draft Curriculum Framework shared with school leaders and consultation timetable in place. 1.1.3 Revise Midlothian’s Learning, Teaching and Assessment policy. - LTA group formed to develop LTA Framework by October break. - Consultation taken place with school leaders and networks to inform professional learning offer for session 2023/24. 1.1.4 Develop and pilot an effective tracking and monitoring system, incorporating development of stretch aims. - Plan for session 23/24 to take forward T&M approach in all primaries - Training programme on the system to be planned by ASG and data champions to take forward ownership within the school. 1.1.5 Support schools and settings to make best use of digital tools to enrich, enhance and improve learning, teaching and assessment - Evaluate impact of implemented changes and use this to inform next steps - Review and evaluate impact of Digital Literacy Framework - Finalise app library offer for 23/24 and associated training offer - Survey pupils, families and staff to understand to identify changes in attitude, proficiency and use of digital tools to enrich, enhance and improve learning, teaching and assessment - Plan and host launch event for Midlothian’s Apple Regional Training Centre, showcasing the work of our schools and settings and learning from others - Managed transition of all devices and reallocation of school leavers’ devices Page 55 of 154
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8 1.2 Improve attainment within the senior phase by maximising opportunities through curriculum planning, consortium arrangements and partnership delivery, including addressing the ASN Senior Phase Gap Trend Data & Targets for School Leavers 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 Ave. Target Lit & Num SCQF Level 4 88.93% 89.45% 90.48% 89.85% 90.26% 89.93% 90.0% Lit & Num SCQF Level 5 66.33% 63.76% 65.12% 66.36% 66.82% 65.08% 67.0% 1+ @ Level 4 97.23% 96.67% 97.17% 95.44% 97.79% 96.84% 96.0% 1+ @ Level 5 85.49% 86.01% 84.43% 84.72% 86.95% 85.56% 86.0% 1+ @ Level 6 60.58% 56.08% 60.62% 59.98% 62.87% 59.19% 60.0% 5@ Lv 5 60.58% 58.37% 63.45% 63.17% 65.81% 60.86% 65.0% 3@ Lv 6 46.62% 42.89% 49.94% 47.66% 49.54% 46.09% 50.0% 5@ Lv 6 32.56% 30.05% 36.94% 33.98% 35.11% 32.33% 35.0% Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Completed activity 1.2.1 Develop and implement a raising attainment strategy - Secondary School Standards and Quality Reports include evidence of approaches taken and progress made towards stretch aims. - School SIPs for 2023-24 reflect strategy. 1.2.2 Review the Senior Phase curriculum offer and pathways into positive sustained destinations. - School 23/24 SIPs reflect this approach - Development of Digital Senior Phase offer; new School College Partnership model agreed; development of schools based Level 6 FA model - Draft Curriculum Framework shared with school leaders and consultation timetable in place. - Development of MACO model with secondary head teachers – Campbell Hornell to update? - 1.2.3 Review and develop approaches that will allow secondary schools to implement reduced class contact time, in line with SG policy, for teachers from August 2024 - School 23/24 SIPs reflect this approach - Actions dependent on detail from Scottish Government 1.2.4 Revise Midlothian’s Learning, Teaching and Assessment policy - LTA group formed to develop LTA Framework by October break. - Consultation taken place with school leaders and networks to inform professional learning offer for session 2023/24. 1.2.5 Develop and pilot an effective tracking and monitoring system, incorporating development of stretch aims. - Pilot phase planned for secondaries on T&M approach in S1-S3 and senior phase - Training programme on the system to be planned by ASG and data champions to take forward ownership within the school. 1.2.6 Support schools and settings to make best use of digital tools to enrich, enhance and improve learning, teaching and assessment - Review impact of all Senior Phase innovation project work, evaluate progress, plan next steps - Managed transition of all devices and reallocation of school leavers’ devices - Further development on Data Science Across the Curriculum Page 56 of 154
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9 1.3 Reduce the attainment gap between the most and least deprived children, including care-experienced children. Trend Data & Targets 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 Ave. Target Pr Literacy – GAP FSM vs. No FSM 22.47% 29.35% NC 32.24% 26.83% 28.17% a 22% Pr Numeracy – GAP FSM vs. No FSM 20.69% 22.69% NC 27.98% 24.29% 23.82% a 20% S3 Literacy – GAP FSM vs. No FSM 22.57% 22.83% NC NC 28.88% 22.94% b 17% S3 Numeracy – GAP FSM vs. No FSM 12.04% 21.27% NC NC 22.19% 16.35% b 17% 1+ @ Level 4 – GAP FSM vs. No FSM 4.9% 2.0% 3.2% 0.9% 3.4% 2.5% 1+ @ Level 5 – GAP FSM vs. No FSM 23.6% 25.2% 19.8% 23.1% 22.9% 19% 1+ @ Level 6 – GAP FSM vs. No FSM 30.7% 32.0% 35.0% 41.4% 32.6% 30% a Ave. is calculated from 2017-2021; b Ave. is calculated from 2017-2019 NC – not collected Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Completed activity 1.3.1 Build quality and capacity within schools to improve outcomes for all disadvantaged children and young people, in partnership with our Education Scotland Attainment Advisor. - Summary report from Attainment Advisor to capture the impact of interventions and universal offer on reducing the attainment gap. - Almost all head teachers attended at least one of the Directorate conferences related to child poverty and closing the poverty related attainment gap. - Commitment made by head teachers to develop collaborative working across their locality groups with a focus on interrupting the poverty related gap. Head teachers present at the second conference responded to a call to action and commitments will be shared at ASG meetings in ealy September. 1.3.2 Robust plans for PEF implemented and evaluated across all schools. - Schools evaluated impact of PEF plans in end of year school Standards and Quality report. Analysis of plans informed interventions planned for this session. 1.3.3 Improve availability, accuracy and use of complex and intersectional data to target support more effectively. - Full implementation of data plan, which include individual data dashboards for each primary schools and pilot phase of work in secondary schools. - Training programme on the system to be planned by ASG and data champions to take forward ownership within the school. Page 57 of 154
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10 1.4 Improved outcomes for vulnerable children and young people, and for those experiencing barriers to learning Trend Data & Targets 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 Ave. Target Pr Literacy - LAC/ASN Pupilsa 55.58% 50.36% NC 42.31% 43.10% 47.61%a 53% Pr Numeracy - LAC/ASN Pupilsa 61.48% 58.64% NC 52.66% 55.46% 55.42% a 58% S3 Literacy - LAC/ASN Pupilsa 68.66% 87.67% NC NC 64.20% 78.17% b 78% S3 Numeracy - LAC/ASN Pupilsa 72.64% 68.32% NC NC 75.83% 72.77% b 72% 1+ @ Level 4 - LAC/ASN Pupilsa 91.79% 91.21% 92.95% 89.34% 95.76% 91.32% 91% 1+ @ Level 5 - LAC/ASN Pupilsa 63.43% 69.23% 69.80% 67.44% 76.94% 67.47% 69% 1+ @ Level 6 - LAC/ASN Pupilsa 32.09% 32.60% 43.96% 39.77% 46.12% 37.10% 40% a This contains pupils that are either LAC or ASN. Note that due to the small numbers in these categories the % can fluctuate quite significantly. NC – not collected Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 1.4.1 Embed The Promise across the education service - Midlothian’s parent and carer survey reports that parents/carers feel involved in the decision making process when planning the educational outcomes for a CYP - Midlothian’s pupil survey reports an increase in the % of learners reporting that they receive the right support at the right time - New exclusion policy to be implemented August 2023. 1.4.2 Improve availability, accuracy and use of complex and intersectional data to identify the attainment gaps for young people with additional support needs and other barriers to learning. - All schools to use the tracking and monitoring system to understand and target interventions to young people 1.4.3 Pilot resource guidance: ‘Identifying, Assessing and Providing for Additional Support Needs’. - Consultation process for the policies and framework. - Pilot phase with the paperwork to gain feedback, ensuring new processes are ready for launch in August 2023. 1.4.4 Establish an Education Resource Group to ensure a timely multi-agency response to assessing and providing for young people’s additional support needs. - Staff survey to measure the effectiveness of the new procedure and measure impact on the CYP 1.4.5 Review Support for Learning practice to ensure capacity of workforce, consistency and quality. - Scoping exercise to identify support for learning training to upskill workforce. Page 58 of 154
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11 Midlothian Single Plan Priority Reducing the gap in health outcomes Priority 2: Included, Involved and Engaged: Wellbeing & Equity 2.1 Improve Equity and Inclusion Trend Data & Targets 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 Ave. Target Pr Attendance Rate 94.70% 94.04% 95.06% 92.00% 92.54% 94.56% 95% Sec Attendance Rate 89.20% 89.37% 90.99% 87.33% 87.35% 89.69% 91.5% Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 2.1.1 Extend professional learning offer to promote nurturing, trauma-informed practice across schools and settings. - Launch the Framework for Relational Practice and professional learning resources and reflection tool for teams. - Participation event to be set up with children and young people to explore what is important to them in relation to relationships and wellbeing. - Shadowing opportunities to follow on from the Reflective Practice Framework completion. Review of learning and identifying needs to inform planning for 2023-24. 2.1.2 Revise Attendance Strategy in partnership with Children’s Services - Procedures to be finalised along with guidance for Children Missing Education, Flexi-schooling and Build up Timetables. - Participation event to be set up with children and young people to explore what is important to them in relation to attendance and what kinds of support are effective. - Pathways to be drafted for children and young people across the spectrum of non-attendance in partnership with stakeholders. 2.1.3 Develop a comprehensive Family Learning Strategy - Family Learning Strategy in place. New Family Learning co-ordinator appointed and in place in August 23. Revised action plan develop in response to family learning consultation and mapping 7of family learning opportunities. 2.1.4 Develop ASD Strategy - Data set to be developed to inform needs across the spectrum of neurodiversity. - Neurodiversity strategy group to be set up with a focus on developing understanding of need across Midlothian to inform improvement planning including authority wide ASD strategy. 2.1.5 Mental Health strategy established - Ongoing development of MH strategy with GIRFEC subgroup. - Seek children and young people’s views about what’s working and not working in the support for wellbeing and mental health. Identify children and young people reference group to support strategy development. 2.2 Children have a greater understanding of their rights (UNCRC) and these rights are being met across our establishments Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 2.2.1 Carry out a Children’s Rights Review with CYP and staff across Midlothian, set against the 7 principles of a rights-based approach - Attend ASG meetings to share feedback summaries with HTs. 2.1.2 Develop and implement the Midlothian Children’s Rights strategy across the Directorate, in partnership with Children’s Services & CLLE. - Create Happy, Safe & Thriving (HST) ASG working groups. - Create terms of reference for HST ASG working groups. - HST ASG working groups to analyse feedback summary and create action plan/next steps for their ASG in terms of professional learning. - Follow-up focus groups about Mental Health & Wellbeing Survey with S4-S6 about exam stress, and S1 transitions, to feed into ASG working groups connected with implementing the Midlothian Children’s Rights Strategy. - HST working groups to implement actions created. Page 59 of 154
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12 Priority 3: Self-improving Systems 3.1 Leaders at all levels work together within an empowered system to improve outcomes for children, young people and families Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 3.1.1 Comprehensive professional learning opportunities to improve quality of leadership at all levels, including leadership of learning. 3.1.2 Deliver a minimum data set and support data literacy to improve self-evaluation through leadership professional learning and data champions. - End of year evaluation and co-create 2023-24 activities. - Develop programme of training with professional learning academy for 2023-24. 3.2 Children and families participate in, influence and inform how we deliver our services Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 3.2.1 Refresh the Midlothian Parental Involvement and Engagement Strategy. Co-create this with Midlothian parents using the National Community Engagement guide. - Parental Engagement Strategy and Parental Involvement report shared across locality groups - Creation of PIE steering group and co-creation of action plan. - Use PC Equalities Audit to adjust PC guidance, recruitment & promotional materials. 3.2.2 Learner Engagement Strategy - Learner Engagement Strategy co-created with learner group 3.3 Quality Assurance activities lead to improvements in the quality of education provision across settings and schools Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 3.3.1 Quality Improvement framework in place - Evaluate the QA Framework with head teachers and centre managers at the end of year. 3.3.2 Programme of quality assurance activities - Final QA programme agreed and in place for future sessions, able to support with provision of clear information regarding capacity for improvement for our schools and ELC settings related to key QIs. Page 60 of 154
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13 Midlothian Single Plan Priority Reducing the gap in economic circumstances Priority 4: Life-Long Learning and Career-Ready Employability 4.1 Children and young people are well prepared for the world of work Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 4.1.1 Analyse opportunity data to inform which careers offer the best opportunities for Midlothian’s CYP over the next 10 years. - School 23/24 SIPs reflect this approach 4.1.2 Embed My World of Work (MWoW) into the curriculum of every school Reflected in the Curriculum Framework document and rolled out in relation to agreed timeline 4.1.3 Further develop bespoke Skills Development Scotland tutor and mentoring support for senior phase secondary students Priority 5: Finance & Resources 5.1 Deliver Best Value through: Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity 5.1.1 Learning Estate - Provided update on LES progress. 5.1.2 DSM Review - Continued comms and roll-out of DSM 5.2 Equipped for learning: Key Actions Q1 23/24 – Planned activity Transformation Devise and deliver Phase Two of the Equipped for Learning project to ensure positive, sustained impact for children and young people - Delivery of workstream actions as detailed in EfL Phase Two project plan - Review of Phase Two and scoping for Phase Three Asset Management Confirm asset management strategy including investigating provision of a device when a pupil leaves school and develop agreed deployment plans then Implement. AV refresh schedule to be developed and implemented Page 61 of 154
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14 Storage and Back Up Review/update record management policy, confirm document management approach, tidy data in line with RMP, migrate data to central servers and then decommission old servers; explore back-up solutions for email and drive/workspace, confirm solution and implement. Security Identify a solution/tools MDM, DLP and Other to prevent data from being copied into a personal app. Investigate & implement CASB, 2FA & Data Classification within Workspace Network and Wifi Develop Network Wi-Fi requirements, develop Network/Wi-Fi forecast model with scenario planning capability to proactively plan capacity. Wholesale update of Wi-Fi Network Audio Visual Define how teachers could/should use Chromebooks and AV for each type of learning setting. Define requirement for AV service offering. - Carry out installation Identity Build a case for change, develop options assessment and business case. Implement simpler corporate wide identity solution to education Support Review support processes, where best placed to sit. Update Service Now to allow Digital Learning access. Confirm Governance process on managing and tracking of assets. Potentially migrate Digital Learning support functions to Service Now Page 62 of 154
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15 02. Challenges and Risks 22/23: - Outcome of the Education Reform Consultation and National Care Service Consultation - Uncertainty about how SQA qualifications will be assessed going forward in the future. - The continuing impact of the pandemic on attendance and on post-school destinations - Midlothian Council has a relatively high proportion of funded ELC places delivered by partners in the private and voluntary sectors. As such, any increases in the rate that is paid to funded providers would create additional upward pressure on the early years budget for 2022/23. - Rate of demographic growth on the learning estate - A full refresh of school roll projections and capacities has been undertaken to assess current and future demand. This work will inform and shape the Learning Estate Strategy over the next 5 years. - A number of schools funded through the Scottish Governments Learning Estate Investment Programme are at the briefing and design stages. There are council and developer funded projects being undertaken also. - The Roll Projection data will be checked and refreshed on a 6 month basis to ensure we have provided sufficient capacity in each catchment. There are a number of schools with imminent capacity breaches. - A programme of Suitability Surveys will be conducted in 2022 to ensure our Core Facts data is reflective of the current situation. - The Place Directorate are conducting Condition Surveys in all schools assets. - Increase in the number of children and young people with additional support requiring more specialist provision will require robust monitoring to ensure staffing and specialist facilities meets level of needs - There are a number of Scottish Government consultations, on issues such as school uniform and physical restraint, that are ongoing which may result in change in education policies for this coming session and beyond. - There is a financial challenge to deliver statutory services given the current budget gap. - Due to the current financial climate there may be an impact on services as a result of the cost of living and increase in poverty. Page 63 of 154
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Place is where people, location and resources combine to create a sense of identity and purpose. The Place service ambition is to deliver joined-up, collaborative, and participative approaches to services, land and buildings, across all sectors within a place, enabling better outcomes for everyone and increased opportunities for people and communities to shape their own lives. Place Services encompasses Building Services; Housing Services; Neighbourhood Services; Planning, Sustainable Growth & Investment; Property & Facilities Management; and Protective Services. Transformation Blueprint (2023-2028) As we move into a new post pandemic world, we are committed to building on the learning and new ways of working that were adopted during this time and renew our focus on delivering our key priorities at the most local level possible. Rooted in the creation of a wellbeing economy, the vision of our new 5 year strategy focuses on reducing inequalities at the same time as looking after the health of our planet. Specifically we have three main aims: • Individuals and communities have improved health and learning outcomes • No child or household live in poverty • Significant progress is made towards net zero carbon emissions by 2030 The pandemic has accelerated the financial challenges that we are facing. Reprioritisation and redesign is crucial to balancing the financial position, as well as preparing for further challenges and changes that we will face. Place Performance report Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 5.5 Page 65 of 154
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The strategic plan sets out our biggest challenges that need to be addressed over the next five years. We will continue to work to address the inequalities that our communities face, respond to the demands of being one of the fastest growing local authorities in mainland Scotland, and delivering our vision of being a great, green place to grow. Transformation Blueprint Objectives 1. Support the Council to address the 5 year funding gap of outlined in the MTFS. 2. Follow the Money to ensure that the services we commission, contracts we manage and digital solutions we use deliver value for money. 3. Develop an organisational workforce that is flexible, ensuring the all staff have the necessary skills to work effectively, supported by digital technologies that fit for a 21st century workforce 4. Design a workplace for the future delivering services in a holistic and integrated way. 5. Drive forward multi-agency transformation to deliver systems-level change resulting in joined-up service delivery which improve outcomes Environmental Midlothian Council was one of the first local authorities to sign Scotland’s Climate Change Declaration, publicly acknowledging the challenges and opportunities that climate change brings with a commitment to make the Council’s activities net zero carbon by 2030. Work continues to implement the Council’s Climate Change Strategy and focus continues within Place services to achieve future emissions targets. The ambitious strategy sets out how we will reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, encourage and work with others in our community to mitigate and adapt to changing climate. The strategy incorporates an action plan with a number of initiatives and ongoing programmes which together are helping to reduce our emissions and carbon footprint. The annual progress report on Climate Change was last presented to Cabinet at its meeting of 18 October 2022. Economic Development continues to promote the Midlothian Business Green Pledge. Last year 50 businesses committed to the Pledge and a further 3 this quarter. The team worked with pledgers to identify the best platform for group sharing. Through the LinkedIn group, pledgers Page 66 of 154
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are starting to share their experiences and the team continue to share a mix of green information from partners on learning opportunities, support and funding. The Scottish Government’s Heat in Buildings Strategy (2021) sets out its aims and objectives for achieving net zero emissions within the entire building stock in Scotland by 2045, including addressing poor energy efficiency as a driver of fuel poverty. As part of this Strategy, Local Heat & Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES) will set out the long-term plan for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving energy efficiency across an entire local authority area. The Strategies will draw on a standardised methodology to: • set out how each section of the building stock needs to change to meet national objectives, including achieving zero greenhouse gas emissions in the building sector, and the removal of poor energy efficiency as a driver of fuel poverty; • identify strategic heat decarbonisation zones, and set out the principal measures for reducing buildings emissions within each zone; and • prioritise areas for delivery, against national and local priorities. In conjunction with consultants, Midlothian are now at Stage 4 of the methodology and are currently reviewing the findings and in discussion with key stakeholders regarding the confirmation of data, and identification, review and potential priorities. A LHEES lead officer post has been advertised this quarter. The annual Capital Works Programme for carriageway resurfacing combined with the Residential streets programme continues this quarter with 3.82km of carriageway resurfaced, representing 0.55% of the total road network. Footpath resurfacing is slightly behind target at 0.26km of footways were resurfaced this quarter (0.03%) however footway schemes currently in progress and programmed should bring progress up to target for next quarter. 417.16 tonnes of material was used this quarter to fill potholes. 233.76 tonnes of material was used for temporary repairs and 183.4 tonnes for pothole pro permanent patching. It is not possible to provide accurate figures on the number of potholes this equates to. The annual performance report from the Scottish Roads Network commissioner achieved “well managed” performance rating for a second year in a row. Page 67 of 154
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Due to late procurement of the lighting capital contract last year, funding was diverted to the delivery of 1,796 new LED lanterns which were completed this quarter. In addition, 304 lighting column replacements were installed this quarter. The Circular Economy (Scotland) Bill was published in June. It provides local authorities in Scotland with significant additional powers to tackle misuse and contamination of household kerbside recycling systems, including obligations on householders to “place the waste for collection in receptacles of a kind and a number specified.” It also requires local authorities to comply with the Code of Practice (CoP) on household waste, which until now has been voluntary, and provides Scottish Ministers with powers to set recycling and reuse targets for local authorities. An Options Appraisal was presented to members to determine how best to transform waste and recycling collection services to comply with the Code of Practice, and a funding application will be made to the Zero Waste Scotland Recycling Improvement Fund for the capital costs associated with proposed service changes. External funding of £20,030 awarded from the Material Focus Electrical Recycling Fund to allow a trial kerbside collection of small electrical appliances and batteries to be introduced. Six new 12 tonne food waste collection vehicles have recently been delivered, including one funded from the Zero Waste Scotland Recycling Improvement Fund to allow the introduction of this service in rural, and previously excluded areas. A dedicated Project Officer will develop new collection routes during Q2. The Garden waste service re-started in March with 17,839 customers signed up to the service by the end of quarter 1, totalling 18,840 garden waste bins to be collected. Customer sign ups have reduced by 2.2% compared to the same period last year. Work continues on our parks and greenspaces with 21 improvements/new facilities completed up to the end of quarter 1 with a further 29 improvements planned for this year. Completed park improvements to date include North Middleton Park, Kings Park, Ironmills Park, Vogrie Country Park, Mayfield Skate Park, Roslin Glen Country Park, Waterfall Park and Auld Gala Park. Works in progression include Burnbrae Primary School play facilities, Millerhill Park loop path and Rosewell and Roslin Asphalt Pump Tracks. Completed green space improvements include work at Rosewell on the Dalkeith to Penicuik walkway, Straiton pond, Roslin gun powder mill, Roslin Walkway and the Miners Memorial at Penicuik. Page 68 of 154
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The Countryside Ranger Service continues to engage with communities and volunteers on various initiatives and events such as the Coronation tree planting volunteer event and various pond dipping sessions. This quarter 1,962 volunteer hours were spent in countryside sites ensuring an attractive, safe and welcoming environment for all to enjoy. School and group ranger led sessions have significantly increased from the same period last year. The Land and Countryside service continues to work with community groups such as the Danderhall Guerrilla gardeners, Dalkeith Guerrilla gardeners, Newtongrange Guerrilla Gardeners and groups in Bonnyrigg, Loanhead, Roslin, Gorebridge, Easthouses, Mayfield, Newtongrange, Cousland and Pathhead. Also the newly formed Penicuik Guerrilla gardeners. In addition, the ranger service completed all 7 countryside site checks and Green flags status bids were submitted for Kings Park and Straiton pond. Public Health and Environmental Protection implemented the short-term let licensing scheme within the time scales prescribed by Scottish Government. The team have begun to issue licences to applicants this quarter and plans are in place to proactively contact known short-term let hosts to remind them of the deadline for their license application and publicise the scheme further on our social media platforms to increase the number of applications by the 1st of October 2023. Air Quality Progress Reports for 2020-21 and 2021-22 were accepted by Scottish Government and SEPA. Our Air Quality monitoring programme which had been suspended due to resourcing issues has been successfully restarted. Work has now begun on the 2022-23 report. Protective Services: Business Regulations: A ‘Food Alert for Action’ was issued by Food Standards Scotland regarding the possible distribution of meat from a supplier, with food hygiene, labelling and traceability contraventions. 21 Midlothian food businesses were assessed over a weekend, with none of the food businesses provided with products by the named supplier. In addition, officers in the Food and Safety team secured a voluntary food surrender of American style sweets from a Midlothian retailer. The products were found to be labelled incorrectly with insufficient information on the additives they contained, in non-compliance with Food Standards legislation. Following Trading Standards involvement, £8,780 has been returned to Midlothian consumers and businesses. This includes refunds as well as repairs and replacement goods. This quarter approximately 1,400 disposable vapes were been seized from 6 shops in Midlothian. The largest seizure was 933. Vapes are seized due to contraventions of the safety law, mainly concerning the maximum quantity of nicotine. In addition, following complaints, under-age sales test purchase of vapes was attempted at two premises with volunteers supplied by West Lothian Council. One shop sold vapes to the under-age volunteers after which fixed penalty notices were issued. Page 69 of 154
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Neighbourhood Services – performance 0.12% 0.27% 0.43% 1.02% 0.03% 0.34% 1.38% 2.20% 2.89% 0.55% Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 % of Roads and footpath resurfaced % of Footpath % road network 0 0 5 136 304 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of street lighting columns replaced 187 tonnes of carbon emissions saved from street lighting this quarter. 417 tonnes of material used to fill temporary and permanent potholes in Q1 1,716 2,736 4,212 5,604 1,962 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 22/23 Number of vounteer hours in countryside sites Target (23/24 is 4,500) Environmental Green flags submissions made for Kings Park and Straiton pond 2 21park and greenspace improvements/new facilities complete up to end of Q1 out of 50 planned Other1% Page 70 of 154
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Protective Services – performance 30 73 66 4 10 19 2 1 4 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of abandoned vehicles Reported Notices served Vehicles removed for destruction 100% 80% Q1 23/24 % of Consumer complaints completed within 14 days responded to within 5 days 87% of food related service requests from mid residents and Businesses responded to with target of 5 working days Food Standards 89% of Priority 1 and 2 premises receiving completed food law intervention in line with the service plan 60 food law service requests received this quarter Public Health 52% of Public health complaints receiving first response within timescale 345 Public Health service requests received from residents and businesses 58 consumer complaints received in Q1 16 interventions carried out where products seized from 6 premises 11% of businesses registered for tobacco/vapes in Midlothian visited this quarter Trading Standards Page 71 of 154
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Housing Midlothian Council’s updated Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan (RRTP) sets out key actions for delivery this year and addresses the next phase in transforming the services provided to meet housing need. These activities are crucial to reduce the time spent in temporary accommodation, improving the quality of temporary accommodation provided, continue to deliver Housing First and improve the health and wellbeing of those most vulnerable households. The plan also explains how Midlothian Council will address the next phase of its approach to transforming the services provided to those in housing need by developing initiatives with an emphasis on the prevention of homelessness, tenancy sustainability and early intervention. There continues to be a significant demand placed on homeless and temporary accommodation services. A potential key challenge will be an increase in homelessness as the financial measures put in place to protect households during the pandemic are now withdrawn, alongside the recent increase in energy, food and fuel costs, requiring a comprehensive preventative approach as set out in the Council’s Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan. Homelessness is not inevitable and can often be prevented. Our vision is for everyone to have a safe, warm and affordable home that meets their needs. Working with our partners to prevent homelessness from happening in the first place. On 29 November 2022, the Homeless Persons (Suspension of Referrals between Local Authorities) (Scotland) Order 2022 came into force. This gives people in housing crisis the freedom to settle where they choose with access to the support they need, and aims to help them integrate more fully into the local community and to reduce repeat homelessness. With both of these significant changes to homelessness legislation adding challenges to the service, we continue this quarter to avoid any breaches of the unsuitable accommodation order. This quarter there is a 3% decrease in the number of live homelessness cases compared to last year due. During 2022/23, 114 households had their temporary accommodation converted to a permanent tenancy, all households who have been in their current accommodation, and accommodation suitable to be converted for over 3 months have been offered the opportunity to do so, leading to a 12% decrease in households in Temporary Accommodation. The Housing team are currently trialling a dedicated member of staff supporting tenants at risk of eviction. Page 72 of 154
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The number of homeless cases provided with advice and assistance this quarter was 448 and prevented from homeless was 114. We continue to promote this service to ensure early successful intervention when possible. There were 4,714 active housing applicants placed on the Common Housing Register at the end of this reporting period. The total number of lets made to the general needs applicants this quarter was 90 and 55 made to homeless applicants. Re-let time for permanent properties has increased slightly to 27 days this quarter however remains significantly lower compared to this period last year at 45 days. The length of time homeless applicants waited until receiving a permanent housing outcome has further decreased this quarter to 58 weeks. The Housing team continue to make good progress on better communications with our housing applicants and tenants. This quarter the team held a successful housing pop up day and have carried out a number of walkabouts throughout Midlothian. Page 73 of 154
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Housing – performance 45 36 25 24 27 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Time taken to re-let permanant accomdation properties (calendar days) 4,714 applicants on housing waiting list (General needs and Homeless) 106 121 76 70 58 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/24 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Length of time (weeks) homeless applicants wait until recieving a permanant housing outcome General needs 37.9% Homeless 62.1% % of lets made to applicants 145 housing lets in Q1 41 Lets to new build and open market purchases 3 Lets to Housing First applicants 95.9% of Homeless applicants sustaining a permanent tenancy after 1 year 88 86 89 62 46 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Length of time (weeks) homeless applicants spend in temporary accomdation Page 74 of 154
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Building Services – performance 19.37 days Average time taken to complete non-emergency repairs 75% 100% 71% 100% 100% Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 % of Building warrant assessments processd within 10 days 98.4 98.4 98.498.9 98.9 98.9 34.3 32.3 34.3 0 50 100 21/22 22/23 Q1 23/24 % of Council housing meeting Scottish Housing Quality Standards (SHQS) Modern facilities and Services Free from serious disrepair Healthy, safe and secure 84.67% 86.91% Q1 23/24 % of Housing repairs completed on time Non-Emergency Emergency The nationally adopted target for processing warrant is 20 days, Midlothian aim to process all applications in 10 days. Building standards customer satisfaction rate: 100% for Q1. Percentage of jobs completed within time is lower than expected due to a number of jobs where work has been completed but completion/invoice dates were not recorded on the system until after the target date. (E.g. standby work carried out over weekends). As Building Maintenance Service are undergoing a whole systems service transformation the work streams included for job performance and reporting will be addressed within the programme improvements. Figures reported under this indicator will be used as a baseline for improving system reporting. Page 75 of 154
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Economy & Regeneration Midlothian Council’s Economic Renewal Strategy sets out our ambitious approach to managing the transition from lockdown and planning for the longer term challenges the local economy will face. The strategy aims to mitigate the adverse economic impact on the local economy from COVID-19. Key aims are to protect jobs and aid business recovery using a place based partnership approach that maximises the opportunities developing from the pandemic. Taking this partnership approach, the strategy will foster entrepreneurship, upskilling and training, addressing gaps in the market and changing the way business is done to better align this to customer behaviour. Alongside support for agriculture, tourism and the leisure and hospitality sectors, the council will also promote local jobs and self-employment opportunities, particularly for young people, to give them the necessary skills and support they need to benefit from economic recovery. A report on EU-Exit impacts and the economy was presented to Council in October and work is ongoing with Ekosgen which will inform the refresh of the Economic Strategy to be presented for approval to Council later in the year. The Business Gateway team continue to promote localised procurement with clients, encouraging registration with the Supplier Development Programme and Public Contracts Scotland (PCS). We actively encourage businesses to register with the Supplier Development Programme which provides access to free training and support in all aspects of public sector tendering to improve the tender readiness of local suppliers. This quarter 16 new Midlothian businesses were registered with the Supplier Development which is a significant increase compared to a total of 20 during 22/23. The increase could be attributed to increased local engagement through targeted promotion of the national meet the buyer event held Edinburgh. Working with our Procurement Team, Economic Development continue to identify upcoming procurement opportunities, promoting local procurement opportunities via digital channels and for any that suit a specific business the client is contacted directly. Support via the teams Procurement Mentor is available to clients via the Business Gateway adviser. The team also proactively identify regional and national opportunities that suit our client base on PCS. Two officers were recruited this quarter via the Shared Prosperity Fund to progress our Community Wealth Building activities. Once appointed, resource will be used to go out into our communities via the Community Planning Partnership and work with procurement to analyse contracts to identify pipeline opportunities, liaising across the team to stimulate the local business/third sector base for access linking into the business associations. Page 76 of 154
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The Business Gateway service continue to promote the social enterprise model to clients where their plans, objectives and values align to the model. Contributing to Community Wealth Building objectives, the team continue to support the projects from Social Enterprise Conversation sessions as they develop. 15 third sector organisations/enterprises were supported this quarter, one business claimed as a start up, 4 are exiting private business owners exploring the model for wellbeing of the workforce or community services and 10 are existing organisations requiring support. The total number of new Business start-ups this quarter was 24. This should realise a forecasted creation of 39 jobs, with estimated turnover in year 1 of £1.25m. 44 ‘Planning to Start’ enquiries were received this quarter from individuals that are considering setting up a business but need support to achieve this, these clients tend to have numerous sessions with their advisor covering areas such as business planning, access to finance, regularity compliance, routes to market and can take from 3 months to a year to reach the trading stage. To stimulate interest in starting a business the team will be delivering presentations in the community through the Single Midlothian Plan from September 2023. In addition, will provide Enterprise Hubs in community and educational facilities. Work is ongoing with our Library services where advisers will be on-site for drop in support, delivery is scheduled from Q2. In Q1 the team delivered a session at Edinburgh College to students that may consider self- employment on completion of their course. The Locate in Midlothian website continues to be a valuable tool for employability opportunities and employment support with 58 property enquires received via the site during Q1, all enquirers contacted by Business Gateway advisors to offer wider support. This quarter, Property and Facilities updated their ‘Estates’ webpages resulting in an improved general enquires section and introduction of a new GDPR compliant offers invited page, both pages are now on our Locate in Midlothian website. Our Estates team have had continued success in letting a number of properties within the existing PIA estate including two at the recently acquired Hardengreen Industrial Estate. Letting of office space at Hardengreen Business Centre and the newly acquired Hardengreen Business Park. Agreement in principle has been reached with a major retailer for the leasing of a new supermarket unit at Burnbrae in Bonnyrigg. Successful marketing and receipt of offers has been achieved for the former Orchard Centre in Bonnyrigg with Legal Services now instructed to formalise the sale which is subject to agree suspensive conditions. Page 77 of 154
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Following the adoption of the National Planning Framework No.4, this quarter, the planning service has formally commenced its review of the Council’s adopted spatial strategy, the Midlothian Local Development Plan 2. The first phase consists of engagement with community groups, key agencies, the development industry, local residents and elected members. This engagement will be ongoing throughout the year. At its meeting in May 2023, the Planning Committee determined to adopt a Discretionary Charging Charter for its Planning Service introducing fees for providing pre application advice, requests to consider non-material variations, discharging conditions attached to a grant of planning permission and enhanced charges for retrospective planning applications. The Committee also confirmed a Tree Preservation Order to protect eight individual trees and four groups of trees on land at the Kiln, Quarrybank, Cousland and land at Northfield Farm, Cousland. Page 78 of 154
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23 6 26 63 24 Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Number of new Business starts ups 66% 80% 85% 85% 68% Q1 22/23 Q2 22/23 Q3 22/23 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 % of planning applications completed within target of 80% Planning, Sustainable Growth & Investment–performance Social media 1,503 Locate in Midlothian followers 1,970 Business Gateway followers 8.61 weeks Average time to determine planning applications for minor developments 102.42 weeks Average time to determine planning applications for major developments 3 Businesses signed up to the Midlothian Business Green Pledge in Q1 15 Social enterprises supported in Q1 44 ‘Planning to Start’ enquires/submissions in Q1 Page 79 of 154
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56.68% 20.36% 74.28% Q1 23/24 % of school meal uptake Primary Secondary Free school meals 101.99 101.85 Percentage of cleaning hours against budgeted hours achieved in Q1 primary school Secondary school 6.86% Percentage of school meal food waste Q1 Property and Facilities – performance 7.13 nursery and primary meals prepared per hour 4.33 Secondary school meals prepared per hour % of Local Heat & Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES) complete 25% TARGET: APSE national average 8.84 meals prepared per hour Page 80 of 154
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Capital Investment Programme As Scotland’s fastest growing local authority area, it is critical to delivery that investment in community infrastructure, such as housing, the learning estate, economic investment and green infrastructure, is in the right place at the right time. This will help our communities to live well, live locally and prosper. How we invest in community infrastructure must also respond to changes in our working and living patterns brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Communities need to be able to readily access the services they require. Capital investment is also an opportunity to support our local economy through job creation and skills enhancement, particularly in relation to supporting a transition to a green economy as we invest in sustainable, highly energy efficient buildings. As a growing Council, we have the opportunity to transform parts of Midlothian in a way that reflects how we live now. We will invest in community infrastructure with a focus on place-making, reducing inequalities, improving economic opportunities and improving education and health and wellbeing outcomes. The Capital Investment Strategy brings together many strands of the Council’s activities to build upon our past successes and drive forward innovation in a co-ordinated and achievable manner for the benefit of Midlothian and its citizens. The Capital Investment Strategy sits centrally within the Council’s future planning activities and in doing so has to reflect the demands of Council services to ensure positive outcomes are achieved in the right place, at the right time for the maximum benefit to Midlothian. The extensive capital programme delivers new schools, a record investment in council housing, improved community infrastructure, investment in the local transport network and innovative developments such as the new low carbon heat network in Shawfair. To ensure Midlothian is ‘building back better’, this investment is also creating new jobs, apprenticeship opportunities, opportunities for businesses and communities and families hard-hit by the impact of the pandemic. These new opportunities help lead the way out of the pandemic and towards a better future for Midlothian. Page 81 of 154
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The Education Learning Estate Strategy programme has been developed and is subject to regular review meetings with Education and stakeholders to ensure effective monitoring, reporting and delivery of improvement and expansion of the Education estate including Early Years provision. This currently covers approximately 30 projects at various stages of development. Midlothian Council is overseeing a significant housing programme. Phase 1, now complete, provided 864 additional houses within Midlothian. The total number of new homes from phase 2, 3 and 4 is currently estimated at 1201, comprising of 489 from phase 2 budget and 712 from phase 3 and 4 budgets. Progress continues with 661 homes currently being constructed on site either through commencement of enabling works or main contract works as of November 2022. This includes the largest Passivhaus programme in Scotland, with 189 homes to be built to the exacting Passivhaus standard, in line with Midlothian Council’s Net Zero Housing Design Guide. This ensures exceptionally high levels of energy efficiency and low utility bills for our residents. Challenges and risk Over recent years, innovative ways of working have been introduced and services adapted at pace to respond to the needs of our citizens, in particular those experiencing the greatest levels of poverty and inequality. Our services are continuing to build on this learning moving forward, harnessing the energy, flexibility and creativity demonstrated by our workforce, to embed a culture of continuous improvement and innovation across Place. Growing Council In addition to the financial sustainability challenges, other challenges for Midlothian continue with our recovery from the pandemic, the cost of living crisis, the growing and ageing population and the increasing demand for services that this brings. Midlothian is consistently projected to have the highest percentage change in population size of all mainland council areas in Scotland. From 2018 to 2028, the population of Midlothian is projected to increase from 91,340 to 103,945. This is an increase of 13.8%, which is in contrast to Page 82 of 154
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a projected increase of 1.8% for Scotland as a whole, with a 40.9% increase in older people over 75. In addition, Midlothian has 10 zones which fall into the most deprived areas giving a local share of 8.7% living in the most deprived areas in Scotland. This growth creates the opportunity to meet the housing need with 25% of new homes being built in the affordable housing bracket, in addition to the expansion in Council house building. This construction will directly support employment and will see a steady increase in the value of Council Tax income received over time. The approved Capital Strategy sets out the infrastructure required to meet those demographic pressures and includes the financial contributions Midlothian will make to the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. Encompassing five main themes the City Region Deal will bring significant investment across the regions with total investment of circa £1.3 billion across: • Research, Development and Innovation: £751 million • Integrated Regional Employability and Skills: £25 million • Transport: £156 million • Culture: £45 million • Housing: £313 million Through the Data Driven Innovation strand the Deal will leverage existing world-class research institutes and commercialisation facilities in order that Easter Bush becomes a global location of Agritech excellence. The Easter Bush project includes significant investment in transport infrastructure along the A701/2 transport corridor. In addition, by improving on-site infrastructure at Easter Bush and transport infrastructure, The University of Edinburgh expects commercial partners will be able to co-locate at scale to commercialise Agritech breakthroughs. Risk The Council’s Strategic Risk Profile is presented retrospectively to Audit Committee quarterly. The most critical risks to the Council are Financial Sustainability, Climate Change and the Change Programme. Corporate Solutions is key to the delivery of mitigating actions to these risks; through strategic planning and the Medium Term Financial Strategy and driving forward the Council’s transformation programme to derive change and redesign services. Page 83 of 154
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Pentana Performance Dashboard A full review of quarterly performance data is available via Pentana (Browser login link - https://midlothian.pentanarpm.uk/login) Page 84 of 154
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1 Midlothian Council Report Quarter 1 2023/24 Progress Against Strategic Outcomes Individuals and communities in Midlothian will be able to lead healthier, safer and greener lives by 2030. No child or household need live in poverty. Midlothian will be a Great Green Place to Grow by achieving our net zero carbon ambitions and supporting local people to strengthen the skills they need for learning, life and work. Our new Single Midlothian Plan focuses on thee main priorities: • Individuals and communities have improved health and skills for learning, life and work • No child or household need live in poverty • Significant progress is made towards net zero carbon emissions by 2030 As the fastest growing local authority in Scotland, Midlothian will see a growth rate between now and 2028 of 13.8% compared to the Scottish average of 1.8%. Our demographic profile shows growth in all age groups but particularly acute in the 0-15 years and over 75 age groups and therefore there will be significant demand for early years, schools and older people’s services. To accommodate growth within the resources available we will need to think differently about the services we deliver and how we deliver them. Rooted in the creation of a wellbeing economy, in June 2023 Council approved the new Transformation Blueprint 2023-2028. Some services will be transformed to meet our growing population within the financial envelope available, others may be delivered in a different way and some will need to stop. Fostering a collaborative culture where everyone is focused on the same end goal – creating effective and efficient services which will benefit our citizens – will be crucial to future success. The Transformation Blueprint will focus on the nature of the work we will do, developing a 21st century workforce supported by a workplace fit for the future where joined up services are delivered in a holistic and integrated way. The 5 key objectives of the Transformation Blueprint are: 1. Support the Council to address the 5 year funding gap of £29.121 million outlined in the Medium Term Financial Strategy. 2. Follow the Money to ensure that the services we commission, contracts we manage and digital solutions we use deliver value for money. 3. Develop an organisational workforce that is flexible ensuring that all staff have the necessary skills to work effectively supported by digital technologies that fit for a 21st century workforce. 4. Design a workplace fit for the future delivering services in a holistic and integrated way as well as utilising our assets to maximise their potential. 5. Drive forward multi-agency transformation to deliver systems-level change resulting in integrated service delivery which improve community outcomes. Whilst a full update for the performance for each of the Council’s Service areas is published separately, this report reflects an overview of the key service updates, against the thematic areas of the Single Midlothian Plan. Single Midlothian Plan Themes in 2023/27 Midlothian will be Healthier - Achievements This theme brings together 60 services, parts of Midlothian Council and NHS Lothian to help everyone in Midlothian live well and get the right support when they need it. To achieve this, progress must be made towards the aims of Midlothian IJB Strategic Commissioning Plan, with Community Planning Partners, and contribute to the strategic aims of both NHS Lothian and Midlothian Council. In order to meet the legal requirements of the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014, the HSCP was required to develop, consult on, and publish a new 3 year Strategic Plan in 2022. The new Strategic Plan for 2022-25 was published in April 2022. Outcome 1: Midlothian Care and Support Community Cooperative Outcome 2: Falls Prevention and Support Outcome 3: Digital Self-Management Platform Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No: 5.6 Page 85 of 154
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2 Outcome 4: Early Identification and Support for People Living with Frailty Adult Social Care is leading on the first of these outcomes to explore and define the demand for and the benefit of Midlothian Care and Support Community Co-operative that facilitates personalised support for carers, identifies local assets, and enhances local economic value. A Midlothian Care and Support Community Cooperative will provide carers with an increased range of resources and advice through a community-based support network, allowing more flexible support, more choice, and more control for carers in decisions that affect them and the person they care for. Last year, 17% of carers did not feel they had a say in the services provided for the person they look after. This number rose to 31% for those caring for someone due to substance use. 38% of carers did not feel services were well coordinated and described additional stress caused by having to speak to several organisations to get support. Carers in Midlothian told us they would like to see more services in their local communities at a time that suits them and was provided in one place. We anticipate that a Community Cooperative will help carers find the right support, in the right place at the right time. Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership contracts services from approximately 40 organisations to support people and communities. This is approximately 33% of the total Adult Social Care budget. Adult Services teams support people with a range of needs to live independently and access the right care, at the right time. Our work to support unpaid carers helps them to focus on their own health and wellbeing and enable them to continue in their caring role. The Welfare Rights team help people to claim welfare benefits, and make sure they receive all the benefit income they are entitled to. The majority of direct support is provided by services commissioned from external organisations. In Q1, Over 100 people came along to the Beacon in Gorebridge on Wednesday 3rd May for a free and fun Health event for people with a Learning Disability and their carers. Q1 also saw the start of a themed Care Inspectorate/HIS inspection of our services for people with Physical Disabilities, Long Term conditions and their carers. Older Peoples Services ensures that people over 65 receive person-centred care to live well in their community for as long as possible. This includes a range of service offers, support and equipment to help people live independently at home. These services provide support that often means people don’t need to go to hospital, or supports people recover in their own home when they leave hospital. Q1 saw the phased reintroduction of respite provision at Highbank with an initial 2 beds opening for respite use. Public Health team support staff to design and deliver services that support early intervention and prevention, and make connections and share good practice about how to avoid inequalities, monitoring and evaluating long term, population level outcomes. Mental Health and Substance Use service includes Integrated Mental Health Teams and Substance Use who work in partnership with people to achieve their personal health and wellbeing goals. Over Q1 the Dementia Team, which is an integrated Council and NHS Team, have been nominated for Team of the Year in the NHS Lothian Celebrating Success Awards (due to be held in September 2023). The Substance Use Service successfully implemented the first 5 Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) Standards. Q1 also saw an increase of 33 per cent compared to Q1 of 2022 for individuals accessing digital support through Midspace. Midlothian and East Lothian Drug and Alcohol Partnership (MELDAP) plans, commissions, and funds a network of services for people affected by their own or someone else’s alcohol or drug use. Support is available for families and adult carers, and recovery-focused services are provided to address people’s alcohol and drug use. Midlothian will be Safer – Achievements This theme aims to address the underlying causes of offending behaviour, working with a range of individuals and organisations within community justice. The Community Justice (Scotland) Act 2016 supported a redesign of the community justice system, transferring the responsibilities for reducing offending and reoffending to local Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs). A National Strategy for Community Justice (2022) and National Outcomes, Performance and Improvement Framework (2023) were published by the Scottish Government to outline the new model. Participation, engagement and consultation between statutory partners; non-statutory partners; Third Sector organisations; people in communities; survivors and witnesses of crime; people that have an offending history and families of people with an offending history on their views on ways to reduce offending and re-offending will be reflected in our Community Justice Outcomes Improvement Plan (CJOIP). The initial process has identified themes that will be prevalent within the national landscape, which include factors of uncertainty such as the needs of people Page 86 of 154
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3 alongside availability of resources. These are themes that will require consideration throughout the life span of this CJOIP. We want to tackle inequalities and marginalised populations through trauma and survivor focussed objectives. The plan will lead in innovative approaches to reduce stigmatisation of Justice and criminological factors, ensuring systems are trauma informed and support people to reach their full potential. The intended outcome is that people can live in Midlothian free of fear and harm. The plan outlines new and alternative approaches in supporting people affected by crime or involved in the Justice System. Outcome: Midlothian Communities will be Safer Justice Service and Protection supports people involved in the Parole and Pre-release process including the preparation of Criminal Justice Social Work Reports and pre-release reports. The team supervises people aged 18 and over who are subject to Community Payback Orders, Parole, Life and Non-Parole Licences, Extended Sentences and Supervised Released Orders. Social Workers in the Duty Team support people aged 16 and over with crisis interventions, urgent and planned assessments, development of adult care support plans, reviews, and short-term interventions. The Adult Support and Protection (ASP) Team works to keep people safe by considering all suspicions, disclosures or actual harm are acted upon (216 referrals in Q1, compared with 235 in Q1 of 2022/23). This helps us provide the right support to protect vulnerable adults in Midlothian, by developing outcome focused care plans. Midlothian will Get it Right for Every Child - Achievements The Getting It Right for Every Child theme oversees the effective delivery of the Integrated Children’s Services Plan which is built around a set of core principles. Our vision for children and young people in Midlothian is to have the best possible start in life and live safe, healthy, active, happy and independent lives. Based on the national Getting it right for every child wellbeing framework a set of priority actions has been developed which will make a significant contribution towards achieving the wellbeing outcomes. The Community Planning Partnership (CPP) are fully committed to realising the children’s rights approach and ensuring that the principles of the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) are embedded in plans taken forward. Outcome 1: Midlothian Children and Young People are Healthy, Active and Nurtured Outcome 2: Midlothian Children and Young People are Achieving and Responsible Outcome 3: Midlothian Children and Young People are Respected and Included Outcome 4: Midlothian Children and Young People are Safe and Nurtured Overall library visits (virtual and physical combined) have increased by 30% based on the same period last year with a 48% increase in physical visits. Library memberships remain steady with just under a third of the population of Midlothian registered as library members. A total of 1,321 events took place between April – June 2023 and 892 children’s library initiatives. Work is being progressed around gaining a clearer understanding on how all referrals come into Children’s Services. Although there is a 9% increase in referrals for Q1 from Q1 2022, within the last three months from Q4 2022, to Q1 2023, there has been a 12% decrease in referrals which is positive and may be as a result of the work we have started. The Family Wellbeing Service are already working with over 100 children and young people. Looked After away from home population is continuing to decrease which is testament to the workforce ensuring that they support families to remain together, where safe to do so. The introduction of Family Group decision making, supports families to devise a plan which promotes families staying together with support from extended family, it is too early to advise if this is reason for this consistent decline in numbers. Conversely child protection registrations are rising, a high percentage of registrations are as a result of domestic abuse. We shall monitor this position going forward. Focus continues on the following 5 priority areas within Education: Priority 1: Attainment and Achievement Priority 2: Included, Involved and Engaged: Wellbeing & Equity Priority 3: Self-improving Systems Priority 4: Life-Long Learning and Career-Ready Employability Priority 5: Finance & Resources Page 87 of 154
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4 Midlothian will Support Residents to Improve Employability and Outcomes in our Communities - Achievements The vision for this them is to reduce the gaps in learning, economic circumstances and poverty. The Community Learning and Development Partners Strategic Plan 2021-24 aims to build skills for learning, life and work and supporting communities to improve outcomes through community development approaches. The No One Left Behind plan 2022-25 is aimed to address the needs of Midlothian residents seeking employability support. It sets out how the Council and partners will work together to offer a range of targeted programmes and support for all. Poverty and in-work poverty continues to increase due to the rise in the cost of living, particularly food and energy costs. This means that more individuals and families are struggling to support themselves and provide for their basic needs. As one of the fastest growing areas in Scotland, the Council cannot support more customers using the current resources, systems and processes. This means that the adoption of digital and automated processes will be key to continuing to provide a seamless customer journey, satisfying enquiries at the first point of contact and meeting increased demand. Outcome 1: Improve employability outcomes for Midlothian residents Outcome 2: Local people will have increased opportunities to influence decisions through work with public sector, Third Sector and community capacity building Outcome 3: Improve the breadth, quality and impact of informal and formal lifelong learning including access to qualifications Outcome 4: Enhance the impact of Police Scotland’s priorities to support the communities through the work of the Police Scotland Local Authority Liaison Officer Midlothian will be Greener- - Achievements The Climate Emergency Group’s and Community Planning Partnership vision is significant progress is made towards net zero carbon emissions by 2030. Our values are to get to net zero equitably, taking into account different people and communities capacities and abilities to get there. The Group consists of individuals and representatives of Midlothian Community Councils, Community Groups, national government agencies, Third Sector organisations, Midlothian Council, local chamber of commerce, land owners and Midlothian Energy Ltd. The National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), published on 13 February 2023, now forms part of the local development plan for Midlothian and will also be the strategic basis that future plans and applications will need to take into account. The biggest sources of carbon emissions in Midlothian are still domestic uses (30.5%) and transport (27.5%). Therefore, this theme will concentrate on reducing carbon emissions in the areas of domestic heating/power and transport to get to Net Zero. Thematic actions are designed to increase awareness, promote reflection and action on the key Climate Emergency issues of energy, food and travel. They will lead to a better understanding of carbon emissions and greater investment in greener travel, renewable heat, energy sources and heating efficiency in Midlothian. The actions will help inform and give people the opportunity to get involved to make a difference. Midlothian’s future will be different through having more people aware and engaged in Climate Emergency issues, both consciously and subconsciously. This will make Midlothian more resilient to the effects of Climate Change and in addition help contribute more widely to Climate Change resilience. Outcome 1: Learning for Sustainability is increased Outcome 2: Sustainable Living is increased Outcome 3: Low Carbon/Renewable Energy Development and Home Energy Saving is Increased Outcome 4: Carbon Storage is increased Page 88 of 154
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5 Work continues to implement the Council’s Climate Change Strategy and focus continues within Place services to achieve future emissions targets. Economic Development continues to promote the Midlothian Business Green Pledge. Last year 50 businesses committed to the Pledge and a further 3 this quarter. Local Heat & Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES) set out the long-term plan for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving energy efficiency across an entire local authority area. The Strategies draw on a standardised methodology. In conjunction with consultants, Midlothian are now at Stage 4 of the methodology and are currently reviewing the findings and in discussion with key stakeholders regarding the confirmation of data, and identification, review and potential priorities. A LHEES lead officer post has been advertised this quarter. Air Quality Progress Reports for 2020-21 and 2021-22 were accepted by Scottish Government and SEPA. Work has now begun on the 2022-23 report. The delivery of 1,796 new LED lanterns were completed this quarter and in addition, 304 lighting column replacements were also installed this quarter. External funding of £20,030 awarded from the Material Focus Electrical Recycling Fund to allow a trial kerbside collection of small electrical appliances and batteries to be introduced. Six new 12 tonne food waste collection vehicles have recently been delivered, including one funded from the Zero Waste Scotland Recycling Improvement Fund to allow the introduction of this service in rural, and previously excluded areas. A dedicated Project Officer will develop new collection routes during Q2. The Garden waste service re-started in March with 17,839 customers signed up to the service by the end of quarter 1, totalling 18,840 garden waste bins to be collected. Customer sign ups have reduced by 2.2% compared to the same period last year. Work continues on our parks and greenspaces with 21 improvements/new facilities completed up to the end of quarter 1 with a further 29 improvements planned for this year. This quarter 1,962 volunteer hours were spent in countryside sites ensuring an attractive, safe and welcoming environment for all to enjoy. Midlothian Council is overseeing a significant housing programme. Phase 1, now complete, provided 864 additional houses within Midlothian. The total number of new homes from phase 2, 3 and 4 is currently estimated at 1201, comprising of 489 from phase 2 budget and 712 from phase 3 and 4 budgets. Progress continues with 661 homes currently being constructed on site either through commencement of enabling works or main contract works as of November 2022. This includes the largest Passivhaus programme in Scotland, with 189 homes to be built to the exacting Passivhaus standard, in line with Midlothian Council’s Net Zero Housing Design Guide. This ensures exceptionally high levels of energy efficiency and low utility bills for our residents. Midlothian will have a Wellbeing Economy and be Better Connected - Achievements A wellbeing economy aims to deliver increased economic opportunities for all, providing meaningful and fair work, better outcomes for young people, sustainable places, improved health outcomes, reduced poverty and environmental sustainability. To develop a wellbeing economy we will use Community Wealth Building (CWB) which is based around five interconnected pillars that centres on People, Place and Planet. Community Wealth Building changes the way local economies function by redirecting wealth into local economies, creating opportunities for the benefit local people. We have embedded three of the pillars into our delivery over the past two years and will continue to build on this work. The Regional Prosperity Framework (RPF) 2021 guides and integrates public, private and Third Sector decisions, actions, collaborations, strategies, policies and investments and sets out 3 key areas to support the rebuilding of the economy: • people – to access fair work, to learn and develop new skills and to live happy and healthy lives • places – that are sustainable, and attractive to live and work in and where enterprise thrives • planet – meeting our needs in a way that will allow future generations to meet theirs, with a focus on reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (sustainability). Page 89 of 154
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6 The Economic Development priorities for the 2023/27 Single Midlothian Plan align to the social, environmental and economic aspirations of the wellbeing economy with people focussed outcomes that will also deliver local economic benefit. Outcome 1: Develop a Midlothian Community Wealth Building Action Plan to guide future economic activity across the partnership Outcome 2: Increase economic opportunity to maximise income, empowering individuals and communities Outcome 3: Develop a culture of entrepreneurship, increasing business knowledge, for current and future generations The Business Gateway team continue to promote localised procurement with clients, encouraging registration with the Supplier Development Programme and Public Contracts Scotland (PCS). This quarter 16 new Midlothian businesses were registered with the Supplier Development which is a significant increase compared to a total of 20 during 22/23. The Business Gateway service continue to promote the social enterprise model to clients where their plans, objectives and values align to the model. Working with our Procurement Team, Economic Development continue to identify upcoming procurement opportunities, promoting local procurement opportunities via digital channels and for any that suit a specific business the client is contacted directly. Two officers were recruited this quarter via the Shared Prosperity Fund to progress our Community Wealth Building activities. The total number of new Business start-ups this quarter was 24. This should realise a forecasted creation of 39 jobs, with estimated turnover in year 1 of £1.25m. 44 ‘Planning to Start’ enquiries were received this quarter from individuals that are considering setting up a business but need support to achieve this. The Locate in Midlothian website continues to be a valuable tool for employability opportunities and employment support with 58 property enquires received via the site during Q1, all enquirers contacted by Business Gateway advisors to offer wider support. This quarter, Property and Facilities updated their ‘Estates’ webpages resulting in an improved general enquires section and introduction of a new GDPR compliant offers invited page, both pages are now on our Locate in Midlothian website. Our Estates team have had continued success in letting a number of properties within the existing PIA estate including two at the recently acquired Hardengreen Industrial Estate. Letting of office space at Hardengreen Business Centre and the newly acquired Hardengreen Business Park. There were 4,714 active housing applicants placed on the Common Housing Register at the end of this reporting period. The total number of lets made to the general needs applicants this quarter was 90 and 55 made to homeless applicants. Re-let time for permanent properties has increased slightly to 27 days this quarter however remains significantly lower compared to this period last year at 45 days. The length of time homeless applicants waited until receiving a permanent housing outcome has further decreased this quarter to 58 weeks. We have maintained the Healthy Working Lives Gold Award for over 9 years and work has commenced on the development of our Wellbeing Strategy which will focus on the financial, physical, and psychological wellbeing of our workforce and ensure employees have access to advice, guidance and initiatives which support their health and wellbeing. The rolling programme of Wellness@Midlothian initiatives continues this quarter to ensure we are supporting the positive health and wellbeing of our staff. Midlothian will Work Towards Reducing Poverty - Achievements This theme focuses on reducing all aspects of poverty using a data informed approach whilst learning from those with direct experience of poverty. During 2022/23 the Community Planning Partners created dedicated groups and designed new services to support communities through the cost of living crisis. The Strategic Poverty Prevention Group was set up with a focus on prevention and elected members created a formal Council Cost of Living Crisis Task Force which focused on mitigation. The learning from both these groups have informed the action plan. Page 90 of 154
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7 The partnership will work together to increase the number of employers offering fair work in Midlothian and support local people to be in a strong position to secure higher paid jobs. Helping local people maximise their income by ensuring they know where to access support and how to claim the financial support available to them. Childcare and transport needs to meet the needs of individuals and families to support them to be able to take up and retain employment opportunities. Outcome 1: Poverty and child poverty is reduced through use of partnership levers and resources Outcome 2: Benefit income maximised for individuals and families and financial resilience is improved for low income households Outcome 3: The most significant impacts of poverty on individuals and families are reduced This quarter there is a 3% decrease in the number of live homelessness cases compared to last year due. During 2022/23, 114 households had their temporary accommodation converted to a permanent tenancy, all households who have been in their current accommodation, and accommodation suitable to be converted for over 3 months have been offered the opportunity to do so, leading to a 12% decrease in households in Temporary Accommodation. The Housing team are currently trialling a dedicated member of staff supporting tenants at risk of eviction. The number of homeless cases provided with advice and assistance this quarter was 448 and prevented from homeless was 114. Challenges and Risks Financial position: Council approved the 2023/24 budget at its meeting on 21 February 2023. Delivery is reliant on a combination of savings and service reductions and includes the use of retrospective service concession savings and earmarked Covid recovery reserves. Whilst the 2023/24 budget is agreed, the challenge remains to reach ongoing financial sustainability. Cost and income projections for future years will be embedded in the Council’s Strategic Blueprint which contains a range of transformation themes to drive towards a position of financial sustainability. Close working continues with the Business Transformation Steering Group to respond to the challenges. Economic pressures: Inflation as well as rising energy costs are affecting the construction industry in Scotland and the UK is currently experiencing unprecedented adverse market conditions, leading to significant rises in tender prices for a wide range of materials. There is evidence that inflation of between 10% and 15% beyond BCIS predictions is affecting projects. Whilst measures such as value engineering are partially mitigating cost increase there is a risk that the capital budgets will need to be increased with a resultant impact on the funding strategy. The situation continues to be monitored however it has been necessary to review and prioritise the existing capital plans and also review the 2023/24 service budgets to implement savings measures in the year. Growing Council: Midlothian is consistently projected to have the highest percentage change in population size of all mainland council areas in Scotland. From 2018 to 2028, the population of Midlothian is projected to increase from 91,340 to 103,945. This is an increase of 13.8%, which is in contrast to a projected increase of 1.8% for Scotland as a whole, with a 40.9% increase in older people over 75. In addition, Midlothian has 10 zones which fall into the most deprived areas giving a local share of 8.7% living in the most deprived areas in Scotland. National Care Service: The estimated funding gap for the next three financial years does not include the associated costs of the Scottish Government’s National Care Services (Scotland) Bill. If enacted, the bill would have fundamental implications for the community and for Local Government itself. The wide reaching changes in the bill aim to deliver a National Care Service by the end of the parliamentary term, which will impact on all aspects of the work of the Corporate Solutions team, including financial implications, in both revenue and capital, our asset base, our workforce, governance and legal arrangements and our digital infrastructure and platforms. It will require an immediate focus for the foreseeable future, and this will inevitably have implications for other priority work at a time of continued resource constraint. Cost of Living Crisis: Midlothian’s citizens are facing significant financial challenges. The impact on households is already being noted across the UK with 93% of adults reporting an increase in their cost of living in March 2023 (Office for National Statistics; Francis-Devine et al, 2022). The UK is currently facing an unprecedented wave of increasing prices, bills and tax challenges. The 41 year high inflation rate of 10.4% is the main driver of the cost of living crisis which has outstripped wage and benefit increases. The price rises will impact low-income households hardest as a larger proportion of their costs are on energy and food. The Resolution Foundation estimates that absolute poverty is set to rise in the short-run, from 17.2% in 2021-22 to 18.3% in 2023/24 (or an additional 800,000 people in poverty). Page 91 of 154
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8 As our citizens feel the impact of the Cost of Living Crisis, they will seek additional support from public services; in particular local authorities. To respond to this emerging crisis, the Council established a Cost of Living Task Force last year, which is chaired by the Council Leader and meets regularly to coordinate mitigating activities. Page 92 of 154
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Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No 5.7 Follow up Inspection of Lawfield Primary School Report by Michelle Strong, Education Chief Operating Officer, Children, Young People and Partnerships Report for Information 1 Recommendations Cabinet is asked to: (i) Note the content of the inspection follow through report. (ii) Pass this report to the Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee for its consideration. (iii) Congratulate the pupils, parents and staff connected with Lawfield Primary School on the key strengths highlighted in the report. 2 Purpose of Report/Executive Summary The report outlines the outcome of the above inspection as carried out by Education Scotland in January 2023. 18 August 2023 Report Contact: Annabel Bates, Quality Improvement Manager E-mail: annabel.bates@midlothian.gov.uk Page 95 of 154
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2 3 Background/Main Body of Report 3.1 In June 2020, HM Inspectors published a letter on Lawfield Primary School and Nursery Class – outlining the outcomes of an inspection of the school in December 2019. The letter set out a number of areas for improvement which were agreed with the school and Midlothian Council. HM Inspectors returned to the school to look at how it had continued to improve its work, and published another letter in January 2022. In January 2023 HM Inspectors visited the school again. The letter in response to this recent visit is now published on the Education Scotland website and is available from this link. 3.2 Education Scotland is responsible for inspecting education settings throughout Scotland. As this was a follow up inspection the focus was on areas for development from the original inspection. • Raise children’s attainment across the nursery and primary school. • Ensure children benefit from consistently high quality learning and teaching, which includes increasing opportunities for children to lead their own learning. • Improve assessment approaches across the primary stages. Ensure all teaching staff use information gathered from children’s learning and assessment activity more effectively to plan learning experiences which meet the needs of all children. 3.3 The inspection team found the following strengths in the school’s work. Within the nursery, children demonstrate a strong sense of wellbeing and are making appropriate progress. They are enthusiastic learners who are nurtured well by practitioners who know and understand their learning needs. Children continue to build on their early communication and language skills through their play. Practitioners have improved how they include early mathematics and numeracy in children’s play. Teachers at the early level in school have introduced daily play sessions and children socialise well with each other whilst playing. Overall, the quality of children’s attainment in literacy and English and numeracy and mathematics in the school has improved since the original inspection in December 2019. This is particularly evident at second level. Senior leaders have improved how they gather and use data to understand better the progress children are making. Teachers’ professional judgements are becoming more reliable as a result of their professional learning. Senior leaders and practitioners have created a nurturing, stimulating learning environment in the nursery which enables children to engage much more deeply in their play. Play spaces promote independent learning in early language and mathematics. Practitioners continue to take part in relevant professional learning which is having a direct, positive impact on securing children’s wellbeing and progress. Teachers have taken part in professional learning about learning and teaching and have developed their agreed approach, known as the ‘Lawfield Way.’ It sets out shared expectations about what effective practice looks like. Page 96 of 154
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Senior leaders and teachers have developed new approaches to planning children’s learning. These are helping teachers to support children to make better progress in their learning in literacy and numeracy. Children are starting to make decisions about their learning. There are positive relationships between adults and children in almost all classes. Staff use nurturing approaches to support children’s wellbeing and to promote positive behaviour. They work effectively with a range of partners to help meet children’s needs. The recently introduced ‘Open Curriculum’ morning is giving children the opportunity to use a range of skills and have choice in their learning. Teachers and senior leaders have made positive progress over the past year to improve how they measure children’s progress across the primary stages. They have developed the ‘inclusive learning and teaching policy’ and have worked with colleagues in Lawfield Primary and other schools to develop their practice. Teachers now use a new approach to successfully identify children’s strengths and plan future learning. In the majority of classes, teachers provide helpful feedback on children’s learning. This is supporting children to begin to understand their progress and identify their next steps. Children in the school and nursery can identify and share aspects of their learning using recently introduced online learning journals. 3.4 The following areas for improvement were identified and Education Scotland will liaise with Midlothian Council regarding the school’s capacity to improve. Senior leaders and teachers must now take immediate action to improve the quality of activities on offer to help children make better progress with their learning in early level. There is a need to improve the overall quality of learning and teaching and address very high levels of absence to help raise attainment further. Senior leaders must now continue to ensure that data about children’s progress in learning is accurate. Staff in the school should now ensure that all classrooms and shared learning spaces are attractive and motivating and support independent learning. Teachers must now apply their agreed approach (Lawfield Way) more consistently in all classes. They also need to make better use of all the teaching time that is available within the school day. Teachers now need to consistently give children regular opportunities to influence what and how they learn across the curriculum. They must also ensure that all children at all stages have their entitlement to a full curriculum, including two hours of physical education every week. Senior leaders and teachers should continue to build on the open curriculum approach and help children to understand the skills they can develop and improve through their participation. Senior leaders should consider how best to record all of the assessment information that is gathered. Page 97 of 154
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Teachers need to ensure that all children across the school benefit from regular high quality feedback on their learning. It will be important to develop the online learning journal approach and ensure that parents have a full understanding of what their children are learning and how they can support this. 3.5 Conclusion The school has made insufficient progress since the original inspection, Education Scotland will return to carry out a further inspection of the school within 12 months of publication of the most recent letter. An action plan has been put in place by the head teacher, in partnership with the Midlothian Council education team. 4 Report Implications (Resource, Digital and Risk) 4.1 Resource There are no financial and human resource implications associated with this report. 4.2 Digital There are no Digital implications. 4.3 Risk Education Scotland’s team of Inspectors visit a sample of education settings every year to find out how they are performing. A report is published which informs parents about the key strengths of the setting and its capacity for further improvement. Following the publication of the report further visits may be made to the setting, by the Education Authority to assist improvement and monitor progress. Monitoring, review and evaluation of progress by central officers in the Education Team is the control measure in place to reduce the risk of failure of settings to demonstrate their capacity to improve. 4.4 Ensuring Equalities (if required a separate IIA must be completed) The School Improvement Plan will be screened for equalities implications. 4.4 Additional Report Implications (See Appendix A) Appendices Appendix A – Additional Report Implications Appendix B – Inspection Report Page 98 of 154
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5 APPENDIX A – Report Implications A.1 Key Priorities within the Single Midlothian Plan • Getting it right for every Midlothian child • Improving opportunities in Midlothian A.2 Key Drivers for Change Key drivers addressed in this report: Holistic Working Hub and Spoke Modern Sustainable Transformational Preventative Asset-based Continuous Improvement One size fits one None of the above A.3 Key Delivery Streams Key delivery streams addressed in this report: One Council Working with you, for you Preventative and Sustainable Efficient and Modern Innovative and Ambitious None of the above A.4 Delivering Best Value Noted within. A.5 Involving Communities and Other Stakeholders A link to the published report has been made available to Elected Members, parents of children currently attending Danderhall Primary School and other interested parties. A.6 Impact on Performance and Outcomes The setting will continue to improve its work in line with the school improvement plan and central officers in the Education Team will continue to challenge and support the setting in relation to developing and implementing a range of quality improvement strategies. A.7 Adopting a Preventative Approach The Education (Scotland) Bill aims to take preventative action in order to close the attainment versus deprivation gap by implementing key policies and programmes which are designed to target support to children and young people from disadvantaged communities. Midlothian is highly committed to closing the poverty related attainment gap. Page 99 of 154
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A.8 Supporting Sustainable Development The School Improvement Plan allows for sustainable development and improvement. APPENDIX B Background Papers/Resource link Page 100 of 154
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1 | Lawfield Primary School and Nursery Class, Midlothian Council, 5541026 © Crown Copyright 7 March 2023 Dear Parent/Carer In June 2020, HM Inspectors published a letter on Lawfield Primary School and Nursery Class. The letter set out a number of areas for improvement which we agreed with the school and Midlothian Council. We subsequently returned to the school to look at how it had continued to improve its work, and published another letter in January 2022. Recently, as you may know, we visited the school again. During our visit, we talked to children and worked closely with the headteacher and staff. We heard from the headteacher and other staff about the steps the school has taken to improve. We looked at particular areas that had been identified in the original inspection. As a result, we were able to find out about the progress the school has made and how well this is supporting children’s learning and achievements. This letter sets out what we found. Raise children’s attainment across the nursery and primary school. Within the nursery, children demonstrate a strong sense of wellbeing and are making appropriate progress. They are enthusiastic learners who are nurtured well by practitioners who know and understand their learning needs. Children continue to build on their early communication and language skills through their play. Practitioners have improved how they include early mathematics and numeracy in children’s play. Teachers at the early level in school have introduced daily play sessions and children socialise well with each other whilst playing. However, senior leaders and teachers must now take immediate action to improve the quality of activities on offer to help children make better progress with their learning. Overall, the quality of children’s attainment in literacy and English and numeracy and mathematics in the school has improved since the original inspection in December 2019. This is particularly evident at second level. However, there is a need to improve the overall quality of learning and teaching and address very high levels of absence to help raise attainment further. Senior leaders have improved how they gather and use data to understand better the progress children are making. Teachers’ professional judgements are becoming more reliable as a result of their professional learning. Senior leaders must now continue to ensure that data about children’s progress in learning is accurate. Ensure children benefit from consistently high quality learning and teaching, which includes increasing opportunities for children to lead their own learning. Senior leaders and practitioners have created a nurturing, stimulating learning environment in the nursery which enables children to engage much more deeply in their play. Play spaces promote independent learning in early language and mathematics. Practitioners continue to take part in relevant professional learning which is having a direct, positive impact on securing children’s wellbeing and progress. Staff in the school should now ensure that all Page 101 of 154
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2 | Lawfield Primary School and Nursery Class, Midlothian Council, 5541026 © Crown Copyright classrooms and shared learning spaces are attractive and motivating and support independent learning. Teachers have taken part in professional learning about learning and teaching and have developed their agreed approach, known as the ‘Lawfield Way.’ It sets out shared expectations about what effective practice looks like. Teachers must now apply their agreed approach more consistently in all classes. They also need to make better use of all the teaching time that is available within the school day. Senior leaders and teachers have developed new approaches to planning children’s learning. These are helping teachers to support children to make better progress in their learning in literacy and numeracy. Children are starting to make decisions about their learning. Teachers now need to consistently give children regular opportunities to influence what and how they learn across the curriculum. They must also ensure that all children at all stages have their entitlement to a full curriculum, including two hours of physical education every week. There are positive relationships between adults and children in almost all classes. Staff use nurturing approaches to support children’s wellbeing and to promote positive behaviour. They work effectively with a range of partners to help meet children’s needs. The recently introduced ‘Open Curriculum’ morning is giving children the opportunity to use a range of skills and have choice in their learning. Senior leaders and teachers should continue to build on this approach and help children to understand the skills they can develop and improve through their participation. Improve assessment approaches across the primary stages. Ensure all teaching staff use information gathered from children’s learning and assessment activity more effectively to plan learning experiences which meet the needs of all children. Teachers and senior leaders have made positive progress over the past year to improve how they measure children’s progress across the primary stages. They have developed the ‘inclusive learning and teaching policy’ and have worked with colleagues in Lawfield Primary and other schools to develop their practice. Teachers now use a new approach to successfully identify children’s strengths and plan future learning. As a next step, senior leaders should consider how best to record all of the assessment information that is gathered. In the majority of classes, teachers provide helpful feedback on children’s learning. This is supporting children to begin to understand their progress and identify their next steps. Teachers now need to ensure that all children across the school benefit from regular high quality feedback on their learning. Children in the school and nursery can identify and share aspects of their learning using recently introduced online learning journals. It will be important to develop this approach and ensure that parents have a full understanding of what their children are learning and how they can support this. Page 102 of 154
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3 | Lawfield Primary School and Nursery Class, Midlothian Council, 5541026 © Crown Copyright What happens next? The school has made insufficient progress since the original inspection. We will liaise with Midlothian Council regarding the school’s capacity to improve. We will return to carry out a further inspection of the school within 12 months of the publication of this letter. We will discuss with Midlothian Council the details of this inspection. When we return to inspect the school, we will write to you as parents informing you of the progress that has been made. M. A. Speirs HM Inspector Page 103 of 154
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Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No 5.8 Inspection of Moorfoot Primary School Report by Michelle Strong, Education Chief Operating Officer, Children, Young People and Partnerships Report for Information 1 Recommendations Cabinet is asked to: (i) Note the content of the inspection report. (ii) Pass this report to the Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee for its consideration. (iii) Congratulate the pupils, parents and staff connected with Moorfoot Primary School on the key strengths highlighted in the report. 2 Purpose of Report/Executive Summary The report outlines the outcome of the above inspection as carried out by Education Scotland which was communicated in their report of December 2022. 18 August 2023 Report Contact: Annabel Bates, Quality Improvement Manager E-mail: annabel.bates@midlothian.gov.uk Page 105 of 154
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3 Background 3.1 In November 2022, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited Moorfoot Primary School. The report was published on 20 December 2022, is now published on the Education Scotland website and is available from this link. 3.2 Education Scotland is responsible for inspecting education settings throughout Scotland. They do so using core quality indicators; QI 1.3 Leadership of Change QI 2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment QI 3.1 Ensuring wellbeing, equality and inclusion QI 3.2 Raising attainment and achievement 3.3 The inspection team found the following strengths in the school’s work. • The inclusive and caring ethos in the early learning and childcare setting (ELC) and across the primary school. This is underpinned by a commitment to the principles of nurture and the school’s vision, values and aims of learning, inspiration, friendship and enjoyment (LIFE). • Children’s skills at all levels in the primary school in using digital technology to enhance and support their learning. • Processes for identifying children who may require additional support for learning. The quality and range of support is helping children to overcome barriers to learning. • Senior leaders’ and staff commitment to professional learning and to working with partners to develop and implement creative approaches to learning and teaching. This includes the range of strategies to close gaps in attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy. 3.4 The following areas for improvement were identified and discussed with the head teacher and a representative from Midlothian Council. • Continue to develop approaches to assessment and moderation of learning and teaching across all areas of the curriculum. • Continue to improve processes for tracking children’s progress in learning in the early learning and childcare setting to ensure continuity across the ELC and school. 3.5 Conclusion Education Scotland graded the school as good against all 4 quality indicators outlined in 2.2 above. They are confident that the school has the capacity to continue to improve and so we will make no more visits in connection with this inspection. Midlothian Council will inform parents/carers about the school’s progress as part of its arrangements for reporting on the quality of its schools. Page 106 of 154
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4 Report Implications (Resource, Digital and Risk) 4.1 Resource There are no financial and human resource implications associated with this report. 4.2 Digital There are no Digital implications. 4.3 Risk Education Scotland’s team of Inspectors visit a sample of education settings every year to find out how they are performing. A report is published which informs parents about the key strengths of the setting and its capacity for further improvement. Following the publication of the report further visits may be made to the setting, by the Education Authority to assist improvement and monitor progress. Monitoring, review and evaluation of progress by central officers in the Education Team is the control measure in place to reduce the risk of failure of settings to demonstrate their capacity to improve. 4.4 Ensuring Equalities (if required a separate IIA must be completed) The School Improvement Plan will be screened for equalities implications. 4.5 Additional Report Implications (See Appendix A) Appendices Appendix A – Additional Report Implications Appendix B – Inspection Report Page 107 of 154
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4 APPENDIX A – Report Implications A.1 Key Priorities within the Single Midlothian Plan • Getting it right for every Midlothian child • Improving opportunities in Midlothian A.2 Key Drivers for Change Key drivers addressed in this report: Holistic Working Hub and Spoke Modern Sustainable Transformational Preventative Asset-based Continuous Improvement One size fits one None of the above A.3 Key Delivery Streams Key delivery streams addressed in this report: One Council Working with you, for you Preventative and Sustainable Efficient and Modern Innovative and Ambitious None of the above A.4 Delivering Best Value As noted within. A.5 Involving Communities and Other Stakeholders A link to the published report has been made available to Elected Members, parents of children currently attending Moorfoot Primary School and other interested parties. A.6 Impact on Performance and Outcomes The setting will continue to improve its work in line with the school improvement plan and central officers in the Education Team will continue to challenge and support the setting in relation to developing and implementing a range of quality improvement strategies. A.7 Adopting a Preventative Approach The Education (Scotland) Bill aims to take preventative action in order to close the attainment versus deprivation gap by implementing key policies and programmes which are designed to target support to children and young people from disadvantaged communities. Midlothian is highly committed to closing the poverty related attainment gap. Page 108 of 154
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A.8 Supporting Sustainable Development The School Improvement Plan allows for sustainable development and improvement. APPENDIX B Background Papers/Resource Links - link Page 109 of 154
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1 | Moorfoot Primary School and Childcare Setting, Midlothian Council, 5540720 © Crown Copyright 20 December 2022 Dear Parent/Carer In November 2022, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited Moorfoot Primary School and Childcare Setting. During our visit, we talked to parents/carers and children and worked closely with the headteacher and staff. The inspection team found the following strengths in the school’s work. The inclusive and caring ethos in the early learning and childcare setting (ELC) and across the primary school. This is underpinned by a commitment to the principles of nurture and the school’s vision, values and aims of learning, inspiration, friendship and enjoyment (LIFE). Children’s skills at all levels in the primary school in using digital technology to enhance and support their learning. Processes for identifying children who may require additional support for learning. The quality and range of support is helping children to overcome barriers to learning. Senior leaders’ and staffs’ commitment to professional learning and to working with partners to develop and implement creative approaches to learning and teaching. This includes the range of strategies to close gaps in attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy. The following areas for improvement were identified and discussed with the headteacher and a representative from Midlothian Council Continue to develop approaches to assessment and moderation of learning and teaching across all areas of the curriculum. Continue to improve processes for tracking children’s progress in learning in the early learning and childcare setting to ensure continuity across the ELC and school. Page 111 of 154
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2 | Moorfoot Primary School and Childcare Setting, Midlothian Council, 5540720 © Crown Copyright We gathered evidence to enable us to evaluate the school’s work using quality indicators from How good is our school? (4th edition) and How good is our early learning and childcare?. Quality indicators help schools, local authorities and inspectors to judge what is working well and what needs to be improved. Following the inspection of each school, the Scottish Government gathers details of our evaluations to keep track of how well Scottish schools are doing. Here are Education Scotland’s evaluations for Moorfoot Primary School and Childcare Setting Quality indicators for the primary school Evaluation Learning, teaching and assessment good Raising attainment and achievement good Descriptions of the evaluations are available from: How good is our school? (4th edition), Appendix 3: The six-point scale Quality indicators for the nursery class Evaluation Learning, teaching and assessment good Securing children’s progress good Descriptions of the evaluations are available from: How good is our early learning and childcare? Appendix 1: The six-point scale A more detailed document called Summarised Inspection Findings (SIF) will be available on the Education Scotland website at: Reports page | Inspection reports | Education Scotland What happens next? We are confident that the school has the capacity to continue to improve and so we will make no more visits in connection with this inspection. Midlothian Council will inform parents/carers about the school’s progress as part of its arrangements for reporting on the quality of its schools. Dr Kate Hannah Managing Inspector Page 112 of 154
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Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No 5.9 A summary of the Care Inspectorate Inspections of Day Care of Children, August 2022-April 2023 Report by Michelle Strong, Education Chief Operating Officer Report for Information 1 Recommendations Cabinet is requested to: (i) Note the content of the summary of the inspection reports. (ii) Congratulate the pupils, parents and staff connected with these reports. (iii) Pass this report to the Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee for noting purposes. 2 Purpose of Report/Executive Summary A range of funded providers were inspected including private nurseries and local authority settings and this report provides a summary of the outcomes of the undernoted inspections in Early Learning and Childcare settings for three and four year olds as carried out by the Care Inspectorate. The settings that were inspected in this period were: • Danderhall Primary School Nursery • St David’s Primary School Nursery • St Mary’s Primary School Nursery • Arcadia • Cranston Country Nursery • Danderhall Playgroup • Happy Days Dalkeith • Little Hawthorn Loanhead • Lasswade High School Nursery • Start Bright • Pinocchios Eskbank Settings that had HMiE inspections: • Burnbrae ELC • Lawfield • Moorfoot • Sacred Heart 09 August 2023 Report Contact: Julie Fox, Quality Improvement Manager Julie.Fox@midlothian.gov.uk Page 113 of 154
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3 Background/Main Body of Report 3.1 A total of 12 CI Inspections and 4 HMIE inspections took place in the time period from August 2022 to 1 April 2023. The reports were published in that time period and are hyperlinked in information at the end of this report for all Elected Members and Church Representatives on the Cabinet for their information. Reports are published on the Care Inspectorate website http://www.careinspectorate.com/. 3.2 The Care Inspectorate use “A quality framework for daycare of children, childminding and school aged childcare” February 2022 to inspect settings. The key quality indicators focus on: • How good is our care, play and learning? • How good is our setting? • How good is our leadership? • How good is our staff team? 3.3 Inspection Evaluations A setting will be inspected on all indicators. A six-point scale is used to describe the quality of the setting: 6 Excellent Outstanding or sector leading 5 Very Good Major strengths 4 Good Important strengths, with some areas for improvement 3 Adequate Strengths just outweigh weaknesses 2 Weak Important weaknesses – priority action required 1 Unsatisfactory Major weaknesses – urgent remedial action required 3.4 National Standard In order to meet the National Standard settings must be evaluated as Good or above by the Care Inspectorate. Where a setting does not receive evaluations of good or above, the local authority places that setting in a service improvement period. The service improvement period allows the central education team officers to closely monitor progress over the period of time until the next CI inspection. Being in the service improvement period also affects the payment process for the setting. 3.5 Summary of inspection grades (See Appendix B for the inspection grades for individual settings). Quality Indicator Total no. of settings inspected Excellent Very good Good Adequate Weak Unsatisfactory How good is our play and learning? 12 0 2 8 2 0 0 How good is our setting? 12 0 3 5 4 0 0 Page 114 of 154
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How good is our leadership? 12 0 2 8 2 0 0 How good is our staff team? 12 0 3 7 2 0 0 3.6 The following common key strengths were indicated by the inspection teams: How good is our play and learning? Children experience care and support that was warm, sensitive and nurturing and were meaningfully and actively involved in leading their play and learning. Warm and caring interactions help children to feel nurtured and valued. Children are confident, nurtured and have fun in nursery. Children's personal plans are updated regularly with parents to ensure children's changing needs and interests are supported by staff. Planning approaches are responsive to children's interests and staff know children well and how to meet their individual needs. How good is our setting? The nursery environments are welcoming, with access to outdoor areas that children enjoy accessing. Children benefit from indoor and outdoor spaces which are stimulating and developmentally appropriate. The accommodation and provision of activities and resources provide children with a comfortable and welcoming environment for their care and learning. How good is our leadership? The services are well led and quality assurance, including self-evaluation and improvement plans, were in place to support continuous improvement of the service. Staff and management show a commitment to making continuous improvements to ensure high quality care, learning and development. Quality assurance, including self-evaluation and improvement plans are in place and are mostly leading to continuous improvement. A range of processes are in place for the manager to check-in on the provision and ensure quality for children. The management teams are committed to continuous and sustained improvement. How good is our staff team? The consistent staff team provide continuity of care. Staff are deployed in a manner which meant children's needs are met throughout the day. The staff team work well together and there is a positive ethos within the setting. Staff are committed to their roles and proactive in their professional development to support positive outcomes for children. Staff are empowered to lead improvement projects within the setting. They are reflective and had take part in a range of training, which had helped them to develop their skills in their childcare roles. Page 115 of 154
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3.7 The Care Inspectorate has a duty to support improvement and this informs how and when they make requirements and recommendations to a setting following an inspection. • A requirement is a statement which sets out what a care service must do to improve outcomes for people who use services and must be linked to a breach in the Public Service Reform (Scotland) Act 2010, its regulations, or orders made under the Act, or a condition of registration. • A recommendation is a statement that sets out actions that a care service provider should take to improve or develop the quality of the service, but where failure to do so would not directly result in enforcement. 4 Report Implications (Resource, Digital and Risk) 4.1 Resource Resource implications related to this report are to note the impact on the central education team staffing to support settings through a service improvement period. 4.2 Digital There are no digital implications. 4.3 Risk The Care Inspectorate visit a sample of Early Learning and Childcare settings each year to find out how they are performing. A report is published which informs parents about the key strengths of the setting, its capacity for further improvement and sets out the main points for action. Following the publication of that report further visits may be made to the setting by Midlothian Council’s central education officers to assist improvement and monitor progress. Monitoring, review and evaluation of progress by Midlothian Council’s central education officers is the control measure in place to reduce the risk of failure of the setting to demonstrate its capacity to improve. For funded providers a time framed improvement action plan is established in line with the partnership contracts. If a setting does not show improvement after an extended service improvement period the council would consider whether they are able to continue in partnership with the setting. Termination of a contract would affect the number of places Midlothian Council are able to offer. The National Standard Interim Guidance is currently under review and will be updated by the Scottish Government later in 2023. 4.4 Ensuring Equalities (if required a separate IIA must be completed) The Improvement Plans will be screened for equalities implications. 4.5 Additional Report Implications (See Appendix A) See Appendix A Page 116 of 154
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Appendices Appendix A – Additional Report Implications Appendix B – Individual Settings Inspection Grades Page 117 of 154
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APPENDIX A – Report Implications A.1 Key Priorities within the Single Midlothian Plan Themes addressed in this report: Getting it right for every Midlothian child Improving opportunities in Midlothian A.2 Key Drivers for Change Key drivers addressed in this report: Holistic Working Hub and Spoke Modern Sustainable Transformational Preventative Asset-based Continuous Improvement One size fits one None of the above A.3 Key Delivery Streams Key delivery streams addressed in this report: One Council Working with you, for you Preventative and Sustainable Efficient and Modern Innovative and Ambitious None of the above A.4 Delivering Best Value Noted within. A.5 Involving Communities and Other Stakeholders Copies of the reports have been made available to Elected Members, parents and carers of children currently in the settings and other interested parties. A.6 Impact on Performance and Outcomes The provision of high quality, early learning and childcare supports the delivery of two of the GIRFEMC outcomes for 2022 to 2023: • Children and young people are supported to be healthy, happy and reach their potential. • Inequalities in learning outcomes have reduced. Page 118 of 154
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The settings will continue to improve their work in line with their improvement plans and Midlothian Council’s central education officers will continue to challenge and support the settings in relation to developing and implementing a range of quality improvement strategies. A.7 Adopting a Preventative Approach The Education (Scotland) Act aims to take preventative action in order to close the attainment versus deprivation gap by implementing key policies and programmes which are designed to target support to children and young people from disadvantaged communities. Midlothian is highly committed to closing the attainment gap which compliments the strategies employed by Midlothian which are highlighted in the National Improvement Framework report which was presented to Council on 3 November 2015. A.8 Supporting Sustainable Development The Improvement Plans allow for sustainable development and improvement. Page 119 of 154
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APPENDIX B Summary of Care Inspectorate Inspections August 2022 – April 2023 Setting Local Authority (LA) or Funded Provider (FP) Date of inspectio n Care, Support and Learning Setting Management Arcadia @ Easter Bush FP January 23 Very Good Very Good Good Cranston Country Nursery FP February 23 Adequate Adequate Adequate Danderhall Primary School ELC LA September 22 Good Good Good Danderhall Playgroup FP November 22 Good Adequate Good Happy Days Dalkeith FP December 22 Adequate Adequate Adequate Lasswade High School Childcare Service (Nursery) FP February 23 Good Good Good Little Hawthorns Loanhead FP November 22 Good Adequate Good Pinocchio Nursery Eskbank FP February 23 Good Good Good Start Bright Nursery Bonnyrigg FP December 22 Good Good Very Good Roslin Primary School Nursery LA February 23 Good Very Good Good St David’s RC Primary School Nursery Class LA December 22 Good Good Good St Mary’s RC Primary School Nursery LA March 23 Very Good Very Good Very Good Page 120 of 154
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Summary of HMIE Inspections August 2022 – March 2023 Setting Local Authority (LA) or Funded Provider (FP) Date of inspection 1.3 Leadership of change 2.1 Safeguarding and child protection 2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment 3.1 Ensuring well- being, equality and inclusion 3.2 Securing children’s progress Burnbrae Primary School & Nursery Class LA January 23 Signed off Not graded Not graded Not graded Not graded Not graded Lawfield Primary School & Nursery Class LA January 23 Revisit Not graded Not graded Not graded Not graded Not graded Moorfoot Primary School & Nursery Class LA November 22 Good Not graded Good Good Good Sacred Heart Primary School & Nursery Class LA February 23 Satisfactory Not graded Satisfactory Satisfactory Satisfactory Page 121 of 154
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Performance Review and Scrutiny Tuesday 19 September 2023 Item No 5.10 Newbyres Village Care Home: Care Inspectorate Report Report by Grace Cowan: Head of Older People and Primary Care Report for Information 1 Recommendations The Council is asked to: (i) Note the content of the report and positive progress made. (ii) Forward onto Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee 2 Purpose of Report/Executive Summary This report provides an overview of the resent Care Inspectorate report for Newbyres Village Care Home from 5th May 2023, and the subsequent unannounced follow up visit on 4th August 2023 Date 7th August 2023 Report Contact: Name Grace Cowan, Head of Primary Care and Older Peoples Services Tel No: grace.cowan@midlothian.gov.uk Page 123 of 154
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2 3 Background/Main Body of Report 3.1 Midlothian HSCP Newbyres Care Home was inspected between 24th to 26th April 2023 by the Care Inspectorate as a registered care home for people aged over 60. Newbyres Care Home provides long term care for 61 residents. The report was published 5th May 2023. The inspection format was undertaken under the new Care Inspectorate Heath and Social Care standards for care homes. It covered the following themes: • How well do we support people’s wellbeing? • How good is our leadership? • How good is our staff team? • How good is our setting? • How well is our care and support planned? 3.2 Following the April 2023 inspection, a report was published that detailed the areas of its findings, outlining areas for Recommendation and/or requirements. The inspection report grades the areas of inspection from 1 (Unsatisfactory) to 6 (Excellent). This inspection report graded the three areas as follows: How good is our setting? 4 Good How well do we support people’s wellbeing? 2 Weak How good is our leadership? 2 Weak How good is our staff team? 2 Weak How well is our care and support planned? 2 Weak 3.3 The environment at Newbyres Provided a warm, comfortable, welcoming environment, which was relaxed, clean and had a homely atmosphere. Across the other 4 quality indicators for inspection, the inspectors identified improvements which required evidence of action by 14th July 2023. Under those areas the following were identified. • Care documentation and records required to be detailed, accurate and reflective of care provision. • Care plans are reviewed regularly and are accurate and consistent to the identified needs assessed. • Training needs analysis and programme of updates to be undertaken. • Improved knowledge of healthcare assessment tools across all care staff. Page 124 of 154
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3 • Quality assurance processes to be reviewed and improvements evidenced. • Management arrangements to be reviewed and effective. leadership and management oversight to be demonstrated. • Always demonstrate adequate staffing levels to be provided in relation to acuity of residents and physical layout of building. 3.4 A comprehensive action plan was completed and submitted to care inspectorate, detailing evidence to demonstrate adequate improvements in areas highlighted. A new Midlothian HSCP Social Work Assurance Group (SWAG) has been established to have oversight of the plan and progress is reported fortnightly, seeking assurance that relevant progress was being made. 3.5 A new interim management structure was agreed and implemented with immediate effect. The previous Registered Manager resigned, and an interim Manager is now in post, whilst recruitment for permanent manager is undertaken. An additional Assistant Unit Manager has been added to the establishment. 3.6 Following the unannounced follow up inspection on 31st July 2023, a report was published with a reassessment in line with Requirements made in April 2023. The 10-week action plan provided evidence of significant positive impacts on service delivery. How well do we support people’s wellbeing? 3 Adequate How good is our leadership? 3 Adequate How good is our staff team? 3 Adequate How good is our setting? 4 Good How well is our care and support planned? 3 Adequate 3.7 The Care Inspectorate reported in their findings that all Requirements made in April 2023 were achieved within the 10-week timescale given. 4 Report Implications (Resource, Digital and Risk) 4.1 Resource Due to the complexity of the residents within the Care Home, there is a significant financial risk being held by the HSCP. People are living longer, with more complex health and care issues. Independent care homes are not taking these people, or seeking significant additional funding to support them. The challenges in workforce, and the need to keep residents safe, has also meant high agency costs. 4.2 Digital There are no technology issues arising from this report. Page 125 of 154
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4 4.3 Risk The Care Inspectorate inspect all registered services on a regular basis with announced and unannounced inspections. A report is published which informs all stakeholders about the key strengths of the service, areas for improvement and sets out the main points for action. Following the publication of that report it is accessible to the public via the Care Inspectorate website, and by requesting a hard copy. It is also on display in the Care at Home base for staff and visitors to access and review progress. 4.4 Ensuring Equalities (if required a separate IIA must be completed) There are no apparent equalities issues. 4.4 Additional Report Implications (See Appendix A) See Appendix A Appendices Appendix A – Additional Report Implications Appendix B – Care Inspectorate Report Newbyres Village Care home - 5th May 2023 Appendix C - Care Inspectorate Report Newbyres Village Care home - 4th August 2023 Page 126 of 154
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5 APPENDIX A – Report Implications A.1 Key Priorities within the Single Midlothian Plan Midlothian will be healthier. Midlothian will be safer. A.2 Key Drivers for Change Key drivers addressed in this report: Holistic Working Hub and Spoke Modern Sustainable Transformational Preventative Asset-based Continuous Improvement One size fits one None of the above A.3 Key Delivery Streams Key delivery streams addressed in this report: One Council Working with you, for you Preventative and Sustainable Efficient and Modern Innovative and Ambitious None of the above A.4 Delivering Best Value Midlothian HSCP will continue to focus on best value within the available financial resource made to us, balancing this with safe care of residents. A.5 Involving Communities and Other Stakeholders Copies of the Inspection report have been made available to Elected Members, staff members, and families/carers at family meetings. Residents, families, and staff have been fully briefed and engaged throughout the 10-week period. A.6 Impact on Performance and Outcomes Newbyres Village Care Home has responded to the inspection with a comprehensive action plan, with clear timescales and outputs to deliver to the plan. Page 127 of 154
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6 A.7 Adopting a Preventative Approach Support to achieve the action plan is being provided by Midlothian HSCP care home support team. Oversight assurance for the action plan is in place via Midlothian HSCP Social Work Assurance Group A.8 Supporting Sustainable Development Financial and workforce challenges will require a focus going forward. The impact of recent reduced budget allocation to HSCP, will require a system wide bed capacity review to ascertain demand and financial affordability in Midlothian moving forward. Page 128 of 154
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NNewbewbyryres Villagees Village Care Home Service 20 Gore Avenue Gorebridge EH23 4TZ Telephone: 01312 705 656 Type of inspection: Unannounced Completed on: 5 May 2023 Service provided by: Service provider number: Midlothian Council SP2003002602 Service no: CS2007167115 Page 129 of 154
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About the service Newbyres Village is a care home which provides care and accommodates up to 61 older people. The provider is Midlothian Council. The home is situated in Gorebridge, Midlothian, close to shops and local amenities. Accommodation is within five units named "streets" each with lounge areas and dining areas and access to enclosed gardens. There is a separate area that houses the kitchen and laundry facilities. 58 people were using the service at the time of our inspection. About the inspection This was an unannounced inspection which took place on 24 April between 09:00 - 17:20 & 21:00 - 23:20, 25 April between 09:15 - 17:15 and 26 April between 07:15 and 17:00. The inspection was undertaken by three inspectors from the Care Inspectorate. To prepare for the inspection we reviewed information about the service. This included previous inspection findings, registration information, information submitted by the service and intelligence gathered since the last inspection. In making our evaluations of the service we: • Spoke with people who experience care and 14 of their family / friends / representatives. • Spoke with 41 staff and management. • Observed practice and daily life. • Reviewed documents. • Spoke with visiting professionals. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 2 of 13 Page 130 of 154
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Key messages • There was a variety of activities which many people enjoyed participating in. People spoke highly of the activity staff who laid these on. • Staff showed genuine dignity and respect towards the people they supported. • Improvements were needed to ensure care plans and records were completed consistently and correctly. • Quality assurance and management oversight required improvement to ensure people experienced positive outcomes and that staff felt supported in their roles. From this inspection we evaluated this service as: In evaluating quality, we use a six point scale where 1 is unsatisfactory and 6 is excellent How well do we support people's wellbeing? 2 - Weak How good is our leadership? 2 - Weak How good is our staff team? 2 - Weak How good is our setting? 4 - Good How well is our care and support planned? 2 - Weak Further details on the particular areas inspected are provided at the end of this report. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 3 of 13 Page 131 of 154
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How well do we support people's wellbeing? 2 - Weak We made an evaluation of weak for this key question. Whilst we identified some strengths, these were compromised by significant weaknesses. We spent time observing how people interacted with others and staff. We saw on many occasions positive interactions which demonstrated that people were treated with dignity, respect, and genuine affection. However, there were occasions when staff did not fully demonstrate the principles of the Health and Social Care Standards and improvements should be made. (Please see area for improvement one) There were times when staff were working under pressure. This resulted in periods where people sat alone in the lounge or dining areas without any stimulation for a time which was not respectful. Oversight and support were needed for staff to be able to administer medication appropriately and with limited interruptions. This ensures people take their medication in a meaningful and dignified manner. Relatives spoke highly of the efforts staff made to celebrate special occasions like birthdays and involve them in the activities with people. The activities team delivered a variety of activities. Activities were centred around how each person would like to spend their time. Activity staff worked hard to ensure people could be involved in activities and participate in a way that was meaningful for them. There was a positive atmosphere around the home with the anticipation of the Kings Coronation with bunting up and people involved in preparations for the event. People living, in or visiting the home perceived staff to be rushed. "….tried to get staff attention but no one was free to assist and they appeared stretched". Despite their best efforts, staff worked under pressure and some aspects of care and support may have been missed, effecting outcomes for people. There was an over-reliance on agency or short term/temporary staff who did not know people well. This could lead to people experiencing a lack of consistency and stability in how their care and support was provided and limit their ability to build a trusting relationship with staff. We looked at the health and care documents of those living in the home. Whilst records were in place to record the care delivered to people, these were inconsistent, and improvements were needed. Due to the level of inaccurate information being recorded with regards to people's weight, food and fluid intake and prevention of pressure sore measures, this placed people's health at potential risk and improvement was required. (Please see Requirement one). We highlighted at our last inspection that improvements were needed regarding infection control practices (IPC) to ensure people were confident in the procedures used. At this inspection we observed that improvements had been made. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) was in use when appropriate, staff had completed IPC training and the laundry was clean and organised. We highlighted to the manager that people should be supported to maintain good hand hygiene before mealtimes. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 4 of 13 Page 132 of 154
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Requirements 1. By 14 July 2023 the provider must ensure that care records reflect accurately care given to ensure people can be confident that their health is monitored appropriately. (a) care documentation and records (including health charts) are accurate, sufficiently detailed and reflect the care planned or provided (b) staff have the appropriate knowledge through training so are aware of their responsibility in maintaining accurate records, retaining records and follow best practice including Scottish Social Services (SSSC guidance) (c) staff have the appropriate knowledge through training about the use of healthcare assessment tools including MUST, challenging behaviour and pressure risk assessments; (d) ensure that staff know policy and best practice. This is in order to comply with Regulation 4 (Welfare of Users) of the Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland Regulation 2011 (no 210 'Requirements for Care'). This is also to ensure care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standard 3.14: "I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, are able to reflect on their practice and follow the professional and organisational codes." Areas for improvement 1. To ensure people have positive experiences, the provider should ensure care and support is tailored to the needs, wishes and choices of people and delivered in a dignified way. This is also to ensure that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, can reflect on their practice and follow their professional and organisational codes. “ (HSCS 3.14). How good is our leadership? 2 - Weak We made and evaluation of weak for this key question. Whilst we identified some strengths, these were compromised by significant weaknesses. Staff at all levels required clearer guidance and clarification regarding their roles and responsibilities. This ensures that people have confidence in the people who support them. Systems were in place to monitor aspects of service delivery. However, managers did not consistently utilise these to inform action plans to drive effective and sustainable change. Improvements were needed to ensure that where audits had taken place these were meaningful and led to improved outcomes for people. (See requirement one). Improvements were needed to the management of complaint handling. The records we sampled were not complete and difficult to track. When we discussed this with the senior management team, complaints are dealt with centrally within the health and social care partnership. However as some information was still being kept within the service regarding complaints, this could cause confusion and disparity to what has or has not been followed up. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 5 of 13 Page 133 of 154
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Management oversight of the service was limited. This was due to an absence of effective supervision, observation, and leadership. Staff and relatives told us they wanted to see a more visible management presence "Management are not all that visible and I would like to see them on the floor more often." This ensures people have confidence that the service they use is led well and managed effectively. (See requirement two). Requirements 1. By 14 July 2023 to ensure people experience safe care and support the provider must make improvements to their quality assurance oversight To do this, the provider must at a minimum ensure……. (a) the system effectively enables areas for improvement to be promptly and accurately identified (b) that the outcomes because of any audit are clearly recorded - where areas for improvement are identified, that an action plan is developed detailing timescales and the person responsible (c) all current quality assurance arrangements are reviewed and developed to ensure that these are systematic, effective, and integral to service provision - people’s views about the care and support they receive is sought to inform quality assurance (d) quality insurance (including audits and oversight) have appropriate systems and processes in place to review the effectiveness of, undertaken by the management structure which may include the senior management team. This is in order to comply with Regulations 4(1)(a) – Welfare of users of The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This is to ensure the care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I benefit from a culture of continuous improvement, with the organisation having comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes.” (HSCS 4.19) and “I use a service and organisation that are well led and managed.” 2. By 14 July 2023 to ensure people have confidence that the service they use is led well and managed effectively. The provider must improve management arrangements and oversight. To do this, the provider must at a minimum ……. (a) the management have effective oversight of the day-to-day delivery of care to service users to ensure their care needs are fully met. (b) the management have a visible presence within the service and engage with residents, relatives and staff to support the development of management oversight required (c) the management engage with service users and staff about the quality of the service and take action to address improvements identified to ensure improved outcomes for service users (d) monitor staff competence through training, supervision, and on-site observations of staff practice and take action to improve or reduce poor or unsafe practice. (e) introduce staff individual learning and development plans to ensure staff continue to have the knowledge and skill to meet people’s needs (f) ensure staff feel supported through regular support and supervision, including competencies of practice (g) to hold regular team meetings and reflect on practice through team meetings, identifying areas to improve. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 6 of 13 Page 134 of 154
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This is in order to comply with Regulations 4(1)(a) – Welfare of users of The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This is to ensure the care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I benefit from a culture of continuous improvement, with the organisation having comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes.” (HSCS 4.19) and “I use a service and organisation that are well led and managed.” How good is our staff team? 2 - Weak We made and evaluation of weak for this key question. Whilst we identified some strengths, these were compromised by significant weaknesses. Feedback from staff regarding how they were supported by the management team was mixed. Some staff felt the management where approachable where others felt they could be more visible and available to discuss issues with them. There was limited opportunity for staff to have time to discuss or reflect on their practice. Staff team and supervision meetings needed to be more structured and frequent to enable people to have confidence that staff are competent, skilled and can reflect on their practice and follow their professional and organisational codes. (Please see requirement under Key Question 2 - Leadership and management). A training calendar for the year was in place and staff were encouraged to attend relevant courses to equip them to meet peoples care needs. The programme included re-fresher training, to support staff to stay up to date with best practice. Staff were registered with relevant professional bodies for example the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). Some staff we spoke with did not fully understand their responsibilities for continuous professional learning or how they can fulfil this. A dependency tool was in place to inform staffing levels. However, the tool used did not fully consider elements of non-direct care including maintaining care related documents and effective management oversight. This had the potential to impact on the health, welfare and safety needs of people living in the home. The provider must ensure that there are enough staff working in the care home to ensure person centred and responsive care, including nursing input which is delivered based on people's assessment of need and agreed care plans. (See requirement one). Requirements 1. By 14 July 2023 to ensure people are confident that staff are responsive to their needs. The provider must ensure that there are enough staff working in the care home to ensure person centred and responsive care (including nursing input) can be delivered. To do this, the provider must at a minimum ensure that (a) there are appropriate assessments and review of people's (service users’) needs and wishes (b) at all times, suitably qualified and competent staff are working in the care service (c) there are enough staff to support service users' health, welfare, and safety (iv) temporary staff are given Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 7 of 13 Page 135 of 154
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opportunity to reflect on their practice (d) provided at the agreed times, and in such a way that meets the identified needs (including nursing input) of the service user as recorded in their agreed support plan (e) the physical layout of the building is considered when reviewing staffing levels (f) dependency tools used to assess the staffing levels required to meet people’s care needs incorporate time to be involved in training, observations of practice, team meetings and supervision meetings. This is in order to comply with Regulation 15(a) of The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This is also to ensure that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, are able to reflect on their practice and follow their professional and organisational codes. “ (HSCS 3.14). How good is our setting? 4 - Good We evaluated this key question as good where several strengths impacted positively on outcomes for people and clearly outweighed areas for improvement. People benefited from a warm, comfortable, welcoming environment with plenty of fresh air, natural light and sufficient space to meet their needs and wishes. The environment was relaxed, clean, tidy and well looked-after, with no evidence of intrusive noise or smells. All rooms had personal items and a homely feel to them with appropriate decoration. This highlighted the support given to people to decide on the furnishings and layout of their bedroom including the option to bring their own furniture. How well is our care and support planned? 2 - Weak We made and evaluation of weak for this key question. Whilst we identified some strengths, these were compromised by significant weaknesses. Personal plans did not consistently reflect people's health and wellbeing needs and preferences. This included details about people's mobility and dietary requirements. Incorrect or out of date information within people's care plans could place people at risk if staff follow the wrong guidance. Anticipatory care planning had been introduced since our last inspection. This is where people can discuss with staff what matters most to them if their health deteriorates quickly. To support people to achieve good outcomes, the provider must ensure their care plans reflect their assessment of needs, how these will be met and are reviewed on a regular basis to ensure the level of accuracy required. (Please see requirement one). Requirements 1. By 14 July 2023 to ensure that personal planning reflects people’s outcomes and wishes, the provider must ensure personal plans contain current, clear and meaningful information. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 8 of 13 Page 136 of 154
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To do this, the provider must at a minimum ensure ……. (a) personal plans record all risk, health, welfare and safety needs in a coherent manner which identifies how needs are met (b) care plans are reviewed on a regular basis to ensure they are accurate and consistent to the identified care needs assessed (c) the auditing of care plans by the provider includes a follow through of actions to ensure any areas identified for improvement are actioned upon and any learning is recorded. This is in order to comply with: The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations, Scottish Statutory Instruments 2011 No 210: regulation 4(1)(a) - requirement for the health and welfare of service users regulation 5(1) - requirement for personal plans. This is also to ensure that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standard 1.15 which state: “My personal plan (sometimes referred to as a care plan) is right for me because it sets out how my needs will be met, as well as my wishes and choices.” Requirements Requirement 1 To ensure that people are confident in the provider’s infection prevention and control procedures the provider must by 14 October 2022, ensure that: a) The environment and equipment are appropriately cleaned and safe for use and infection risks associated with the care environment and care equipment are minimised; b) Effective leadership is provided to ensure infection prevention and control procedures are in place within the service; c) Effective infection prevention and control audits are implemented and findings are reviewed with appropriate action taken. d) That all staff receive training on infection prevention control, handwashing, COVID-19 and the use of PPE and that this is re-assessed for existing staff. This is in order to comply with Regulation 4 Welfare of users, Regulation 4(1)(a) and (d) (welfare of users and procedures for the prevention and control of infection) of Inspection report the Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This ensures care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state; “ I experience an environment that is well looked after with clean, tidy and well maintained premises, furnishings to meet my needs, wishes and choices " (HSCS 5.22) This requirement was made on 16 September 2022. What the service has done to meet any requirements we made at or since the last inspection Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 9 of 13 Page 137 of 154
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Action taken on previous requirement Improvements had been made to meet this requirement. The home was clean, tidy and appropriate infection prevention and control measures were in place to support people. Met - within timescales Requirement 2 To ensure that people are confident that the care they receive is well led and managed, the provider must by 30 November 2022 ensure that: This must include, but is not limited to: (a) assessment of the service’s performance through effective audit, (b) develop action plans which include specific and measurable actions designed to lead to continuous improvements, (c) detailed timescales for completion/review, (d) alignment systems to good-practice guidance; and (e) ensuring staff who undertake quality assurance roles are trained and supported. (f) affective management oversight and leadership to drive forward the improvements needed. This is in order to comply with Regulations 4(1)(a) – Welfare of users of The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This is to ensure the care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I benefit from a culture of continuous improvement, with the organisation having comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes.” (HSCS 4.19) and “I use a service and organisation that are well led and managed.” This requirement was made on 16 September 2022. Action taken on previous requirement We identified at this inspection that improvements are required. We have therefore repeated this requirement. Not met Areas for improvement Previous area for improvement 1 The provider should ensure that care staff are appropriately trained to meet the moving and handling needs of people and that this is delivered in a safe manner. This practice should also be underpinned through observation of practice by management. This is to support the ongoing development of staff, ensuring they are competent, skilled and able to reflect What the service has done to meet any areas for improvement we made at or since the last inspection Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 10 of 13 Page 138 of 154
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on their practice to continue to meet people’s needs. This is to ensure care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, are able to reflect on their practice and follow their professional and organisational codes.” 3.14. This area for improvement was made on 16 September 2022. Action taken since then Elements of this area for improvement had been achieved. Staff were receiving ongoing training. However this was not supported by observations of their practice and we have reflected this area for improvement within this inspection report. Previous area for improvement 2 The provider should ensure that there is a structured team meetings and support and supervision system in place for staff (which incorporates observations and reflections of practice). This is to support the ongoing development of staff, ensuring they are competent, skilled and able to reflect on their practice to continue to meet people’s needs. This is to ensure care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, are able to reflect on their practice and follow their professional and organisational codes.” 3.1 This area for improvement was made on 16 September 2022. Action taken since then Further improvement was identified at this inspection and this has been highlightged in the body of this inspection report Complaints There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are published at www.careinspectorate.com. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 11 of 13 Page 139 of 154
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Detailed evaluations How well do we support people's wellbeing? 2 - Weak 1.1 People experience compassion, dignity and respect 3 - Adequate 1.2 People get the most out of life 3 - Adequate 1.3 People's health and wellbeing benefits from their care and support 2 - Weak 1.5 People's health and wellbeing benefits from safe infection prevention and control practice and procedure 3 - Adequate How good is our leadership? 2 - Weak 2.2 Quality assurance and improvement is led well 2 - Weak How good is our staff team? 2 - Weak 3.2 Staff have the right knowledge, competence and development to care for and support people 2 - Weak 3.3 Staffing arrangements are right and staff work well together 2 - Weak How good is our setting? 4 - Good 4.1 People experience high quality facilities 4 - Good How well is our care and support planned? 2 - Weak 5.1 Assessment and personal planning reflects people's outcomes and wishes 2 - Weak Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 12 of 13 Page 140 of 154
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To find out more This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our website. Care services in Scotland cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award grades and help services to improve. We also investigate complaints about care services and can take action when things aren't good enough. Please get in touch with us if you would like more information or have any concerns about a care service. You can also read more about our work online at www.careinspectorate.com Contact us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com 0345 600 9527 Find us on Facebook Twitter: @careinspect Other languages and formats This report is available in other languages and formats on request. Tha am foillseachadh seo ri fhaighinn ann an cruthannan is cànain eile ma nithear iarrtas. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village page 13 of 13 Page 141 of 154
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NNewbewbyryres Villagees Village Care Home Service 20 Gore Avenue Gorebridge EH23 4TZ Telephone: 01312 705 656 Type of inspection: Unannounced Completed on: 4 August 2023 Service provided by: Service provider number: Midlothian Council SP2003002602 Service no: CS2007167115 [DR[DRAFT]AFT] [DRAFT] Page 143 of 154
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About the service Newbyres Care Home is situated in Gorebridge, Midlothian and is close to shops and local amenities. The home is run and managed by Midlothian Council. The home is made up of five wings named "streets", each with lounge and dining areas. There is also a wing that houses the kitchen and laundry facilities. Each wing has a shared garden. Newbyres Care Home provides long-term care and is registered to support 61 people. About the inspection This was an unannounced follow up inspection which took place on 31 August 2023. The purpose of this inspection was to evaluate the progress the provider had made in meeting our requirements and area for improvement made at our last inspection, undertaken on 5 May 2023. To prepare for the inspection we reviewed knowledge about the service. This included previous inspection findings, registration information, information submitted by the service and intelligence gathered since the last inspection. In making our evaluations of the service we: • spoke with residents and six of their relatives. • spoke with four staff and management. • observed practice and daily life. • reviewed documents. • received feedback from visiting professionals. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 2 of 11 Page 144 of 154
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Key messages • Improvements had been made to meet our previous requirements. • Time was now required for these improvements to be embedded within the service and for them to be sustained to improve people's outcomes and experiences. From this inspection we evaluated this service as: In evaluating quality, we use a six point scale where 1 is unsatisfactory and 6 is excellent How well do we support people's wellbeing? 3 - Adequate How good is our leadership? 3 - Adequate How good is our staff team? 3 - Adequate How well is our care and support planned? 3 - Adequate Further details on the particular areas inspected are provided at the end of this report. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 3 of 11 Page 145 of 154
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How well do we support people's wellbeing? 3 - Adequate We evaluated this key question as adequate. Whilst strengths had a positive impact, key areas needed to continue to be improved and be sustained. Care staff had completed re-fresher training to ensure their knowledge was up to date and reflective of their roles and responsibilities with being registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) code of conduct. The provider had implemented improved health governance through daily meetings, which incorporated input from management, care workers, care practitioners and nursing staff. This enabled staff to have clear oversight of people's current health needs and make referrals to health professionals where appropriate. Further development was needed to ensure people's wellbeing needs were being monitored, recorded, and continued to support positive outcomes and experiences for people. We have highlighted this further under Key Question two of this inspection report. The provider had made progress to meet our previous requirement and improve outcomes for people. However, time was now required for these improvements to be sustained. This has been reflected in our evaluation for this Key Question. How good is our leadership? 3 - Adequate We evaluated this key question as adequate. Whilst strengths had a positive impact, key areas needed to continue to be improved and be sustained. A variety of quality assurance systems have been introduced since our last inspection, underpinned by an improvement and development plan. A change of management and structure had supported a positive change in culture within the service. Staff have embraced these changes and felt valued that they were able to give their own opinions on how improvements could be made. Observations of staff practice was in place and further quality assurance systems were scheduled to be implemented to monitor the wellbeing needs of people. (Please see area for improvement one). Areas for improvement 1. To ensure people continue to experience safe care and support the manager should continue to make improvements to their quality assurance oversight through regular auditing of personal plans, and other related documentation. This is to ensure the care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I benefit from a culture of continuous improvement, with the organisation having comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes.” (HSCS 4.19) and “I use a service and organisation that are well led and managed.” Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 4 of 11 Page 146 of 154
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How good is our staff team? 3 - Adequate We evaluated this key question as adequate. Whilst strengths had a positive impact, key areas needed to continue to be improved and be sustained. The provider had reviewed the staffing compliment including nursing input. Systems were in place to monitor the staffing levels to ensure they continued to meet the care needs of people. This included non- direct care time too, to support staff training and supervision meetings with their manager. Staff recruitment was ongoing, and the provider was confident these roles would be filled shortly, which would result in less reliance on agency staff and promote staff consistency. The provider had made progress to meet our previous requirement and improve outcomes for people. However, time was now required for these improvements to be sustained. This has been reflected in our evaluation for this Key Question. How well is our care and support planned? 3 - Adequate We evaluated this key question as adequate. Whilst strengths had a positive impact, key areas needed to continue to be improved and be sustained. Improvements have been made to people's personal plans, with input from residents, their relatives and health professionals. Information contained within them provided guidance for staff to deliver care and support to people in a coherent manner. The structure of people's personal plans had been reviewed to ensure the records were consistent and reflected people's up to date assessment of care needs. Staff had completed training on how to complete the documents, with follow up training scheduled in the coming weeks. The provider had made progress to meet our previous requirement and improve outcomes for people. However, time was now required for these improvements to be sustained. This has been reflected in our evaluation for this Key Question. Requirements Requirement 1 By 14 July 2023 the provider must ensure that care records reflect accurately care given to ensure people can be confident that their health is monitored appropriately. (a) care documentation and records (including health charts) are accurate, sufficiently detailed and reflect the care planned or provided What the service has done to meet any requirements we made at or since the last inspection Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 5 of 11 Page 147 of 154
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(b) staff have the appropriate knowledge through training so are aware of their responsibility in maintaining accurate records, retaining records and follow best practice including Scottish Social Services (SSSC guidance) (c) staff have the appropriate knowledge through training about the use of healthcare assessment tools including MUST, challenging behaviour and pressure risk assessments; (d) ensure that staff know policy and best practice. This is in order to comply with Regulation 4 (Welfare of Users) of the Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland Regulation 2011 (no 210 'Requirements for Care'). This is also to ensure care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standard 3.14: "I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, are able to reflect on their practice and follow the professional and organisational codes." This requirement was made on 5 May 2023. Action taken on previous requirement As reported on within the body of this report, improvements have been made to meet this requirement. Time was required for these positive developments to be sustained. This has been reflected in our evaluations and will be re-assessed at our next inspection. Met - within timescales Requirement 2 By 14 July 2023 to ensure people experience safe care and support the provider must make improvements to their quality assurance oversight To do this, the provider must at a minimum ensure……. (a) the system effectively enables areas for improvement to be promptly and accurately identified (b) that the outcomes because of any audit are clearly recorded - where areas for improvement are identified, that an action plan is developed detailing timescales and the person responsible (c) all current quality assurance arrangements are reviewed and developed to ensure that these are systematic, effective, and integral to service provision - people’s views about the care and support they receive is sought to inform quality assurance (d) quality insurance (including audits and oversight) have appropriate systems and processes in place to review the effectiveness of, undertaken by the management structure which may include the senior management team. This is in order to comply with Regulations 4(1)(a) – Welfare of users of The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This is to ensure the care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I benefit from a culture of continuous improvement, with the organisation having comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes.” (HSCS 4.19) and “I use a service and organisation that are well led and managed.” This requirement was made on 5 May 2023. Action taken on previous requirement As reported on within the body of this report, improvements have been made towards meeting this requirement. Further development of quality assurance systems was scheduled to be introduced, to ensure Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 6 of 11 Page 148 of 154
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people continued to experience safe care and support. We have therefore made an area for improvement. This has been reflected in our evaluations and will be re-assessed at our next inspection. Met - within timescales Requirement 3 By 14 July 2023 to ensure people have confidence that the service they use is led well and managed effectively. The provider must improve management arrangements and oversight. To do this, the provider must at a minimum ……. (a) the management have effective oversight of the day-to-day delivery of care to service users to ensure their care needs are fully met. (b) the management have a visible presence within the service and engage with residents, relatives and staff to support the development of management oversight required (c) the management engage with service users and staff about the quality of the service and take action to address improvements identified to ensure improved outcomes for service users (d) monitor staff competence through training, supervision, and on-site observations of staff practice and take action to improve or reduce poor or unsafe practice. (e) introduce staff individual learning and development plans to ensure staff continue to have the knowledge and skill to meet people’s needs (f) ensure staff feel supported through regular support and supervision, including competencies of practice (g) to hold regular team meetings and reflect on practice through team meetings, identifying areas to improve. This is in order to comply with Regulations 4(1)(a) – Welfare of users of The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This is to ensure the care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I benefit from a culture of continuous improvement, with the organisation having comprehensive and transparent quality assurance processes.” (HSCS 4.19) and “I use a service and organisation that are well led and managed.” This requirement was made on 5 May 2023. Action taken on previous requirement As reported on within the body of this report, improvements have been made to meet this requirement. Time was required for these positive developments to be sustained. This has been reflected in our evaluations and will be re-assessed at our next inspection. Met - within timescales Requirement 4 By 14 July 2023 to ensure people are confident that staff are responsive to their needs. The provider must ensure that there are enough staff working in the care home to ensure person centred and responsive care (including nursing input) can be delivered. To do this, the provider must at a minimum ensure that (a) there are appropriate assessments and review of people's (service users’) needs and wishes (b) at all times, suitably qualified and competent staff are working in the care service Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 7 of 11 Page 149 of 154
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(c) there are enough staff to support service users' health, welfare, and safety (iv) temporary staff are given opportunity to reflect on their practice (d) provided at the agreed times, and in such a way that meets the identified needs (including nursing input) of the service user as recorded in their agreed support plan (e) the physical layout of the building is considered when reviewing staffing levels (f) dependency tools used to assess the staffing levels required to meet people’s care needs incorporate time to be involved in training, observations of practice, team meetings and supervision meetings. This is in order to comply with Regulation 15(a) of The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations 2011 (SSI 2011/210). This is also to ensure that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, are able to reflect on their practice and follow their professional and organisational codes. “ (HSCS 3.14). This requirement was made on 5 May 2023. Action taken on previous requirement As reported on within the body of this report, improvements have been made to meet this requirement. Time was required for these positive developments to be sustained. This has been reflected in our evaluations and will be re-assessed at our next inspection. Met - within timescales Requirement 5 By 14 July 2023 to ensure that personal planning reflects people’s outcomes and wishes, the provider must ensure personal plans contain current, clear and meaningful information. To do this, the provider must at a minimum ensure ……. (a) personal plans record all risk, health, welfare and safety needs in a coherent manner which identifies how needs are met (b) care plans are reviewed on a regular basis to ensure they are accurate and consistent to the identified care needs assessed (c) the auditing of care plans by the provider includes a follow through of actions to ensure any areas identified for improvement are actioned upon and any learning is recorded. This is in order to comply with: The Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (Requirements for Care Services) Regulations, Scottish Statutory Instruments 2011 No 210: regulation 4(1)(a) - requirement for the health and welfare of service users regulation 5(1) - requirement for personal plans. This is also to ensure that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standard 1.15 which state: “My personal plan (sometimes referred to as a care plan) is right for me because it sets out how my needs will be met, as well as my wishes and choices.” This requirement was made on 5 May 2023. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 8 of 11 Page 150 of 154
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Action taken on previous requirement As reported on within the body of this report, improvements have been made to meet this requirement. Time was required for these positive developments to be sustained. This has been reflected in our evaluations and will be re-assessed at our next inspection. Met - within timescales Areas for improvement Previous area for improvement 1 To ensure people have positive experiences, the provider should ensure care and support is tailored to the needs, wishes and choices of people and delivered in a dignified way. This is also to ensure that care and support is consistent with the Health and Social Care Standards which state: “I have confidence in people because they are trained, competent and skilled, can reflect on their practice and follow their professional and organisational codes. “ (HSCS 3.14) This area for improvement was made on 5 May 2023. Action taken since then We observed interactions between residents and staff during the course of the day including mealtimes. Although we recognised some missed opportunities for meaningful engagement, there was positive interactions and staff demonstrated the principles of the Health and Social Care Standards. Complaints There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are published at www.careinspectorate.com. What the service has done to meet any areas for improvement we made at or since the last inspection Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 9 of 11 Page 151 of 154
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Detailed evaluations How well do we support people's wellbeing? 3 - Adequate 1.1 People experience compassion, dignity and respect 3 - Adequate 1.3 People's health and wellbeing benefits from their care and support 3 - Adequate How good is our leadership? 3 - Adequate 2.2 Quality assurance and improvement is led well 3 - Adequate How good is our staff team? 3 - Adequate 3.3 Staffing arrangements are right and staff work well together 3 - Adequate How well is our care and support planned? 3 - Adequate 5.1 Assessment and personal planning reflects people's outcomes and wishes 3 - Adequate Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 10 of 11 Page 152 of 154
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To find out more This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our website. Care services in Scotland cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award grades and help services to improve. We also investigate complaints about care services and can take action when things aren't good enough. Please get in touch with us if you would like more information or have any concerns about a care service. You can also read more about our work online at www.careinspectorate.com Contact us Care Inspectorate Compass House 11 Riverside Drive Dundee DD1 4NY enquiries@careinspectorate.com 0345 600 9527 Find us on Facebook Twitter: @careinspect Other languages and formats This report is available in other languages and formats on request. Tha am foillseachadh seo ri fhaighinn ann an cruthannan is cànain eile ma nithear iarrtas. Inspection rInspection reporteport Inspection report for Newbyres Village [DRAFT] page 11 of 11 Page 153 of 154
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