Agenda Document Pack - Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee - 26/11/2024
Midlothian Council · 26 November 2024
Back to Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee — 26 November 2024 and its agenda
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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, 26 November 2024 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 151
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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 the Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee meeting 7 October 2024, submitted for approval 4 - 24 4.2 Action Log 25 - 27 5 Public Reports 5.1 Strathesk Primary School and Nursery class Inspection Report, report by Education Chief Operating Officer, Children, Young People and Partnerships 28 - 33 5.2 Education Performance Report Quarter Two 2024/25, report by Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships 34 - 47 5.3 Children Services, Partnerships and Communities Performance Report Quarter Two 2024/25, report by Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships 48 - 53 5.4 Adult Social Care Services Performance Report Quarter Two 2024/25, report by Head of Adult Services/Chief Social Work Officer 54 - 65 5.5 Place Performance Report Quarter Two 2024/25, report by Chief Officer Place 66 - 96 5.6 Corporate Solutions Performance Report Quarter Two 2024/25, report by Chief Officer Corporate Solutions 97 - 127 5.7 Midlothian Council Report Quarter Two 2024/25 and Balanced Scorecard, report by Chief Executive 128 - 151 6 Private Reports No items for discussion Page 2 of 151
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7 Date of Next Meeting The next meeting will be held on 18th of February at 11am. Page 3 of 151
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Minute of Meeting Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 4.1 Performance, Review and Scrutiny Date Time Venue Monday, 7 October 2024 11.00 am Hybrid meeting held in the Council Chamber at Midlothian House and virtually via Microsoft Teams Present: Councillor Milligan (Chair) Councillor Winchester (virtual) Councillor Imrie Councillor McCall Councillor McEwan Councillor Milligan (Chair) Councillor Pottinger (Virtual) Councillor Russell Councillor Smaill Councillor Virgo (Virtual) Councillor Winchester (Virtual) In attendance: Grace Vickers, Chief Executive Kevin Anderson, Executive Director Place Fiona Robertson, Executive Director Children, Young People & Partnerships Saty Kaur, Chief Officer Corporate Solutions Derek Oliver, Chief Officer Place Michelle Strong, Chief Operating Officer Education Rebecca Hooton, Service Manager Resources Nick Clater, Head of Adult and Social Care Services / Deputy Chief Social Work Officer Fiona Kennedy, Service Manager, Health and Social Care Page 4 of 151
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Grace Cowan, Head of Primary Care and Older People Support Services Iina Jaara, Democratic Services Team Leader Maria Perez, Democratic Services Officer 1 Welcome, Introductions and Apologies The Chair welcomed Elected Members and Officers to the meeting of the Performance, Review and Scrutiny (PRS) Committee. The Chair also welcomed Emma Shields, a student from Newbattle High School who is on a work experience programme and observing the meeting. Apologies were received from Councillor Drummond. 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 11 June 2024 was submitted and approved as the correct record. 4.2 The Action Log was noted. Members asked for clarification on Item 3 on the log. The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions advised they are waiting to receive annual data on memberships to compare performance with other Local Authorities. Members also asked if there was an update on Item 9 concerning Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service figures. The Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships explained that the updated figures will be provided at the Midlothian Council meeting on 8 October as part of the annual report to be presented by the Chief Social Work Officer. Members asked for an update on item 12. The Executive Director Place explained that the waiting list figures would be formalised and circulated as part of the briefing. Concerns were raised regarding the lack of progress on the matter and it was encouraged that this matter is followed up. 5. Reports Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: Page 5 of 151
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5.1 A summary of the Care Inspectorate Inspections of Day Care of Children, August 2023 - June 2024 Education Chief Operating Officer Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Operating Officer Education presented the inspection reports on the Day Care Service and advised the Committee that these are for noting. The Chief Operating Officer Education explained there had been 22 inspections in the period between August 2023 and June 2024. 17 of those were carried out by the Care Inspectorate and the remaining 5 were carried out by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) as part of a school inspection. In order to meet the National Standard, the service inspected needs to be evaluated as performing as Good or above, and if this standard is not met, they are given an improvement period. The Chief Operating Officer Education advised that 90% of the Day Care settings in Midlothian are performing at this level, and inspectors noted an overall summary of Greats and how these Greats come together in individual settings. It was noted that Mount Esk Nursery was given 2 Excellents as part of the inspection. The Chief Operating Officer Education congratulated staff, pupils and parents who have cooperated to achieve this outcome. The Chair agreed it was a positive report and opened it up for questions. As there were no questions the report was noted and the Chair congratulated all involved in the positive outcome of the inspection Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the inspection report Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.2 A summary of the HMIE inspection of Scots Corner Early Learning and Childcare, June 2024 Education Chief Operating Officer Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Operating Officer Education presented the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education inspection report on Scots Corner Early Learning and Childcare and advised the Committee the report is for noting. The Chief Operating Officer Education explained that the Scots Corner Early Learning and Childcare setting was inspected by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education in June 2024. The inspection highlighted a number of key strengths and noted the positive and strong impact they have had on children. The service was Page 6 of 151
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rated Good and Very Good and no further visits will be made in relation with this inspection. The Chief Operating Officer Education congratulated staff, pupils and parents who have worked together to achieve this outcome. The Chair agreed it was a positive report and opened it up for questions. As there were no questions the report was noted and the Chair congratulated all involved in the positive outcome of the inspection. Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the inspection report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.3 Progress Report for Sacred Heart Primary School and Nursery Class Chief Operating Officer Education Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Operating Officer Education presented the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education inspection report on the Sacred Heart Primary School and Nursery Class and advised the Committee the report is for noting. The Chief Operating Officer Education noted that the Sacred Heart Primary School was last inspected in March 2023 and some of the outcomes of that inspection were disappointing. The Committee was previously informed of the support provided following the inspection and that the department had confidence in the school improving, and it was pleasing to know that at the latest inspection in April 2024 the inspectors saw positive changes and made judgement against the original inspection report. All areas noted for improvement were addressed, and strides were made in outdoor learning and reporting to parents and will be part of the internal quality plan. In summary the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education is now confident in the school and noted its ability to improve. The Chief Operating Officer Education was happy to advise that the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education has now disengaged and no follow up visits are recommended. The Chief Operating Officer Education congratulated staff, pupils and parents who have worked together to achieve this outcome and improve the school. The Chair thanked the Education Chief Operating Officer for the report and opened it up for questions. Members welcomed the new report that counters the previous unsatisfactory results, which the Committee feels were undeserved and did not reflect the quality of the school. Members also expressed hopes that a permanent Head Teacher is eventually appointed. Page 7 of 151
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The report was noted, and the Chair congratulated all involved in the positive outcome of the inspection. Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the inspection report Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.4 A summary of the HMIE inspection of Woodburn Primary School and Nursery Class Chief Operating Officer Education The Chief Operating Officer Education presented the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education inspection report on Woodburn Primary School and Nursery Class and advised the Committee it is for noting. Woodburn Primary was inspected by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education in January 2024. The report highlighted several strengths including positive relationships across the school, effective use of data, effective commitment with partner agencies to improve outcomes for children, and opportunities for staff development to meet learners’ needs. Next steps identified are to continue good practice, continue to learn in new and unfamiliar contexts and continue further observations in the nursery. Work is under way to achieve those goals. The Chief Operating Officer Education stated the inspectors were impressed by the hard work put in by staff and were happy to see the positive impact in children and the wider community. The school achieved Good and Very Good ratings and there was no further visit required. The Chair thanked the Education Chief Operating Officer for the report and opened it up for questions. As there were no questions the report was noted and the Chair congratulated all involved in the positive outcome of the inspection Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the inspection report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.5 A summary of the HMIE inspection of Beeslack Community High School Chief Operating Officer Education Page 8 of 151
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Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Operating Officer Education presented the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education inspection report on the Beeslack Community High School and advised the Committee it is for noting. The school was inspected by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education in January 2024 and the report was published in April 2024. Key strengths highlighted in this report include the strong leadership from the Head Teacher, good relations in the school between teachers and children and the support and strategy used to promote wellbeing. Areas identified for improvement are reviewing the S1-S3 curriculum and raising attainment of the children attending the annex. The school was awarded Good and Satisfactory ratings and there are no further visits in relation to this inspection. The Chair thanked the Chief Operating Officer Education for the report and opened it up for questions. Members asked for clarification whether there are any changes in the strategies aimed at supporting staff in relation to bad reports. The Chief Operating Officer Education stated they would be happy to share the quality and improvement framework which sets out the support provided to staff regardless of whether they are due an inspection or not. These include self-evaluation visits which are completed by school staff and validated by the group. This is felt to be a very comprehensive programme. It was also noted that for several years Beeslack Community High was achieving great results in the exam league tables but it is not clear whether this has changed. While the school is still producing good candidates the change in results is felt to be a product of the evolving social position of the area. The Executive Director Children, Young People and Partnerships noted that one of the strengths highlighted in the inspection was the breadth in curriculum offer, which is seen to be a product of a shift in the catchment area. This curriculum update has had very positive outcomes for the pupils, however the Chief Operating Officer Education noted that there is further work needed to continue enhancing the curriculum and ensure all young people move on to a positive destination after leaving school. Members congratulated the Beeslack students and noted the strong sense of community felt while visiting the school. It was noted Beeslack is a great example of how community high schools should be run. As there were no further questions the Chair advised the report was noted and congratulated all involved in the positive outcome of the inspection Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the inspection report Page 9 of 151
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Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.6 Education Q1 2024/25 Performance Chief Operating Officer Education Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Operating Officer Education presented the quarterly performance report. The Chief Operating Officer Education explained the report covers performance of the Education and Communities, Lifelong Learning and Employability (CLLE) Services between April and June 2024. In terms of Education, the report shows successes and achievements against the two service priorities of raising attainment and inclusion. The inclusion objectives had been achieved by the end of the academic session and the department has trust in their ability to guarantee attainment. The Chief Operating Officer Education referred to efforts made to raise attainment in reading and writing and stated they are happy to see progress in this area. It was noted raising attainment is complex and not quick to fix, and that there is a lot to do. Attainment data is a key indicator and as part of performance monitoring it is necessary to submit the percentage of pupils at P1, P4 P7 and S3 who achieved levels set in Curriculum for Excellence. The figures show improvement but it is not clear whether there is evidence of those achieving lower grades has reduced. In terms of exam results, there has been benchmarking tool data received and this will be reported on later. The Chief Operating Officer Education advised that as well as improving quality of learning and teaching, Midlothian also continues to develop its curriculum. Another development is the introduction of the Midlothian aligned curriculum aimed at meeting the needs of senior learners. The newly introduced foundational apprenticeships are going well and these will be extended further through digital platforms. In terms of inclusion there is a lot of work taking place to improve relationships and wellbeing, particularly in relation to anti-bullying, mental health and neurodiversity. Attendance is another performance indicator and there has been a marginal increase in primary and secondary attendance. This is monitored and schools are encouraged to look beyond data to individual stories, and the Education Service hopes this continues to improve. Conversely, while exclusion figures have reduced, they are higher than what would be desirable and the slight increase on exclusions in primary schools is of particular concern. The Chief Operating Officer Education advised they are working with schools to explore what support can be given to avoid exclusions and prevent behaviour escalation. The Education Annual Plan will be presented to Council tomorrow. This plan celebrates the different achievements of Midlothian schools in the school year 2023-24. The Chief Operating Officer Education advised that the CLLE Service has had a positive inspection report building on its own performance and success. The draft annual report gives some headline figures of the number of people the service Page 10 of 151
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works with, the qualifications they gained, the community groups they support and provides some impact statements in relation to employability. The report also notes the CLLE Service has a very positive impact on capacity building and poverty reduction. Finally, the report identifies some challenges such as tutor availability and access to services and acknowledges the good progress made towards targets for the period between April and June 2004. The Chair thanked the Chief Operating Officer Education for the report and opened it up for questions. Members praised the report and expressed satisfaction at seeing vocational studies having a positive impact. However, given the known issues in recruiting Computing and Information Technology teachers. Members. asked whether there have been any positive developments in this area. The Chief Operating Officer Education noted this teacher shortage is not limited to Computing and Information Technology but also seen in other science subjects and is a matter of national concern as graduates are more likely to go into the private sector because salaries are better. One of the strategies to address this shortage involves growing the number of teachers and sharing resources between schools. The Chief Operating Officer Education stated that while they are managing to keep the provision secure for now, the issue has been flagged as a potential risk in the future. There was a comment made on how vocational studies have been renewed through the apprentice route, and whether this approach could be applied to Information Technology. The Chair stated that when Newbattle Campus was opened, the Elected Members met several teachers who were being trained on Computing and Information Technology through joint work with universities. At the time Newbattle was chosen to become a centre for excellence and wondered if this partnership program with universities is still running. The Chief Operating Officer Education noted that teachers need to be registered with the General Teaching Council (GTC) Scotland for the subjects they teach if wishing to teach in secondary education. Fortunately, the number of teachers who have dual registration has increased. While schools can use appropriately qualified teachers to teach multiple subjects to cover a shortage, if these teachers do not hold GTC registration in the subjects they teach care must be taken not to put them in front of learners beyond a certain level. Another strategy is for primary teachers to teach groups up to S3 to address a shortage but per GTC Scotland regulations they cannot teach S4 onwards. Members asked the how Midlothian exclusion targets compare to other neighbouring Local Authorities. The Chief Operating Officer Education explained that in recent years a change on the level of needs has been reported across schools. Another finding that may explain the change in exclusion figures is the behaviour and dysregulation issues seen post COVID. Although the Chief Operating Officer Education stated they are not happy about these figures, when compared with those from neighbouring Local Authorities and other areas in Scotland, the Midlothian results were found to be on a par. The Chief Operating Officer Education noted that there was a report published earlier in the year that shows an increase in behavioural issues in the primary school sector across Scotland. Page 11 of 151
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The Chair thanked the Chief Operating Officer Education again for the report. Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the contents of the education performance report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.7 Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities Q1 2024/25 Performance Chief Officer Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities and Chief Social Work Officer Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Group Service Manager presented this report on behalf of the Chief Officer Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities and Chief Social Work Officer. The report provides an update on the performance and progress made in the first quarter of the year. The report states that the Social Work Department continues to work hard to deliver The Promise framework. The draft for next year has been completed and is subject to consultation on how to make it more accessible. Once partners in the Community Planning Partnership finalise their contribution at the end of the year it will be sent to Elected Members. Children Services have seen a 50% decrease in referrals since quarter 1 last year. Once referrals that are not directly linked to Children Services’ statutory provisions are redirected to other services (many of these are linked to financial matters), the department is left with a high level of Child Protection referrals. While these referrals can prove challenging there are assurances that they are being appropriately managed. The report highlighted the following priorities for Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities. • The Family Wellbeing Service is now well stablished and will soon move to Easthouses School which gives scope to do partnership work directly with families. Within the service there is an officer which can conduct income maximisation assessments. • The number of Looked After and Accommodated Children (LAAC) remains stable at around 140 or 150. As Midlothian is a small local authority a single family can change the dynamics considerably. To keep the LAAC numbers low Children’s Services have involved the Family Group Decision Making Service. A significant change is that because of changes to the Child Protection guidelines more children whose names are put on the Child Protection Register will remain as the 3-month review has been removed. Page 12 of 151
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• The Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities Service has developed an integrated plan to support children who are transitioning into adult services. • The department is also prioritising staff development and wellbeing by offering training like trauma informed practice. • The small resettlement team has been working to support refugees from war torn countries and help them integrate in the local community. There are also staff supporting the unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors who are coming with little or no warning from the Home Office. This lack of warning is a particular challenge but fortunately the staff are very skilled and ready to support these young people as they come into the area. The report indicates neurodiversity is another challenge, with 800 children being on the CAMHS assessment waiting list. There is a multi-agency plan in place to support these families. As a final point, the report stresses the impact of financial pressures on the community and how the cost of living crisis has affected children, young people and families. The Chair opened the report up for questions. Members noted the report states there is long delay for CAMHS referrals, and asked for clarification on the actual waiting time for an appointment. The Service Manager clarified that there are two pathways within CAMHS. The General Mental Health support list has a clear target to see patients within 18 weeks, but the neurodivergence pathway does not have any specific targets, and as such it is difficult to get data to confirm what the average referral takes. However, it was confirmed 200 new patients are added to this list every quarter, which can translate into months or even years of waiting for an appointment. This was described as an invisible problem, particularly as some children have issues that would warrant referrals to both lists. Members asked how Midlothian was managing the asylum-seeking minors, given that foster care services are at capacity in most Local Authorities. It was confirmed that the only options at present are either residential care units or foster families, much like in other Local Authorities. The department is also working on other creative approaches, such as recruiting foster carers who are willing to support people who are not of Scottish descent or targeting those families who were hosting Ukrainian refugees to consider hosting unaccompanied young asylum seekers. The Children’s Services Department is doing all in their power and one carer in particular has been a very valuable resource. Members asked whether the number of foster carers has reduced and what the average time is for a new carer to be assessed. The Service Manager admitted foster carer numbers have reduced, but this is a trend seen in the care sector at large since COVID. The Children’s Services Department has programmes in place Page 13 of 151
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to recruit and train new foster carers. The duration of the process varies but on average it is a 6 month period between first enquiry and formal approval at panel. The Chair thanked the Service Manager for the report and closed the conversation. Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.8 Corporate Solutions Q1 2024/25 Performance Chief Officer Corporate Solutions Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions presented the report. The purpose of this report is to highlight Corporate Solutions’ performance in the first quarter of 2024. The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions highlighted the following key areas: • There has been a continued increase in library visits and 2% increase in virtual library visits. Libraries have also secured more funding and used it to create a seed library and garden project. • There have been 700 library events in quarter 1, a 19% increase from same period last year Some of these activities have included groups in Polish, Gàidhlig and British Sign Language, sessions on coding and robot building which has encouraged participation and skills development. • There are climate activities currently offered in hubs like Loanhead and Danderhall and funding is being sought to expand these to other areas. • A customer service platform app has been launched to undertake tree surveys. This app has been built in house rather than being outsourced which has resulted in financial savings. • Launch of new Spill the Beans staff newsletter which is more accessible and has resulted in more engagement with staff. • Launch of school menus for 2024/25. This supports families with cost of living pressures and ensures all children and young people get a hot meal every day of term. • As a happy and healthy workforce is key to the delivery of the services, staff wellness programs continue to be on offer, with a total of 23 events attended by 180 people. • Advancement of staff benefits through shared contributions like pensions and Additional Voluntary Contributions. Page 14 of 151
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• Progressing of equalities programme which includes the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child Act ensuring children’s rights are respected in decision making processes. • The equality and diversity calendar has been finalised and will help to diversify workforce and meet public sector equality duty. • Publication of the Employee Report 2024 which will be used to develop workforce strategy. • The delivery of Microsoft 365 continues with face-to-face training sessions held by CLLE service. • OneDrive has been introduced and SharePoint has been rolled out. • The Sport and Leisure app was launched in Apple and Android platforms and offers users an improved booking experience for council leisure facilities including the Alpine Coaster. Members thanked the Chief Officer Corporate Services for the report and expressed satisfaction regarding the increase on library memberships. However, a member noticed on a recent visit that the library was very cold and shared the view that if the council wants to make the library hubs welcoming spaces for patrons and staff it is necessary to address the heating issues. Members asked that Library Staff were congratulated for their role in improving membership numbers and community engagement. Members also commended Corporate Services for the necessary work behind the scenes to transform the council and facilitate digital and workforce developments. Members congratulated all those involved in the Transformation Blueprint and recommended that Artificial Intelligence is considered as part of the plan to progress Midlothian Council into the 21st century. A query was made in terms of procurement and whether the council is indeed getting the best value for money through Public Contract Scotland. Another point was made that there are reports of constituents who struggle to get in touch with the council and it was wondered whether hybrid working is really delivering the services for the customer. Finally, it was noted that Alpine Coaster is fully booked and members expressed astonishment that it is only open at the weekends. While there are plans for extended opening hours during the October school holidays the members asked for reassurance this extended timetable would be rolled out soon. The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions stated that the procurement team is committed to getting the best value overall and noted that the council can access some rebates if purchasing through Public Contract Scotland. The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions advised there is a review of procurement services to enhance Page 15 of 151
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awareness of how money is being spent and encouraging staff to consider every purchase. The findings of this report will be shared through the Business Transformation Steering Group. The Chief Officer Corporate Services explained that each service can determine how to manage customer contact. While it is not possible to go into specific examples, the issues experienced by customers in reaching the council may not necessarily be linked to hybrid working. The Hybrid Working Policy has room for flexibility in how workers can work in a hybrid manner and some services are entirely remote while others are fully office based, but if there is evidence that this is affecting customer satisfaction this can be reviewed. The Chief Officer Place clarified that in terms of opening hours the Alpine Coaster was originally operating at reduced hours during the testing period, but after the October school holidays there are plans for extending opening hours to weekdays and evenings as well. A point was made in relation to page 19 in the report which indicated that there is major work going on to ensure procurement compliance and clarification was requested on why this has not yet been achieved. The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions stated that due to high staff turnover there is reduced staff awareness about procurement procedures. Once procurement procedures are updated and training delivered this gap can be closed. Members also asked for reassurance that there is not a systemic issue in compliance management that may result in the council not getting the best value. The Chief Officer Corporate Solutions stated that there have been a few contracts extended beyond the recommended guidelines as there was little option but overall, there is assurances that the council has a good approach to ensure the constituents are getting the best value. Members discussed how customers contact the council, and it was noted that one of the reasons why Midlothian introduced the contact centre as primary point of contact was to quantify calls and repeat callers. Unfortunately, if callers can be given contact numbers it may be difficult to capture this data. The Chief Officer Corporate Services stated that the contact centre has access to many contact phone numbers but individual workers’ phone numbers and email addresses should not be given to customers. If it continues to happen this practice can be investigated and addressed, as the aim is self-service requests are be routed through the self-service customer platform in the future. Members asked how visitor numbers are captured in libraries, and whether they are broken down by type of customer into school pupils and the general public. The Chief Officer Place stated that that library staff uses a combination of approaches to quantify visitors, including door sensors and manual counters. The Chair thanked the Chief Officer Corporate Solutions for the report and submitted it for noting. Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the report. Page 16 of 151
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Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.9 Place Q1 2024/25 Performance Chief Officer Place Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Officer Place presented report. The purpose of this report is to highlight the performance of Place Services, the Council’s front line regulatory operations and commercial services. • Road fixing and resurfacing performance information also includes pothole repairs both temporary and permanent. 24 speed message signs and 19 school zone signs were also installed to improve safety across network. • Transformation of waste management services continues and is set to include food waste expansion in quarter 2 • The Neighbourhood Environment Team has been launched and has resulted in positive feedback from communities. The Nature Restoration Fund has been paused by the Scottish Government but there are plans to mobilise activities should the fund be reinstated • Improvement of play areas continues utilising Scottish Government funds and Protective Services continue to keep communities safe, albeit prioritising regulatory activities due to resource constraints. • Evidence of a rat infestation in the food business forced a closure and a report has been submitted to the Procurator Fiscal due to the severity of the findings. • Increase in infectious diseases required partnership work with National Health Service and Environmental Health colleagues. • Trading Standards prosecutions continued in Quarter 1 and a report has been submitted to Procurator Fiscal for an offence under the trademark act and tobacco regulations. • The Council was granted 2 funded Modern Apprentice places at Edinburgh College to address staffing constraints and train future officers in Environmental Health, Trading and Building Standards, Planning and Licensing. • Housing figures show that the relay time to be granted permanent housing has decreased compared to same period last year. The annual return presented to the Scottish Housing Regulator has been received well. • There has been a significant increase of 27.7% on people presenting as homeless compared to the same period last year Over 95.6% of tenants given Page 17 of 151
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permanent accommodation sustained their tenancy after one year in the accommodation. • The percentage of Council Housing stock meeting Scottish Housing Quality Standards criteria has raised to 72.1 %, from 34.3% last year. This is due to a change in electrical certification standards and the team has responded well. • Rolling out of environmental monitors in Council homes has resulted in benefits such as increasing response to dampness enquiries. • Economic Development Service shows enquiries and business start-up numbers have grown since last year, bringing up local employment. 10 businesses from out with Midlothian have made enquiries about establishing their business in Midlothian and a brewery company has consolidated 3 premises at a Midlothian site. • The Catering Team has provided healthy nutritious meals with emphasis on local suppliers, being granted a bronze award and working towards silver, while minimising food waste. • Active schools programme has grown with a better take up of after school activities among pupils (38%) and a 73% increase in volunteer hours. • Two schools have achieved the gold Sport School Awards from Sport Scotland. • Active School Placement opportunities have been offered in partnership with Edinburgh College and 50 students successfully completed the sports academy leadership programme. • There has been a decrease in Tone Zone memberships but income has improved as some users have been transferred to more appropriate membership options. The Chair thanked the Chief Officer Place for the report and opened it up for questions. Members asked whether targets on pothole repairs are being met. The Chief Officer Place stated that it is necessary to be reactive and proactive to tackle the backlog of repairs but when more detailed stats are provided the progress would be clear. Members reminded the Place Directorate that that a report on how the high-cost equipment purchased could be optimised is due to be presented at Council. Members also asked for clarification on how Tone Zone membership numbers have reduced but the income generated has increased. The Chief Officer Place explained that through a membership audit it was noted that many users had changed their circumstances and lifestyle, so they were steered towards different Page 18 of 151
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memberships while other users on student membership were transitioned into gold or platinum memberships. Members requested clarification on the data which suggests only 34% of housing targets are being met. The Chief Officer Place stated that due to a change in legislation on electrical installations a number of council housing stock needed updates to meet these new regulatory standards. This backlog has been completed ahead of schedule. A question was made with regards to tree pruning and how this service is delivered as most requests are centred in some months of the year. The Chief Officer Place clarified that pruning sessions are limited due to wildlife protection windows. Midlothian employs a team of qualified arborists that can undertake work during pruning season, and other colleagues that can take on emergency work out with that season for example if trees are broken after stormy weather or pose a risk to infrastructures. Members also asked the Chief Officer Place if there are actions aimed to ease delays caused by temporary traffic lights and what could be done to facilitate their removal if not in use. The Chief Officer Place agreed this is an ongoing issue but not limited to this Local Authority. These lights are installed by traffic management contractors on behalf of the company carrying out the roadworks and the council has a policy on traffic sensitive routes and issues are normally resolved quickly. Additionally, the council has also carried out emergency repairs to free up the flow of traffic. There has been engagement at a regional and national level with utilities companies and this approach needs to be extended to individual contractors to prevent the issue. Members noted that a report was requested at Council last year in connection with this issue. Unfortunately, as utility companies often subcontract temporary light works to other companies, there is often poor communication to notify that the work is completed, and the lights can be removed. Members wondered whether there is technology that would assist in notifying lights that are not needed or malfunctioning. The Chief Officer Place agreed with this view and stated that it would be possible to investigate what technology exists in terms of wifi or mobile solutions. It was noted that the maintenance of trees, shrubbery and gardens is a very reactive issue for residents, and along with potholes are an issue that features prominently in social media sites like Fix My Street. The Chief Officer Place advised that the new Neighbourhood Environmental Team act proactively if hazards are noticed during visits, and that they would be happy to personally receive emails from residents. The social media enquiries are managed by the Customer Engagement Service and when issues are submitted by a platform like Twitter they can be allocated customer reference numbers. Members noted that it had taken the council 8 years to rebuild some areas of social housing, and wondered there is room for reflection in terms of the housing strategy. The Chief Officer place admitted there had been issues in terms of assessing sites with a history of public health concerns, but this issue is not limited to Midlothian Council. The Service has changed a number of practices as the result of that particular location. Page 19 of 151
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Members asked whether the Place Service has taken the necessary steps to ensure it can deliver resilience during the winter season and encouraged the Chief Operating Officer Place to bring any issues to the committee. The Chief Officer Place advised the department is on schedule to have all winter preparations ready by the end of October. The Chair thanked the Chief Officer Place for the report again and closed the conversation. Decision The Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.10 Adult Health and Social Care Q1 2024/25 Performance, Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer presented the report detailing performance for the first quarter of the year. The Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer noted the service has experienced a number of challenges and highlighted the following points of the performance report: • The Substance Misuse Team at No 11 has met its target to see 100% of individuals referred for accessing treatment within 3 weeks of referral. • The medicated assisted treatment aimed to stop drug theft has been shown to be positive and 5 out of 10 standards have been meet, with remaining standards on target to be met by March 2025 • The drug and alcohol death figures have been published in August, with more detailed reports to come. These figures highlight the work done by the Team, despite having an average caseload of over 300-350 clients if including clients managed by Criminal Justice and Mental Health Services as many of these clients also have a history of drug and alcohol misuse. • Public health figures on suicide for the first quarter have been published, the Midlothian figures were 11 with the 5-year average being 12. While it is necessary to clarify what qualifies as suicide, suicide prevention initiatives are to be given prominence and to sit with Public Protection. The Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer advised Midlothian figures are on par with national average and that victims are overwhelmingly male and for the most part not known to the service. • The Adult Learning Disability Team is shown to have the greatest service pressures. The lodging development that had been due to open in Loanhead Page 20 of 151
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has been delayed to the start of 2025 due to issues with sewage and water supply. There is also another development of 8 flats being built in Bonnyrigg High Street which will offer 4 permanent resident places as well as other 4 temporary places which are aimed at residents with more independence skills and other vulnerable people under no specific category. This is on track to be opened by next year. • In terms of interaction with Children’s Services, between 1 to 2 young people are transferring each month into Adult Services. While pressures remain, there have been much needed funding improvements. The report also highlights key areas of the Criminal Justice service provision, being: • Perpetrator engagement through the Your Chance to Change, aimed at male domestic abuse perpetrators. • The Spring Service aimed at women at risk of entering the Criminal Justice System has recently reached its 10 anniversary and demonstrated the use of trauma informed approaches in practice • The Criminal Justice Team has also provided figures regarding community payback orders and unpaid work order numbers. The most common among these are the ones which have a supervision order attached. Newbyres Care Home is due a Care Inspectorate visit which is due to take part by the end of 2024. The home has appointed a permanent manager who is due to start the next couple of months. Mental Health Services performance is seen as particularly good in terms of bed occupancy at Royal Edinburgh Hospital and links with community model, but there is room for improvement in terms of guardianship orders timescales. The average timing has been increased due to the shortage of qualified Mental Health Officers, although this issue is also seen in other Local Authorities. As discussed in the Elected Members briefing, the Health and Social Care Service has carried out a Package of Care review. As there are many Packages of Care to review and the average time needed per review is 10 hours, this has required staff to be diverted from the service which has resulted in staffing pressures in other areas. The Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer noted that the caseload of the resource panel highlights demand is coming particularly from older people. The team is still waiting the final decision on what constitutes statutory work from The King’s Counsel report. The view of the department is that it already does all statutory and there is little scope for change. The Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer advised they continue to see staff number fluctuations on the most stubborn areas of Care at Page 21 of 151
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Home, Highbank and Newbyres. The team will continue to work with HR colleagues to support staff wellbeing and will examine how they can manage staff retention. The Chair thanked the Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer for the report and opened it up for questions. Members asked the Head of Adult Services and Deputy Social Work Officer to advise the average time needed for a Social Work assessment. The Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer advised the actual time depends on the team as the service is broken along diagnostic criteria. While the standard is that all assessments are to be conducted within 6 weeks or less, if a quicker screening is needed it will be prioritised within 48 hours, or even on the day of referral as there is a duty team. Members praised the role of the Welfare Rights team noting they continue to do a great work generating income for people in an increasingly difficult financial situation. It was also noted it must be soul destroying to see higher numbers of people being referred. Elected Members that have referred constituents to the service report the team was responsive and efficient and the money raised by the service is spent in other local business. A further question was made in connection with the impact of the proposed National Care Service in the department’s staff. The Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer explained that it is something that exceeds the time available today but admitted there is discussion going on at management levels. It is looking less likely that this proposed system will materialise in Midlothian due to the organisational structure but if it does it would be an issue to discuss at senior management level. The Chair thanked the Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer for the report and submitted it for noting. Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.11 Midlothian Council Q1 2024/25 Performance Chief Executive Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion The Chief Executive presented the report. The purpose of this report is to provide a summary of the Midlothian Single Plan and should be considered in conjunction with all reports presented today. The Plan has 5 key performance indicators. One of these is linked to performance against revenue budget and was covered in report presented by Chief Financial Officer to the August Council meeting. Another of these is linked to invoices, and the remaining three are complaints for stage 2 and escalated complaints. Page 22 of 151
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The Chair thanked the Chief Executive for the report and opened it up for questions. Members asked for assurance that the Directorates have a proper system in place to make this plan work cohesively at all times. The Chief Executive advised that they have provided assurances to the Audit Committee. Decision The Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the report. Agenda No. Report Title Presented by: 5.12 Joint Inspection of Adult Support and Protection – Midlothian Partnership Head of Service, Health and Social Care Outline of Report and Summary of Discussion Fiona Kennedy, Service Manager, Health and Social Care presented this report on behalf of the Head of Adult Services and Deputy Chief Social Work Officer. This was the second strategic inspection for Adult Services, which overlapped with the first one which was an inspection for Physical Disability Services. Adult Support and Protection is a multi-agency service, although Midlothian Social Work is the leading provider in it. The Group Service Manager advised they had been the lead officer in the Adult Support and Protection inspection and was pleased to announce that the service had received a positive inspection report which is testimony to the quality of the services in Midlothian. The Care Inspectorate published a comprehensive report on the joint inspection of Midlothian Adult Support and Protection Services after Scottish Ministers asked for all Adult Support and Protection arrangements across Scotland to be inspected. The focus of this inspection was to determine whether adults at risk were safe, supported and protected and the quality of the processes and strategic partnerships. The report highlighted the following strengths: • Strong strategic vision • Commendable management in terms of oversight of Social Services • High standard risk assessment and case management • Good use of advocacy services The report also noted the following areas for improvement: • Attendance at Interagency discussions • Governance of Police Scotland records • Involvement of care experienced people These areas for improvement were addressed in the plan presented to the Care Inspectorate. Page 23 of 151
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The Care Inspectorate does not award scores for Adult Support and Protection but agrees with the Council’s narrative that the service has clear strengths and has supported positive outcomes for adults at risk. These strengths are felt to outnumber the areas for development. Members noted how pleasing this report was to read and how the service has worked to build a strong partnership approach, improve practice and give advocacy to the people at risk. As there were no further questions from Elected Members the Chair congratulated everyone involved in the positive inspection report and asked officers present to pass on their thanks to staff. Decision The Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee noted the report. 6 Private Reports No items for discussion. 7 Date of the Next Meeting The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 26 November 2024. The meeting terminated at 12.51pm. Page 24 of 151
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PRS Committee Action Log Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 4.2 Item No Date of Meeting Item No and Title Action Action Owner Expected completion date Comments 1 19/09/2023 5.2 Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities Q1 2023/24 Performance Report Answer query in relation to whether there were online resources families might use whilst waiting for CAMHS referral Chief Social Work Officer Awaiting feedback from Alistair Short, NHS Information re: waitlist support received from CAMHS, update available for Nov 2024 if necessary. 2 19/03/2024 5.3 Corporate Solutions Q3 Performance Report 2023/24 Information on how Midlothian library membership figures compare to other Local Authorities Chief Officer Corporate Solutions June 2024 Figures are being collated and will be circulated to Committee members once received. 3 19/03/2024 5.11 Update on Newbyres Care Village Progress report to be brought back in six months Head of Adult Services November 2024 Verbal update will be provided as part of Q2 reporting in November 2024. 4 11/06/2024 5.5 Place 2023/24 Annual Performance Report Distribute details of the waiting list and a breakdown after the meeting, as well as an estimated timescale for the tenant portal. Chief Officer Place Total Housing Register (as at 14/11/24): 6657 General Needs 5489 Homelessness 1168 Tenant’s Portal is included in the delivery plan as outlined in the Digital Transformation Strategy approved at November Page 25 of 151
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Item No Date of Meeting Item No and Title Action Action Owner Expected completion date Comments Council. 5 07/10/2024 5.9 Place Q1 2024/25 Performance Review if there is a way to monitor temporary traffic lights and ensure their timely removal through technology. Chief Officer Place Circulated Action Note. Page 26 of 151
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/ Performance, Review & Scrutiny Committee: 26th November 2024 Action Item No: 5 Date of Meeting: 7th October 2024 Item No and Title: 5.9 Place Q1 2024/25 Performance Action: Determine if there is a way to remotely monitor temporary traffic lights using technology. Action Owner: Derek Oliver, Chief Officer - Place A number of Statutory Undertakers (SU) are pushing for the use of the AI Temporary Traffic Lights (TTL). However, as a consequence SU are stating that they do not require any manual control and therefore have not, in some cases, provided manual control, in breach of the permit. City of Edinburgh Council (CEC) have had a fair amount of experience with AI TTL and they are not convinced they live up to expectation. It is suggested that they work satisfactorily on simple Traffic Management (TM) arrangements (eg 2 heads, straight carriageway) but on anything more complex involving 3 or more heads, they are not as effective as promoted. CEC have also described that they are required to attend an initial site set-up meeting with the TM contractor to agree any “tweaking” of the set up to suit the actual traffic patterns. This takes up to a half day for one Edinburgh Roads Services staff member, and has to be repeated for any amendments, or breakdown of the TTL as the settings have to be re- established. They are also required to attend when the TTL are moved as part of any works phasing as the settings have to be adjusted again. There is no recovery of staff time costs for these attendances. Edinburgh also state that the sensors on the TTL can be affected by any nearby high voltage cables, such as buried or overhead 11kv lines, or tram power lines, and this can also disrupt the settings. These systems have been discussed at varies RAUC Area meetings and were discussed at a recent national Road Authorities meeting. The current consensus within the RA society is a general concern that they do not appear (yet) to perform as well as they claim in some situations, and manual control may still be required at peak times. In summary, the concept is being explored and assessed but the current position is not efficient or effective. Derek Oliver, Chief Officer - Place Page 27 of 151
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Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 5.1 A summary of the HMIE inspection of Strathesk Primary School and Nursery Class Report by Michelle Strong, Education Chief Operating Officer, Children, Young People and Partnerships. Report for Information 1 Recommendations Cabinet is requested to: (i) Note the content of the summary of the inspection report. (ii) Congratulate the pupils, parents and staff connected with this report. (iii) Pass this report to the Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee for noting purposes. 2 Purpose of Report/Executive Summary The report outlines the inspection of Strathesk Primary School and Nursery class. 17 October 2024 Report Contact: Julie Fox, Quality Improvement Manager E-mail: julie.fox@midlothian.gov.uk Page 28 of 151
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3 Background/Main Body of Report 3.1 In June 2024, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited Strathesk Primary School and Nursery class. The report was published on 1 September 2024, and is available on the Education Scotland website, 3.2 Education Scotland is responsible for inspecting education settings throughout Scotland. This inspection was a short model inspection using core quality indicators from How Good is Our School and How Good is our Early Learning and Childcare and evaluations were as below; HGIOS School QI 2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment Good QI 3.2 Raising attainment and achievement Satisfactory HGIOELC QI 2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment Good QI 3.2 Securing children’s progress Good 3.3 Identified strengths of the setting • The positive, nurturing relationships between children and staff across the school and nursery. This is providing children with a calm and positive learning environment. • Children who are polite, happy and enthusiastic. They enjoy learning in school and nursery. They show respect, care and kindness as they learn and play together. Children are very proud of their school and nursery. • Improvements in the consistency of effective learning and teaching across the school, including creative approaches to digital literacy and out-door learning. As a result, children are now engaged, motivated and know how to be successful. 3.4 Identified areas for improvement • Continue to raise attainment in literacy and numeracy in school age children. • Across the school, continue to improve the reliability of teachers' professional judgements about children's progress and attainment. Teachers should have more opportunities to work with each other and colleagues in other schools to develop their understanding of national standards across the curriculum. • Improve approaches to checking on children’s progress across all curricular areas in the school and nursery to inform planning for children’s learning. Page 29 of 151
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3.5 Conclusion The local authority has confidence that Strathesk Primary School and Nursery class has sufficient capacity for continuous improvement. The setting’s Quality Improvement Manager will continue to monitor improvement through the quality improvement process and standards and quality improvement plan. 4 Report Implications (Resource, Digital and Risk) 4.1 Resource There are no resource implications. 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) 4.4 Additional Report Implications (See Appendix A) Appendices Appendix A – Additional Report Implications Appendix B – Background Papers: Inspection Report attached 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 Page 30 of 151
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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 setting 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. A.8 Supporting Sustainable Development The School and Nursery Improvement Plan allows for sustainable development and improvement. Page 31 of 151
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Strathesk Primary School and Nursery Class, Midlothian Council, 5541123 © Crown Copyright 10 September 2024 Dear Parent/Carer In June 2024, a team of inspectors from Education Scotland visited Strathesk Primary School and Nursery Class. 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 positive, nurturing relationships between children and staff across the school and nursery. This is providing children with a calm and positive learning environment. • Children who are polite, happy and enthusiastic. They enjoy learning in school and nursery. They show respect, care and kindness as they learn and play together. Children are very proud of their school and nursery. • Improvements in the consistency of effective learning and teaching across the school, including creative approaches to digital literacy and out-door learning. As a result, children are now engaged, motivated and know how to be successful. The following areas for improvement were identified and discussed with the headteacher and a representative from Midlothian Council. • Continue to raise attainment in literacy and numeracy in school age children. • Across the school, continue to improve the reliability of teachers' professional judgements about children's progress and attainment. Teachers should have more opportunities to work with each other and colleagues in other schools to develop their understanding of national standards across the curriculum. • Improve approaches to checking on children’s progress across all curricular areas in the school and nursery to inform planning for children’s learning. Page 32 of 151
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Strathesk Primary School and Nursery Class, Midlothian Council, 5541123 © 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 Strathesk Primary School and Nursery Class Quality indicators for the primary school Evaluation Learning, teaching and assessment good Raising attainment and achievement satisfactory 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: Strathesk Primary School | Inspection Report | 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. Fraser Gillan HM Inspector Page 33 of 151
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Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 5.2 Education Performance Report Q2 24/25 Improving Outcomes for Learners through an Empowered System Education Services encompasses Early Learning and Childcare (ELC), Primary Schooling, Secondary Schooling, Special Schooling, Additional Support Needs, Digital Learning, Education Psychology and Community, Lifelong Learning and Employability (CLLE). Vision and context All children, young people, adults and communities in Midlothian are supported to be the best they can be. This will be achieved through a nurturing, respectful and collaborative approach that promotes wellbeing, equity, inclusion and lifelong learning. The Education Service Plan is informed by and links to the outcomes determined by the Getting it Right for Every Midlothian Child Board. The Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. Act 2000, as amended 2016, placed new duties on education authorities, and the Education Service Plan includes identified areas for improvement specific to Education to fulfil these duties. As a result, the Education Service Improvement Plan not only reflects the key priorities in the Midlothian Single Plan but also aligns closely with the key priorities in Education – We will raise attainment and achievement to ensure that all children and young people in Midlothian achieve outcomes which lead to positive and sustained destinations. Our Service Improvement Plan has four main workstreams: • Learning, teaching, assessment & curriculum • Attendance& engagement • Relationships, wellbeing & care and • Inclusion, equity & targeted supports and risks Workstream 1: Learning, teaching, assessment & curriculum Aligned to the Service Plan, priorities for 2024/25, key actions are: Page 34 of 151
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• Midlothian schools and ELC settings offer a relevant, progressive and motivating strengths- based 3-18 curriculum, that enables all learners, including those with ASN, to move on to highly skilled, sustained positive destinations. • Quality improvement processes evidence improvement in QI 2.3 LTA. • Robust data sets track and monitor educational outcomes for all children and young people. Key achievements this quarter: We have the following outcome measures and targets. Last Published Data June 2024 June 2025 June 2026 June 2027 ACEL P1-S3 Combined Health and Wellbeing Not available ACEL P1, P4, P7 Combined Literacy 71.64% 71.56% 73.00% 75.00% 77.50% ACEL P1, P4, P7 Combined Numeracy 76.30% 77.00% 79.00% 81.00% 82.00% S3 Literacy 3rd level or better 85.40% 86.50% 88.00% 90.00% 91.00% S3 Literacy at 4th level 48.30% 56.63% 65% 70% 75% S3 Numeracy 3rd level or better 90.50% 91.00% 93.00% 94.00% 95.00% S3 Numeracy 4th level 62.80% 63.03% 66% 68% 70% Leavers Literacy @ Level 5 76.28% 78.00% 79.50% 81.00% 83.00% Leavers Numeracy @ Level 5 71.57% 72.50% 73.50% 74.00% 75.00% Leavers 1+ @ Level 5 86.90% 87.00% 88.00% 89.00% 90.00% Leavers (ASN over time) 1+ @ Level 5 77.97% NA until Feb 25 78% 80% 82% Leavers (Care Experienced) 1+ @ Level 5 78.57% NA until Feb 25 79% 80% 81% Leavers1 @ Level 6 57.10% 63.00% 64.00% 66.00% 67.00% % Positive Destinations 95.30% 96.00% 96.50% 97.00% 98.00% % Initial Destination in Higher Education 31.90% 38.00% 40.00% 42.00% 45.00% Glasgow Wellbeing Survey Being rolled out 2024-2025 Attendance Rate Primary 92.47% 93.00% 93.50% 94.00% 95.50% Attendance Rate Secondary 87.05% 88.00% 89.00% 90.50% 92.00% Participation Measure 3 years post initial destination rate % 94.0% 94.5% 94.5% 95% 95% Page 35 of 151
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Exclusion Rate per 1,000 Primary 4.24 3.00 2.00 1.50 1.00 Exclusion Rate per 1,000 Secondary 28.98 25.00 22.50 17.50 15.00 % of schools & ELCs with validated Good or better QI 1.1 77% 77% 84% 88% 90% % of schools & ELCs with validated Good or better QI 1.3 77% 77% 84% 88% 90% % of schools & ELCs with validated Good or better QI 2.3 63% 67% 77% 84% 90% % of schools & ELCs with validated Good or better QI 3.1 67% 65% 79% 85% 90% % of schools & ELCs with validated Good or better QI 3.2 49% 51% 69% 79% 90% 2023-2024 Performance Measures Excellence Ave. (17- 19) Last Published (Dec 23) Target 23/24 Target 24/25 Target 25/26 Target 26/27 Primary combined Literacy 68.86% 68.20% 71.50% 73.00% 75.00% 77.50% Primary combined Numeracy 75.34% 76.05% 77.00% 79.00% 81.00% 82.00% S3 Literacy 69.90% 80.70% 86.50% 88.00% 90.00% 91.00% S3 Numeracy 88.68% 88.50% 91.00% 93.00% 94.00% 95.00% Leavers Literacy & Numeracy @ Level 5 67.55% 66.82% 67.50% 70.00% 72.00% 74.00% Leavers 1+ @ Level 5 85.56% 86.95% 87.00% 88.00% 89.00% 90.00% Leavers 1+ @ Level 6 59.19% 62.87% 63.00% 64.50% 66.00% 67.00% % school leavers initial destination positive 94.55% 95.5% 96.00% 96.50% 97.00% 98.00% Equity* (the poverty related attainment gap) Ave. (17- 19) Last Published (Dec 23) Target 23/24 Target 24/25 Target 25/26 Target 26/27 Primary combined Literacy 28.17% 26.84% 25.50% 24.00% 22.50% 21.00% Primary combined Numeracy 23.82% 24.29% 23.50% 22.50% 21.00% 20.00% S3 Literacy 22.94% 28.87% 24.00% 23.00% 22.00% 20.50% S3 Numeracy 16.35% 22.19% 17.00% 16.50% 16.50% 15.50% Leavers Literacy & Numeracy @ Level 5 26.21% 39.83% 38.00% 35.50% 32.50% 30.00% Leavers 1+ @ Level 5 27.45% 23.08% 30.00% 29.00% 27.50% 25.00% Leavers 1+ @ Level 6 30.25% 41.37% 40.00% 38.00% 37.00% 35.00% % school leavers initial destination positive 29.21% 26.36% 26.00% 25.00% 23.50% 22.00% * Equity measures show the attainment gap as the difference in attainment levels between pupils that are registered for free school meal registered and those learners not registered for free school meals. Page 36 of 151
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Midlothian schools and ELC settings offer a relevant, progressive and motivating strengths-based 3-18 curriculum, that enables all learners, including those with ASN, to move on to highly skilled, sustained positive destinations. • QI 2.2 Curriculum is currently being evaluated as part of most QI visits to schools. Evaluation data will be included in performance reports once this is completed. • The Midlothian Aligned Curriculum Offer in secondary schools started in August 2024. In year 1, we have 789 young people registered on career education programmes: • 218 Level 4/5/6 Foundation Apprentices, registered across all six secondary schools, are completing industry supported qualifications in Automotive, Accountancy, Business, Construction, Global Infrastructure, Hospitality, Youth and Adult Social Care, Scientific Technologies and IT Hardware. Most of these courses do not have an examination and are assessed in context. Upon successful completion, it is anticipated that there will be significantly raised levels of attainment. • 469 young people registered for the School to College partnership (Edinburgh College) • 102 young people registered on the Midlothian Bespoke SCP offer (Edinburgh College) • Almost all headteachers attended Development Day 1 where they worked with a prominent international thinker to explore their next steps in 3-18 Curricula collaboration and improvement. Schools worked in ASGs to explore their collective data and explored 3-18 partnership opportunities with a range of external partners. Each ASG formulated a collaborative plan and will report on progress at the next HT Development Day on the 3rd of December. • A 3-18 Learning and Teaching and Curriculum (LTAC) subgroup has been established (central and school- based officers). A draft LTAC Strategy document has been developed and will have input from Headteachers at the November HT meeting. • Work is progressing on the Midlothian Digital Aligned Curriculum Offer. Quality improvement processes evidence improvement in QI 2.3 LTA. • During 2022-2024, QI 2.3 Learning, Teaching & Assessment has improved from around 50% to the current 72% of schools at “Good” or better. • Our new QI Framework was launched in August 2024. QI visit activity over term 1 focused on improvement and enhanced schools. Support is now proportionate. Robust data sets track and monitor educational outcomes for all children and young people. • A comprehensive set of outcome measures is included in our Service Improvement Plan and these are monitored quarterly and annually. • Six weekly Data and Performance group monitoring progress • 3-18 Data dashboards and tracking periods are in place. • QI score for use of data is improving and this reflects better use of data for improvement in schools. • Secondary HT Trio Attainment Reviews have been arranged for 8th and 29th November, as part of the Empowered System Raising Attainment Team The raising attainment team continues to be prioritised to work in primary schools with the lowest attainment. The team works alongside teachers and school leaders to plan, teach and evaluate in Numeracy and Literacy lessons. The focus is on attainment raising strategies. The team showed an impact of +11% in Literacy/ Numeracy attainment in the schools they worked in during 2023-24. Page 37 of 151
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Professional learning offer Our professional learning offer focuses on key aspects of effective learning, teaching and assessment and runs throughout school year 2024-25. Workstream 2: Attendance and engagement Attendance targets are tracked and monitored and the data is quality assured across schools and ASGs. • Associated School Groups (ASGs) have undertaken coordinated approaches to improving attendance based on effective practice from within and beyond Midlothian. • Attendance data is updated in the schools’ dashboards and school- and system-level analysis leads to further focus where this is required. School improvement plans for attendance are informed by self-evaluation against quality indicators at 4 levels: universal, preventative, early support and focused support. • The self-evaluation tool for schools was launched in August and will be reviewed at Head teacher meeting in November. • Practice that has made a positive difference at all levels has been shared at the partnership networks. • 2 ASGs are running their new communication system with the other ASGs developing their plans for launch within this school year. The Attendance Partnership Network promotes collaborative action planning with pathways of assessment and intervention for children and young peoples at 0-25%, 25-75% and 75-90% attendance. • Children and young people have been co-researchers in deepening insight into attendance and identifying ways forwards for those in the attendance band 70-90%. Planning is underway with a group of young people at 0-25% attendance. • All ASGs are participating in the Attendance Partnership Network with partners from Educational Psychology, Family Wellbeing Service, Home School Practitioners and 3rd Sector focusing on sharing effective practice and strengthening locality planning for children and young people at different levels of attendance. Key achievements this quarter: Attendance procedures are applied consistently and promote equity across all schools & settings. The refreshed attendance policy was launched in January 2024 leading to strengthening of practice and systems to promote attendance. Tracking and monitoring systems have been reviewed and streamlined to align to the new procedures and ensure practice is consistent and equitable. Professional learning in coding has taken place with evidence of variation in the use of codes across schools reducing. A review of the impact and implementation of the policy is underway and will be concluded in the new session to explore impact of procedures and capacity of services for children at different levels of attendance. An attendance self-evaluation tool has been developed in collaboration with school leaders to help schools identify strengths and areas for development as part of the quality improvement processes and in ensuring their practice aligns to the policy. An ASG community-wide communications strategy has been developed and rolled out across all Lasswade schools. All families are receiving a series of letters signed by the Lasswade head teachers along with posters and monthly attendance texts. This has been positively received with the other ASGs preparing a similar systematic approach to communications from August 2024. Page 38 of 151
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Partnerships & pathways are piloted to promote attendance at whole-school level, reduce risk of non-attendance and rebuild attendance and engagement in education following absence. This session we have engaged young people as co-researchers as we seek to deepen insight into what will make a difference to attendance. A group of young people with attendance between 70 and 90% have explored the issues impacting their own attendance and designed a survey for young people with similar attendance across Midlothian to explore what would make a difference. The young people have shared new insights and shown commitment and dedication to influencing thinking and decision making. Planning is underway to engage young people with attendance at 0-20% as co-researchers in September 24. The Attendance Partnership Network (APN) has been established bringing together schools and key partners working towards improving attendance across Midlothian. Partners include EPs, Home School Practitioners, Family Wellbeing Service and the 3rd sector. Feedback from the members of the APN has been overwhelmingly positive noting the value of collaboration, problem solving frameworks and shared commitment and ownership of the issues and solutions. 100% of the members of the Attendance Partnership Network have reported increased confidence, skills and partnerships in supporting attendance and engagement in education. • 96% strongly agreed that the meetings were helpful in sharing information and insights • 94% strongly agreed that the meetings were helpful in promoting collaboration and partnerships. • 100% strongly agreed that the meetings promoted collaborative problem solving and ways forward. The APN has achieved the following milestones this year: • Explored voice and influence of children and young people in promoting attendance and engagement at individual and strategic levels. • Strengthened partnerships across agencies supporting attendance within each ASG • Clarified roles and responsibilities and effective collaboration • Identified priorities and pathways for improving attendance at the attendance bands 0-19%, 20-69%, 70- 89%. • Developed a toolkit of resources to support assessment, problem solving and planning with young people. • Explored use of the google workspace in maintaining connection and engagement with school with a dedicated workshop for partners. Workstream 3: Relationship, wellbeing and care Aligned to the Service Plan, priorities for 2024/25, key work streams: A Relationship Policy is co-produced with children and young people and sets out our commitment to a relational and restorative approach • Over 100 learners from primary schools and over 30 learners from secondary schools participated in the Learners Conferences in September, sharing insights into what helps them feel safe, connected and ready to learn in school. This information will inform the initial draft of Relationship Policy. • Nurture Leads working group have drafted initial themes and plan for policy development. Universal and targeted support is informed by monitoring of children’s wellbeing and pathways for wellbeing and mental health support are mapped out with links to self-help resources. • All high schools are participating in the SHINE wellbeing survey in January/February 2025 and have attended an initial workshop to set up the processes. • The Glasgow Wellbeing Profile is to be launched in schools this month to enable schools to review and monitor the wellbeing of all children and young people. • A plan for reviewing the wellbeing pathways in schools is in process and the work is running in collaboration Page 39 of 151
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with the development of the Single Point of Access for Midlothian to ensure needs, thresholds and capacity of services are understood. A professional learning framework maps out learning at universal, targeted and intensive levels for school leaders and staff in promoting relationships, wellbeing and care with relevant professional learning, implementation and support structures. • The draft framework is established mapping out universal knowledge and skills. Targeted and intensive levels to be further developed. • As of 22.10.24, 50% of Midlothian teachers have now completed the Safe, Connected, Ready to Learn professional learning programme (equivalent to trauma level 2). Initial evaluation shows mean ratings increasing from 75.0% to 87.4% for knowledge and skills and from 65.7% to 83.4% for confidence in trauma- informed relational practice. • All ASGs are participating in the Nurture Leads Community of Practice which provides a forum of support for the implementation of principles and practice from Safe, Connected and Ready to Learn. • The recommendations from the Appreciative Enquiry into staff wellbeing in schools have been drafted and will be brought to EEG in November for consideration and agreement Key achievements this quarter: Promoting and protecting the wellbeing of school staff Staff wellbeing continues to be a key priority across Midlothian schools. A series of appreciative enquiry sessions have taken place across a range of settings and staff groups including school leaders, nurture leads, Saltersgate and the inclusion and wellbeing teams. Participants have reported on the value of having an open, non-judgemental space to share issues relating to their wellbeing, to feel listened to and hear perspectives of colleagues and explore possible ways forward in promoting wellbeing. Thematic analysis from these enquiry sessions has led to a better understanding of the current issues, what’s already working and enabled thinking and planning around what is needed to promote and protect staff wellbeing in schools. This has led to proposals for action in relation to four key areas to be considered for next session: • Protecting time to focus on core purpose • Developing confidence in meeting learners needs • Feeling appreciated, valued and part of a collective purpose • Building systemic capacity for reflection and care Workstream 4: Inclusion, equity and targeted support Aligned to the Service Plan, priorities for 2024/25, key work streams: • Policies, systems and processes are in place to advise and assist schools and settings around inclusive practice and the allocation of additional resource. • Develop a robust data set 0-18 to inform future learning estate planning to ensure that buildings and resources are available well in advance of need. • Through workforce reform we build a diverse and relevant workforce that is skilled and confident in meeting learners needs. Page 40 of 151
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Key achievements this quarter: Inclusion & targeted support All gaps in relation to attainment, achievement, wellbeing and attendance are identified for learners who are care- experienced, those who have ASN, and those who are neurodiverse. ASN Review As part of the ongoing ASN review, initial reorganisation has been completed. As a result, from August 2024 there will be four outreach teams: Speech, Language and Communication in Education (including EAL and Gypsy Travellers and Deaf Education) Wellbeing Neurodiversity Access and Inclusion Outreach services will be provided to all schools from August 2024. This will ensure that learners receive the right support at the right time. Systems and processes in place to support schools in meeting the needs of all learners The Midlothian Learner’s Plan and associated documents were launched during the In-Service days in August 2023. Over 150 members of school staff attended the workshop sessions. Locality Additional Support Needs (ASN) Education Support Officers were appointed in June 2023. Almost all schools and settings are now using the Midlothian Learner’s Plan to plan and evaluate the impact of support strategies for learners; this will provide a consistent approach around planning for inclusion. The Midlothian Learner’s Plan is now used in 100% of referrals to the Education Resources Group (ERG). The Managing Exclusion policy will be presented to the September 2024 Council. During this session, an Inclusion Website was developed and will be available for all school staff to access. This will provide a single point of access for all information relating to inclusive practice and additional support needs resources. Support for Learning Network The Primary Support for Learning (SfL) Network was re-established in August 2023. The terms of reference were established at the beginning of the session and termly meetings have taken place with over 30 attendees at each session. Professional learning was offered on the five roles of the SfL teacher delivered in conjunction with Education Scotland. This had 22 attendees. Digital Inclusion & Learning training has taken place every 3 months. The feedback from the SfL workforce has shown that most of the teachers now feel more confident in their 5 roles and their knowledge of planning to meet the needs of all leaners has improved. The Secondary Support for Learning Network met four times last year. The terms of reference were established, and the initial focus this year has been on SQA exam arrangements for learners with additional support needs. This was facilitated by one of the principal teachers who had recently undergone an audit of SQA exam arrangements. Feedback from the secondary support for learning staff has shown that all of the Principal Teachers felt more confident about the SQA exam arrangements process and learned from the sharing of effective practice. This was supplemented with a session directly delivered from the SQA. The majority of staff involved in SQA exam arrangements attended this session. This has enabled them to better meet the needs of all learners who require alternative assessment arrangements for the 2024 exam diet. Page 41 of 151
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ASN Parent Network An ASN Parent Network was established in 2023-2024. The terms of reference have been agreed and will be reviewed at the first meeting in 2024-2025. The ASN parent working group will play a key role in partnership with senior officers to develop ASN policies and procedures. ASN Network The ASN Network met quarterly with 75% attendance. Digital Inclusion and Learning training and updates were delivered to the network members in collaboration with CALL Scotland at each meeting. An Education Scotland training session took place, in which learning from recent special school, provision and ASN HMIE inspections was shared. All staff reported that they valued these sessions and were able to implement strategies to support ASN learners within their settings. During 2024-2025, moderation of assessment of learners training will be built into the ASN Network meetings. Dyslexia working party A working party was established to engage professionals from across Midlothian schools to improve the processes for supporting learners with dyslexia. 30 education staff (from across all ASGs) joined the working party, including primary, secondary and ASN staff. The majority of staff attended six meetings during 2023-2024. Staff, parents and Education Scotland were consulted and provided feedback around their individual experiences around identifying and supporting learners with dyslexia. Drafts of all support guidance have been created and will be ready to be consulted on in 2024-2025. Transition ASN 14+ Transition Forum A working party was established to review the forum previously known as the 16+ ASN Forum. Since August 2023 referrals from schools have been encouraged for those 14+ to ensure an appropriate transition to a positive destination. The group have met twice this academic year to adjust the referral paperwork and discuss the best way to track progress of learners with ASN when they leave school. The Education team were represented on the Midlothian Transition Working Group which is looking to develop a multi-agency Transitions policy for learners with complex needs. The group have met twice since October 2023 to set the terms of reference and discuss the outline of the transition guidance. In addition, a self-evaluation of transitions for learners with ASN was undertaken by education staff and was fed back to the wider group to inform next steps. Getting Transitions Right training by Association for Real Change (ARC) was arranged for the ASN Central Team and Principal Teachers of ASN provisions within the authority. 16 education staff attended in May and June 2024. Community, Lifelong Learning and Employability CLD builds skills for learning, life and work. Overall, this quarter 3499 people have engaged with CLLE services across 355 opportunities. With 156 home visits. 290 people accessing our services live in SIMD 20% and 1388 from SIMD 40%. In addition, 38 community groups have received support and advice from CLLE. New CLD Partnership Plan 2024 to 2027 is out for a final consultation and will progress to both the Community Planning Partnership Board and Council for formal endorsement. Employability Highlights Page 42 of 151
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1. We are delighted to announce in partnership with city deal a new jobs site has been created for jobs at Straiton and the first dedicated partnership recruitment with Nandos has been completed successfully at Straiton. 2. The childcare review stage 1 has been completed and we are moving into stage 2 consultation with parents. All Age Employability Impact Quote: “Thank you for all you help & support during my time here, even though my communication is not very strong. I am still working and enjoying my job in hospitality and have met lots of nice people whilst learning the trade.” Employability for All Ages (who are not parents including young people) This Quarter All Age Employability team have been continuing to provide support to 197 people. The engagement throughout the summer has been consistent with little drop off which is positive. Our team is supporting 197 people across the All Age with 31 new starts from this quarter. • 7 have moved onto employment, self-employment or modern apprenticeship • 38 have moved onto further/higher education • 12 have achieved a work related/accredited qualification • In July 2024 the Communities, Lifelong Learning and Employability service (CLLE) created a four-week construction work experience opportunity for NOLB participants. The purpose being to upskill and develop individual learner knowledge and experience of the construction industry supporting their progression towards a positive destination. Alongside practical skills the learners were trained up on their CSCS card with employability skills embedded into the learning throughout the programme. • Dedicated transition and ongoing support have been successful for young people moving into college. Parental Employability Support funded through NOLB Scottish Government The team has continued to support 166 existing parents on our caseloads from the year 23-24 and a further 75 new parents starting in Quarter 2. • 26 parents have entered employment, self-employment or progressed in employment. • 21 parents have achieved a total of 38 work related/ accredited qualifications ranging from REHIS, First Aid, National 4 Care, CSCS, LGV, IT, Food Allergy and Intolerance Training and SIA door supervisor. There has been an increase this quarter in new referrals for parents seeking employability support this was 40 in Q1 and now there have been 75 new referrals in Q2 with 16 of these being from a minority ethnic background. The new NHS paid work experience pilot across the Lothian’s has 4 people from Midlothian participating which was our maximum funded places. A variety of new opportunities have been offered by CLLE or funded partners these include prepare to care training, ICT courses for Dads with SQA qualification, security officer training, preparation and next steps course, family learning over the summer to sustain engagement with parents who have childcare responsibilities over the summer and find it challenging to engage in adult only activities. Parental Employability Impact Statements: “I would not have got my job if it hadn't been for my Key Worker letting me know about the post. I applied straight away and was offered an interview the next day and was successful in getting the job. PES is a friendly service, and I still pop in to say hello. I would let any parent looking for work know about the service. There are so many courses available in PES and children are made to feel welcome too." Youth Work Page 43 of 151
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A very successful Hackathon was held with 67 young people participating in thematic discussion groups including equally safe to the environment, safety in the community and home. Summer school transition work with over 80 young people participating in confidence and wellbeing activities which evaluated very well and cluster reports are available. Street work is actively taking place on Friday evenings this is in targeted areas based on Police intelligence, in the last few months the team have been in a variety of places including Straiton, Penicuik, Gorebridge and Dalkeith. 10 young carers successfully completed Ocean Youth Trust challenging which included a 5-night sailing expedition around the West Coast of Scotland and achieved the associated qualifications. Launched the Midlothian Youth Awards - Midlothian’s Young People Awards | Midlothian Council All youth clubs and targeted work has recommenced in September 2024. Our full range of activities can be found on the CLLE padlet. Midlothian Council - CLLE (Communities, Lifelong Learning and Employability) (padlet.com) 207 local people have enrolled in the paid for adult learning programme which is offering a variety of courses as advertised locally and booked through Eventbrite for example Spanish, French, Painting, Dress Making. The adult learning programme fees pay for the tutors who deliver these courses. There are also a variety of community-based adult learning activities and family learning on offer including: Exploring Nature Walks, Mindfulness for Wellbeing, Creative Writing, National 4 Numeracy, Digital Skills for Beginners, Emergency First Aid at Work, Family Gaelic Gardening, Family Cooking and Family Crafts. The CLLE Summer Family Learning programme had a busy 4 weeks including cooking, crafts, pottery and lego movie making. Free of charge opportunities, including a snack, were offered 3 days a week across the county “The kids really enjoyed making lots of different clay ideas. Mum even enjoyed making something!” Literacy, Numeracy and ESOL Support The last three months has seen the end of the extra funding that we received for the Hong Kong BNO Employability project. However, the funding allowed us to run extra ESOL for Employability sessions over the summer, which were very positively received and led to positive destinations for several of the learners with whom we worked. It also allowed us to work with the Volunteer Midlothian Conversation Cafe to facilitate ‘cultural’ outings to Dalkeith Country Park and the National Museum of Scotland. We have successfully enrolled several new learners to our mainstream ESOL classes which successfully began again in September, while we continued to provide extra ESOL support to Afghan refugees and deliver more informal Conversation Groups. Lipreading sessions continue in Penicuik and local advertising has been improved, leading to enrolment of some new learners for the group. We are now providing more opportunities for Adult Literacy at Eskdaill Court, with a group focussing on Basic Literacy meeting on Monday mornings and another group for Level 3 and 4 meeting on Wednesdays – as well as providing several 1:1 sessions for learners who require extra confidence and support. Community Capacity Building/Community Development and Reducing Poverty CLLE (Community Development staff) have worked to support a diverse range of partners including Community Councils, Development Trust and other community groups as well as providing support work for the cost-of-living task force and child poverty action group. Page 44 of 151
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Community Development staff continue to support organisations through the asset transfer process, liaising with council departments and acting as the main point of contact. Community Development staff support the Trusted Partners delivering cash first supports for Midlothian residents struggling with the cost of living, this includes delivering “Worrying About Money” leaflet awareness training, ongoing monitoring, signposting and identifying trends. Community Development staff are supporting the development of a Food Pantry Network funded through the Cost-of-Living Taskforce and delivered by Mayfield and Easthouses Development Trust. Community Development staff have supported the users of the MARC Building on Woodburn Road to secure building improvements – internal painting, a new heater and oven, from Kiers Construction to make the space welcoming and accessible, users are also getting supported to set up as a SCIO to support further use of the building and to look at external funding to support future developments. Community Development staff support the child poverty action group by supporting 4 main work streams – data and indicators for measuring child poverty, equitable provision of income maximisation advice service, the roll out of poverty awareness sessions to council departments and Trusted Partners and the support and monitoring of the Child Poverty Accelerator Fund, a lived experience community research project delivered by Midlothian Surestart in partnership with Midlothian Council, CLLE acting as the sponsor and providing staffing expertise to train community researchers. Review of the Scheme for Community Councils. Held 7 county-wide consultation and engagement events. Input from local residents, community groups and Midlothian Federation of Community Council members has informed the first 2 stages of the process. The co- production of the revised scheme will develop and enhance the operation of Midlothian’s Community Councils, supporting them in their work to engage and work with the local communities they represent. Remembering Together (Midlothian) project Remembering Together is a national creative community co-creation project. In Midlothian, work undertaken during the last 3 years involving a partnership with CLLE, residents, community groups, environmental groups, Greenspace Scotland and the project artist (project lead) has supported the co- creation, design and development of 3 community-based gardens that will be Covid memorial spaces. As a result of the engagement and co-creation activities during the summer period, memorial benches featuring motifs created and designed by community members have been installed in Easthouses, Rosewell and Penicuik parks. These accessible memorial spaces include planting of native species of shrubs, flowers and trees, providing a place for Midlothian residents to sit, reflect and remember their loved ones. Challenges: • The funding landscape, changes and uncertainties pose risks to the services delivered by CLLE and partners. • There has been a sharp rise in parents seeking childcare advice through parental employability • Demand for street workers to support police with antisocial behaviour is outstripping the resource CLLE has available for street work which equates to 4 workers per week for 3 hours each. • Again, for youth work access to buildings for young people which have no cost and are suitable remains a challenge for one area we are now being charged £30.00 an hour up to £150 per night for specific facilities. Page 45 of 151
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• Securing adult learning tutors to delivery qualifications at National 5 and Highers is very challenging but essential to be able to offer adults evening access to upskilling their access qualifications for higher paid jobs and entry into FE/HE whilst having daytime commitments. External Funding Update Shared Prosperity Funding will cease on the 31st of March 2025, these funds were to replace European Funding to date (23rd October 2024) no announcements have been made in relation to any new funds. Currently there are underspends which are in the process of being allocated. Page 46 of 151
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Pentana Performance Dashboard Quarter 2 - Education Page 47 of 151
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Cabinet Tuesday 5 November 2024 Item No 5.4 Children's Services, Partnership and Communities Performance Report Q2 23/24 “All children, young people, adults and families in Midlothian are supported to be the best they can be. This is achieved through a nurturing, respectful and collaborative approach that promotes wellbeing, equity and inclusion.” Community Priorities The Community Planning Partnership (CPP) draw together public, voluntary and private sector bodies, and local communities to deliver a shared ‘plan’ to improve the lives of local people based on evidence. In Midlothian, the plan is called the Single Midlothian Plan (SMP). This is a shared partnership plan of how we will meet the needs of our local communities and brings together all the priorities for Midlothian into one place. Our outcomes for the next five years are: • Individuals and communities have improved health and learning outcomes, • No child or household need live in poverty • Significant progress is made towards net zero carbon emissions by 2030. In Midlothian the Getting It Right for Every Child Board (GIRFEC) is one of the subgroups of the SMP, and one of the main drivers for the effective delivery of services to children. The GIRFEC Plan also known as the Integrated Children’s Service Plan 2023-2026, is a statutory three-year plan devised by the local authority and health. The plan develops key outcomes and priority actions which are designed to improve the lives of children, young people, and families. The new 3 year plan has now been approved towards the end of 2023. The plan has 12 shared priority themes, outcomes and actions which sit within 4 subgroups, namely: 1. Children & Young People’s Rights 2. Children & Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing 3. Whole Family Wellbeing 4. Information Sharing and Commissioning We are fully committed to realising a children’s rights approach to all of our work and ensuring that we embed the principles of the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) alongside our Promise commitments. Progress and Achievements Page 48 of 151
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The Promise Midlothian continues to progress towards the key foundations of The Promise Scotland Plan 2024-2030. Committed to listening and acting on the feedback from the voices of our care experienced children and families, we secured a 3 year contact with Who Cares? Scotland to support delivery of a participation strategy and to re-fresh our current ‘champion’s boards’. This work is currently being shared across the entirety of Midlothian and wider partnerships to raise awareness of The Promise and Corporate Parenting duties. Who Cares? Scotland Awards In August Who Cares? Scotland held the first ever Corporate Parenting awards ceremony. The aim of the awards was to recognise and celebrate transformative and innovative practice from the past ten years and most importantly highlight how this has benefitted Care Experienced people. Young people in Midlothian had nominated the council for the Stable Foundations, and Outstanding Corporate Parent categories. We were thrilled to be awarded first place in both categories. Referrals: For the second quarter we are seeing a sustained reduction in referrals. This is a result of work over the past year to ensure that referrals coming into social work were appropriate and referrals for early support were redirected to TATC and the Wellbeing Service. It is important to note that Q2 is also includes the summer holidays and we typically see less referrals when schools are on holiday. This said the majority of referrals are now child protection referrals and numbers remains high for a small team. Child protection is both complex and challenging and requires workers with experience to undertake assessments and manage and understand the risks. Given the ongoing workforce issues around being unable to recruit experienced workers, we continue to find it challenging with regard to the allocation of this work. The lack of experience across children and families social work practice is becoming more challenging. Newly qualified workers are unable to take child protection work although they can be a good support in helping out in very complex cases with an experienced worker taking the lead. We shall continue to review this position as a senior officer group to ensure workers are supported and to offer reassurance that we are managing risk. Number of referrals by Quarter 22/23 23/24 24/25 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 2,155 2,212 2,023 2,626 2,353 2,067 1,436 1,324 1,170 932 Family Wellbeing Service The Family Wellbeing Service is now well established and working hard to engage with schools and early learning centres to identify families who may require additional support. The team moved to Easthouses Primary School with the start of the new school year. The new facilities will benefit both the staff and more importantly the parents as they shall have rooms where they can do some 1:1 work and have meetings. Team Around the Child (High School) has been tested and introduced to support more consistent and robust planning for high school aged children. This replicates the model that has been long established and successful for early years and primary schools. Team Around the Child (TATC) allows multi agency discussion about a child and their family’s needs, to create a plan about which service within the council or third sector are best placed to provide support in a timely manner. It avoids families or professionals having to send multiple referrals and provides access to the Family Wellbeing Service and other supports funded by the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund. Foster Carers Day out In July Family Centred Care supported 19 children and 21 Foster Carers to attend a Family fun day at Blair Drummond Safari Park. The trip was a great chance for our care experienced children and carers to come together. The feedback was very positive and carers told us they felt valued. We are now planning for a Christmas event. Page 49 of 151
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Summer Funding/Supports Over the Summer holidays, as part of reducing inequality and poverty Children’s Services gave a total of 272 families vouchers to enjoy activities which included soft play, trampolining, zoo trips, swimming, cinema, camera obscura, restaurants/clothes shopping, mini golf and laser tag. Over 45 of these activity vouchers were shared with families affected by disability who are awaiting assessment for self-directed support. Income Maximisation As part of our effort to reduce Child Poverty Children’s Services fund three income maximisation projects. These projects support families subject to Child Protection processes or those engaged with Hawthorn Family Learning centre and the Family Wellbeing Service. The three projects continue to support families to access their entitled benefits, grants and reduce debts. Over Q2 the projects collectively generated £186,175 income for 39 families. Child Protection and Looked After away from home population The data evidences that our looked after population is fairly static bearing in mind data changes on a daily basis. The differences in the data relate to one or two families coming into care, therefore this needs to be considered within this context. Overall across the past year the data has had no significant change, generally fluctuating from 140 – 152 children. The introduction of Family Group decision making, supports families to devise a plan which promotes families staying together with support from extended family. Further capacity for early support also contributes to keeping children out of care. The number of children’s names on the child protection register has also remained fairly consistent across the past year however once again a cautionary approach when looking at this data as two families can mean a significant increase in the numbers. The main reason for registering a child’s name on the register is the risk posed by parental mental health, this is a change from previous years where domestic abuse was the most common risk factor. Emotional abuse and domestic abuse remain very prevalent in registrations. Rate per 1,000 of Midlothian Looked After and Accommodated Children 22/23 23/24 24/25 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 6.9 6.9 6.8 6.7 6.5 6.6 7.2 7.4 8.6 6.8 *Scotland Average for 22/23 is 9.7 Rate per 1,000 population of Midlothian children on the Child Protection Register 22/23 23/24 24/25 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 1.1 2.3 2.7 2.4 3.8 2.7 1.9 2.2 3.5 2.6 *Scotland Average for 22/23 is 2.3 Disability Service and Self-Directed Support Our new Service Manager Emma Clater started in September. Emma is a very experienced service manager who shall be looking at creating a seamless transition between children, education and adult services for our service users. Emma has already made connections with key partners and is beginning to review processes and resources that will support the creation of a Children’s Servies Disability team. This team will hold experience and provide continuity of support for children and families needing to access this service. This service shall also have overall responsibility for self-directed support work ensuring that assessments and reviews are undertaken in a timely way to minimise gaps in support. Furthermore this will allow a better understanding of gaps in service provision to promote strategic partnerships and commissioning to address gaps in community support and resources. Page 50 of 151
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Challenges and risks Workforce: Midlothian continues to experience the same staffing issues encountered by other Councils. As noted in previous quarterly reports, there is a national shortage of experienced and skilled staff across the sector. This has resulted in us having to increasingly rely on locum workers who are both expensive but also do not offer continuity to service users. As already reported in previous quarters this is both a local and national issue which is trying to be addressed via the National Social Work Agency. As a service we are seeking ways to make permanent roles more attractive and considering ways to ensure we support and retain our existing workforce. Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children We continue to work with our Home Office colleagues to discuss the distribution of UASC who arrive mainly in Kent on small boats. Most local authorities in Scotland are at capacity regarding having no more foster or residential capacity to accommodate these young people. We therefore must think differently around how we are all going to manage this ever-increasing demand. Over the past quarter we have supported two young people into our care. They are well supported by our local team of workers and offered the same opportunities as our local Care Experienced young people. 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. This work is one of the key priorities for the GIRFEC Board Mental Health subgroup. Partners are seeking solutions to support children, families and schools with the delay in assessment and support from CAMHS. We need to consider the how we deliver sustainable options locally for children and young people with ASN and Complex and Enduring Needs. Financial Pressures Finance is an ongoing challenge across the council. Budget consultation and proposals have a significant impact on how we support Children and their families. We must ensure that we have sufficient capacity within our workforce and resources to meet the increasing demand faced by the service as the population continues to grow. Within Children services we continue to review how we meet our statutory requirements and provide early and enhanced support which reduces the burden on statutory services. This will remain and ongoing challenge as we plan for the new financial year. Priority 1: Ensure the Midlothian Wellbeing Service is aligned with other family supports across Midlothian Key achievements this quarter: - The same TATC process is now in place across all ages. This ensures that FWS is considered in line with all other supports available. This is a change in process for high schools but is getting positive feedback. - Funding for specialist supports now in place, remaining funding to be used for targeted commissioning – data re gaps in service being collected via TATC. - Data collection and performance indicators for the team have been defined and are in place. Data to now be drawn and reviewed for performance reporting and service developments. Work ongoing to create data dashboards and management information. - Family Learning review underway. This will collate information about all the available learning in place for families, the data about staff skills and examine the gaps in skills and service provision. Priority 2: Develop a transitions strategy and pathway across Children’s Services, Education and Adult Health & Social Care Page 51 of 151
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Key achievements this quarter: - The Service Manager (Disability) has now commenced in role and is making key connections across the partnership - Proposal for Disability team has been agreed and planning began to realign resources and review processes. - Transitions policy is currently in review - New Service Manager has taken over as lead. Priority 3: Maintain supports offered by Family Group Decision Making and Kinship staff to ensure children remain with birth/ kin families. Key achievements this quarter: - 24 family referrals during this quarter. - 15 family meetings held in Q2. The slight reduction in meetings aligned with staff leave and absence. - Increased service capacity with the recruitment of a new part time worker. - We remain on target to increase the numbers of kinship assessments completed year on year. - Additional capacity created to complete Kinship Assessments with new worker aligned to this work. 2 workers will increase capacity but also support to ensure assessments are robust. - The Kinship workers are now aligned with Family Based Care which will in time increase the support offered to Kinship Carers to be more in line with the offer for Foster Carers. - Kinship policy is now out for consultation with stakeholders, colleagues and management. Priority 4: Strengthen the number of staff who understand the importance of trauma informed practice Key achievements this quarter: - Of the 21 staff trained in Trauma informed practice in Q2, 8 were from Children's services - Further training sessions in Trauma informed practice and Level 2 sessions are being rolled out throughout 24/25. Agreed 17 people to do University level qualifications. - Psychological consultations commenced as part of staff support and wellbeing. This will be trialled until November and then decisions made about continuing or amending this service. Page 52 of 151
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Pentana Performance Dashboard Quarter 2 – Children’s Services, Partnerships and Communities Page 53 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary Adult Services protect and improve the wellbeing of the people and communities of Midlothian. We help people get the right support, in the right place, at the right time. Adult Social Care Services 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. 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 Adult Social Care Services Q2 24/25 Performance Report Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 5.4 Page 54 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary 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. Staff 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 Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 was introduced in October 2008. It provides duties, powers and measures for the support and protection of adults who may be at risk of harm. Under section 3 (1) of the Act an "adult at risk" is a person aged sixteen or over who meets all of the following criteria (commonly referred to as the ‘three point test’): • 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 than those not so affected. The ASP Team undertake a range of duties to identify, minimise and manage risk and ensure that all suspicions, disclosures or actual harm are acted upon. Measures to protect adults need to be considered in the context of wider range of support services and an ASP investigation may highlight gaps in support. In these instances, an assessment of need should be undertaken to identify and develop an outcomes focused care plan. The Public Health Practitioners work to support services to improve wellbeing and reduce health inequalities for the people of Midlothian. We support staff to design and deliver services that support early intervention and prevention. We make connections and share good practice about how to avoid inequalities, and we monitor and evaluate 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. Justice and Protection Services Page 55 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary The work undertaken by the Justice Service supports work ongoing to achieve progress in: • Single Midlothian Plan Priorities: Individuals and communities have improved health and skills for learning, life and work. • Single Midlothian Plan Themes: Midlothian Will be Safer • National Health & Wellbeing Outcomes: Living in the Community, Positive Experiences and Dignity, Quality of life, Health inequalities, Safe from harm Individuals become formally involved with Justice Social Work at the point of conviction when a Court makes a request for a Justice Social Work Report; requests for assessment and risk management planning are received from the Scottish Prison Service and the Parole Board. Between 1st July and 30th September 2024, the team received 176 requests for reports, an increase of 3% on last quarter. Table 1 shows the reports requested over each of the 3 months. Table 2 represents the type of report that have been requested. The main type of report is the Justice Social Work Report (JSWR), and these are requested by a Sheriff or Judge to inform sentencing. Home Leave Report: (HLR), Throughcare Assessment for Release on Licence (TARL) and Home Detention Curfew (HDC) are reports requested by the Scottish Prison Service or Parole Board for Scotland for those who are progressing through their custodial sentence. Staff in the Justice Service work with men and women subject to Community Payback Orders who present with a wide range of presenting risk and needs. This includes individuals with mental health, substance use, adverse childhood experiences, trauma and negative experiences of education and or employment. Staff working within Justice Services require the appropriate level of support and training to enable them to effectively engage with people to progress interventions towards positive changes in behaviour. An important part of ensuing that men and women in the justice system have ease of access Justice and Protection Services– Performance Measures Page 56 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary to services and resources is the provision of robust community-based alternatives to custodial sentences as it enables individuals to remain in their community, maintain relationships and ensures continuity of care. The main community-based sentence is a Community Payback Order (CPO), which can have several requirements attached to it. The most frequently imposed requirements are Supervision and Unpaid Work. During Q2 the Courts imposed 50 Community Payback Orders, Table 3 shows how many of these included the main two requirements and Table 4 shows the other types of requirements; there is no maximum number of available requirements that can be imposed, and this is determined by the assessment and the recommended disposal suggested by the author of the JSWR. The only ‘rule’ is that Unpaid Work is the only requirement that can be imposed without the need for a Supervision Requirement also being in place. It is essential to establishing and maintaining confidence in community-based sentences that there is assurance that robust action is taken on non- compliance. To be able to comply with the requirements of the order the individual has to understand the expectations and consequences of non- compliance and it is important that staff are skilled in being able to engage with people effectively. Justice Social Work staff use a trauma informed and person-centred approach to develop effective working relationships with clients. In the interests of justice, and to maintain the public confidence in community sentences, all missed appointments, or failure to comply, are responded to robustly using disciplinary procedures which can result in the order being returned to court in breach. During the breach process we continue to seek to engage individuals to re-engage with interventions to reduce and manage the risk of re-offending. Table 5 illustrates the percentage of individuals who have been breached and those with whom we have been able to maintain effective engagement with during the breach process. Page 57 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary The work undertaken by our Unpaid Work Team is underpinned by the ideals of reparation, rehabilitation and reintegration to support those who have been convicted of offences to achieve a positive destination and provide meaningful benefit to our local communities. Those undertaking unpaid work have the opportunity to gain a range of skills, experiences and opportunities to promote their rehabilitation and ability to desist from offending. Table 6 shows the qualifications achieved during quarter two by those undertaking a CPO with an Unpaid Work Requirement. Q2 Feedback from people on CPO’s: One person subject to a CPO stated that they owed a "massive thanks [to their worker] for everything". They went on to describe themself being a "shell" when they started on their CPO and the work as part of their Supervision Requirement, and that they were "totally lost" and in "a land of the unknown". They said that the work their social worker undertook with them helped them to understand what is going on for both them and other people, and that only they have the ability to choose how to respond to difficult feelings or situations. Another person subject to a CPO said they had thought their CPO would be “pointless at the start” but reflected that they have found it really useful. They said they feel more approachable and willing to approach people. Prior to supervision, they didn’t see being homeless as a "big deal”, but their social worker encouraged them to push for more stable accommodation and to see the benefit of this in terms of their stability and wellbeing. Engaging in psychological services was voluntary and they said they have learned more about themself in relation to understanding and managing their mood and emotions. They said they were "really keen to keep that going!" with the work that they have been engaging. Reflecting on their behaviour within intimate relationships, they said “I’m better in my relationship with (current partner) both through (supervision requirement) and through psych therapy, I listen better and communicate better. Day 1 I felt I didn’t need massive changes. Not saying actions were right but couldn’t think of any other way to react. Despite this, I feel I’ve bettered myself and used the opportunity. Accept I shouldn’t have made threats and that I “lost my head.” They were able to reflect that through the process of undertaking offence-focused interventions their partner and others in their life, including work mates, have said that they have noticed positive changes in how they react to situations. 22 Qualifications Gained: 13 Health and Safety in the Workplace (Level 4) 6 Open University 3 CSCS Card Page 58 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary Key achievements this quarter: • The health inclusion team continue to provide outreach and have carried out a health assessment with 111 people since April 2024. Have mostly helped people with housing, substance use, and welfare rights issues this quarter. • Five actions collaboratively achieved with other areas of the organisation involving early intervention/prevention. • Chaired a group of stakeholders from East and Midlothian to scope a pilot looking at the feasibility of technology enabled care to help as a harm reduction measure to substance use. To help link this with national work and gain learning from other areas, attended a webinar hosted by Scottish Government sharing practice and learning on digital as a Human Right with Digital Lifelines Scotland and Drugs Research Network for Scotland. • Reviewed and updated quarter 2 data for the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment working alongside data colleagues in NHS Lothian Intelligence team and published on the Health and Social Care Partnership website. The updated data has been used to update the community justice needs assessment which was reported as helpful to give context to the offending we see in Midlothian and shows the complexities that our clients face. The data has also been used to update the NHS Lothian healthcare governance committee, specifically the inequalities data section in the annual report. • Attended Community Planning Partnership conference, hosting a marketplace to raise awareness of green health prescribing to colleagues. New links made with climate action hub lead and adult learning lecturer from Newbattle Abby College. Further meetings planned to link work up around green health in Midlothian. • Learning session planned with physiotherapists and wider HSCP staff to share findings of the Masters dissertation hosted in Midlothian, to explore views, improve processes and raise awareness of green health prescribing within the HSCP. • Better ME (WSA): This project will help the people of Mayfield and Easthouses to have more access to healthy food options, keep physically active and have more money in their pockets. Currently have completed 6mnth evaluation. One particular project has developed a cooking group for young men, they have reported an increase in confidence in cooking and also being able to try new foods. • Developing weight stigma post that will focus on helping practitioners develop skills and confidence to talk about client’s weight, it will also raise awareness of the bias and stigma professionals have with overweight and obese people. • Promote a public health agenda and increase strategic partners. Members of various groups including trauma training steering group, Mid & East Lothian Drug and Alcohol Partnership Group, Midlothian Suicide Prevention Group, Equally Safe Strategy Leadership Group, Midlothian will be Healthier Thematic Group, Lothian Green Health Network and the Third Sector Summit. Public Health Page 59 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary 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. 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. These include residential rehabilitation, recovery services to reduce isolation, and opportunities to be supported into education, training, volunteering, and employment. MELDAP aims include: • Reduce the harm to individuals and promote recovery from substance use • Protect children and young people affected by parental substance use • Promote early intervention to prevent the harmful use of alcohol and drugs • Develop high quality services responsive to the changing needs of people who use and need our services Key achievements this quarter: Due to the scheduling of the reporting, Q2 sees the annual release of the nationally published drug deaths and Alcohol Specific Deaths data. The following is an in-depth exploration of the data as they relate to Midlothian. In Midlothian there was an increase in the numbers of those who passed away due to drug misuse from 4 in 2022 to 20 in 2023. The 5-year average rate is 18. Whilst strongly welcomed, within a 5-year context, the marked reduction to 4 in 2022, was a significant outlier and it was challenging to attribute this to any specific factors. Drug misuse remains a complex and multi-factorial area for analysis. The individuals most at risk from drug related harm and premature death are those who suffer multiple and often complex disadvantage. This includes: • Poor physical and mental health, experienced trauma at some stage in their lives • Unemployment • Unstable housing • Involvement with the criminal justice system • Family or relationship breakdown Mental Health and Substance Use Page 60 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary Nationally in 2023, people who are from areas of deprivation are 15 times more likely to die from a Drugs Misuse Death than those from the least deprived areas of Scotland. High risk patterns of drug use, especially poly-drug/street drug use has increased, and the combined toxicity of different drugs are amplifying the harm, e.g. Bromazepam, Nitazine type drugs, Cocaine, Methadone, Diazepam and Pregabalin. Scotland has a higher prevalence rate in the general population of drug use with a higher rate of problem drug use than England (1.62% compared with 0.74%) and other European countries. Essentially, we have more people using the types of drugs that contribute to a fatality and therefore, we have greater rates of death. It is considered that the combined toxicity of opioids, cocaine and benzodiazepines can be particularly fatal. In addition, in Scotland there are higher rates of co-occurring physical health problems amongst this group. This is a national comparison and not specific to particular areas of Scotland nor England. The Scottish Affairs Committee have also theorised a link between certain types of adverse childhood experiences such as having a parent in prison/parents using substances/domestic violence might be more prevalent an/or has a greater detrimental impact in Scotland leading to higher levels of drug use but there is not a higher level of other types of adverse childhood experiences [ACEs], so it is not possible to draw definite conclusions. Alcohol Specific Deaths 2023 In Midlothian there was a slight reduction in the numbers of those who passed away, 17 in 2022 to 15 in 2023. These figures do not include people who died from an alcohol related disease. Alcohol use has been linked to seven types of cancer; colon, liver, breast, mouth, larynx, oesophageal, rectum. Nationally in 2023, people from areas of deprivation are 4.5 times more likely to die from an Alcohol Specific Death than those from the least deprived areas of Scotland. From previous research we know that people who die of alcohol-specific causes are: • Likely to be drinking 180-220 units per week [The recommended weekly units for adults is 14] and unaware of physical conditions related to drinking until severe damage is done. • Often isolated, socially and from supports, for prolonged periods. Actions • The Contact Service provides a direct point of contact for all substance use related services across Midlothian and East Lothian. • Edinburgh and Lothian Council on Alcohol [ELCA] is funded by MELDAP and provides a counselling service in Bonnyrigg and Dalkeith which covers all of Midlothian. Page 61 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary • In relation to prevention activities, MYPAS provide support to young people affected by their own alcohol and drug use. • Services are actively engaged with wider partners widen the coverage of Naloxone. • Safe Storage Boxes which contain a range of harm reduction equipment, advice and Naloxone are offered to all high-risk people. • MELD delivered a Naloxone stall at the Tesco store in Dalkeith as part of Overdose Awareness Day on Saturday 31st August. Naloxone/Nyxoid provided = 52 units • MELDAP has requested a doubling up of Naloxone kits issued as there have been changes in illicit drugs available (Nitazines). • Children 1st work with families to minimise the harm to children affected by parental substance use. • Home Drug Testing strips are now supplied to alert people to the possible presence of Nitazines and Xylazine. Substance Use Services provide assertive outreach to people who have experienced non-fatal overdoses. • Midlothian services have consistently delivered above the 90% [Q1 -98.44%] access standard for substance use services. • MELDAP is to establish a working group with a focus on engaging and supporting people who use cocaine/crack cocaine and other psychostimulant drugs. There is a need to influence local decision makers in the need to minimise the impacts of poverty, deprivation and lack of opportunity. Page 62 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary Substance Use – Data for Drug Related Deaths 7 4 8 8 7 6 8 19 14 18 21 23 4 20 0 5 10 15 20 25 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Drug Misuse Deaths 2023 In Midlothian there was an increase from 4 in 2022 to 20 in 2023 2023 data for Scotland and 4 Lothian Integrated Joint Boards (IJB) against 2022 Drug Misuse Deaths Scotland Midlothian East Lothian West Lothian City of Edinburgh All 1172 + (121) 20 (+16) 20 (+3) 31 – (1) 111 – (2) Males 805 + (113) 12 (+10) 14 (+2) 23 + (1) 78 – (4) Females 367 + (8) 8 (+6) 6 (+1) 8 – (2) 33 + (2) Alcohol Specific Deaths - Midlothian 18 17 15 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 2021 2022 2023 Changes from 2022 to 2023 Page 63 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary Adult Social Care Services – Challenges and Risks This quarter has seen continued pressures on the workforce, in keeping with the national picture. A lack of experienced workers with certain required specialisms continues to challenge our small specialist teams. Gaps within our Team Lead capacity has required us to look to agency staff to ensure the oversight of safe and effective practice. We have also focused on how we can best use our Planning Officers with a renewed commitment to a collective approach to contract monitoring and commissioning. This will go some way to ensuring our performance against contract monitoring is improved. Financial saving plans continue to underpin the majority of manager’s workstreams. The project leading on reviewing the community care packages continues to prove challenging. The Review Team are working through the more complex packages and subsequently this is identifying a number of strategic, operational and practice development opportunities. It is anticipated that gaps and challenges will be addressed through the Social Work and Occupational Therapy Review. Waiting list data, demand and capacity alongside case examples will assist in the ongoing development of a project methodology. Work around Transitions continues to create pressures within service areas. Young people moving from children to adult services bring a host of challenges. Financial pressures, family and carer expectations and caring environments and opportunities all need to be considered creatively and within the wider context of available resources and financial sustainability. Specialist rehabilitation housing for individuals with complex mental health needs remains a pressure. Without grade 5 and grade 4 (nursing provision) community based rehab offerings, a number of Midlothian residents may require to remain within acute hospital settings for longer than is necessary. Our mental health services are working hard with relevant stakeholders to look at potential solutions and future opportunities. We are seeing increasing need without our Resource Panel requests for long term care home placements. Need is currently outstripping availability of beds. This means we have individuals remaining in the community with substantial care packages whilst waiting for more suitable residential care. The subsequent consequence on ‘flow’ from hospital to community is significant. Notably, there are also pressures for specialist under 65 accommodation. This results in individuals often living in less than appropriate facilities until there is availability, often out with our own local authority area. Page 64 of 151
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Adult Health and Social Care PI summary 21 Pentana Performance Dashboard A full review of quarterly performance data is available via Pentana (Browser login link – https://midlothian.pentanarpm.uk/login Page 65 of 151
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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; Protective Services and Sport & Leisure. Transformation Blueprint (2023-2028) We are committed to building on the learning and new ways of working that were adopted during the pandemic 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. Reprioritisation and redesign is crucial to balancing the Council’s financial position, as well as preparing for further challenges and changes that we will face. 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 the fastest growing local authority in Scotland, and delivering our vision of being a great, green place to grow. Place Q2 24/25 performance report Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 5.5 Page 66 of 151
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Transformation Blueprint Objectives 1. Support the Council to address the 5-year funding gap of 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 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 Key achievements Q2 24/25 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 the changing climate. A new Climate Change officer was appointed last quarter. As part of that role, a refresh of our Climate Change Strategy and underlying action plan is in development to support the Council and wider local authority partners in their collective journey to net zero across Midlothian. Economic Development continues to promote the Midlothian Business Green Pledge on social media and in direct conversations with clients to increase education and awareness of climate change and suggest adaptations. A total of 147 businesses have now committed to the Page 67 of 151
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Pledge with 21 of those signing up during quarter 2. The team continue to work with pledgers to identify the best platform for group sharing. Through the LinkedIn group, pledgers share their experiences and the team continue to share a mix of green information from partners on learning opportunities, support and funding. Road Services Up to this quarter, under the combined Capital Works Programme and Residential Streets Programme, a total of 7.70km of carriageway and 1.16km of footway was resurfaced. Representing 1% and 0.16% of the carriageway and footway network respectively. Carriageway resurfacing is on target for the quarter. Although footway surfacing is slightly behind target, good progress was made this quarter compared to last and it is expected to meet the annual target. 901.76 tonnes of material was used in quarter 2 to fill potholes. 199.48 tonnes of material was used for temporary repairs and 702.28 tonnes for pothole pro permanent patching. This is an increase of 127% compared to this period last year where 396.4 tonnes were used. The Pothole Pro project equated to 6,031m2 of permanent patching, repairing 967 potholes this quarter which is a 198% increase in square metres patched and a 12% increase on the number of pothole repaired compared to the same period last year. As part of the street lighting capital programme a target of 500 new lighting column replacements are planned for this year. Lighting column programme commenced towards the end of quarter 2 with 22 columns replaced. The vast majority of replacements will take place during quarter 3 and as such the annual target is expected to be made by the end of the year. In addition, a further 472 street light replacements are programmed for this year which include LED upgrades. 23 upgrades were completed during the first week of the programme. In this quarter 4 additional digital ‘school zone’ signs were installed utilizing Transport Scotland funds and the upgrade of CCTV installation Page 68 of 151
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at Shawfair park and ride started. Planning and resourcing for our Winter Service was complete this quarter with 2 new gritters due for delivery and over 3,000 tons of salt in stock. Waste and Recycling As part of a wider Neighbourhood Services review, a new management structure for the Recycling Team was implemented in quarter 1. This has resulted in streamlined management of the service which has already seen an increase in productivity and time management of front line teams. To further support the new management structure within the Recycling Team, the contract for the “digital depot” was awarded this quarter. The contract will provide digital in cab technology to all of the roadside collection vehicles within waste services. This will transform the way the front line service is delivered and will result in efficiencies and improved customer service. The team have continued to improve the way the service engages with residents in relation to enquiries and complaints. A new way of working has seen a significant improvement to customer service, resulting in a more responsive and timely service to residents who contact the team. In quarter 2 the food waste collection service was expanded to include a further 2,500 properties in the rural area. Initial figures show that this has been a great success with 2 tonnes of food waste collected in the first week alone. This is potentially 100 tonnes of food waste recycled rather than going into the residual bin. The expansion of the food waste collection service is the latest phase of the plan to transform the waste collection service as part of the move to twin stream recycling in 2025. Page 69 of 151
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Neighbourhood Environment Team Quarter 2 has seen the new Neighbourhood Environment Team become further established within the Recycling and Greenspace Service. The new team combines elements of the former street cleaning service with specialist elements of the greenspace team to create a new service that aims to improve the quality of the local environment for our residents. Across Midlothian, the Neighbourhood Environment Team has been carrying out the following works in our local communities: • Ensuring our streets remain clear of litter • Cleaning our bus stops so that they provide safe, clean shelter for residents • Emptying street litter bins • Spraying and removing weeds from footpaths and roads • Mechanical sweeping of roads and pavements • Ensuring pathways are clear of overhanging trees and shrubs • Keeping Midlothian clear of fly tipping • Edging back grass verges to reclaim overgrown footpaths • Power washing of high streets and public areas The team are currently prioritising leaf clearance to ensure that our footpaths and roads are clear of leaves to keep our public realm safe. We will then focus on a winter work programme which will see a deep clean of key routes throughout Midlothian. Page 70 of 151
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Play area improvements The team are continuing to deliver the play area improvements programme funded by the Scottish Government grant, with further projects planned for 2024 in play areas across Midlothian. Further updates will be provided as projects are developed throughout the year. 10 improvements across our play areas, parks and green spaces were completed up to and including this quarter. The team are currently installing a play trail at Ironmills Park. Village improvements During quarter 2 the Greenspace Team have been finalising plans to carry out clean up works in village areas to build on the success of the work in 2023 which saw improvements to 16 areas including; Pathhead, Leadburn, Fala, Howgate, Lasswade, Ford, Edgehead, Auchendinny, Newton village and Silverburn to date with works planned for Cousland, Carrington’ Millerhill, Temple, Whitehill and Middleton. The works will commence in quarter 3 and further details will be provided once the plans have been confirmed. Working with the community The Greenspace Team have continued during quarter 2 to work with our brilliant volunteers across Midlothian. The work we carry out jointly has a huge impact on the quality of the local environment and we are determined to strengthen these partnerships over the rest of 2024. Our volunteer groups provide added value to the work that we do with litter picking, gardening and fund raising to brighten our local areas. Up to and including this quarter, 3,342 volunteer hours (557 days) were spent in countryside sites. Volunteer numbers continue to remain high. Page 71 of 151
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Protective Services Our Business Regulations Food and Safety team continue to prioritise proactive interventions at food businesses registered with Midlothian Council with the highest risk for food safety and standards. These include retailers and caterers with significant or sustained non-compliances in food law. 18 out of 22 planned priority inspections were completed for this quarter and as such the official control verification visits to our approved premises planned for this year are on track. This quarter Food Standards Scotland issued a Food Alert for Action due to counterfeit alcohol being found in a retail premises in another local authority area in Central Scotland. Over 3 days officers from our Business Regulation Team carried out checks on over 40 small independent retailers in Midlothian. Counterfeit Glens vodka was found in 1 retail premises in Midlothian with 12 bottles being voluntarily surrendered by the premises manager. The test report provided by Edinburgh Scientific Services on a sample taken showed the product contained propan-2-ol (iso-propanol) from an industrial source. Propan-2-ol is harmful when consumed with symptoms including nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain, intoxication, respiratory depression and coma. Ingestion of any amount can lead to toxicity meaning the product was unsafe. Investigations are currently ongoing. A Remedial Action Notice was served on a Midlothian food manufacturer due to extensive mouse activity in the food preparation areas. The business was closed for 4 days to clean and disinfect the premises and implement control measures to control the mice. A further unannounced inspection has been carried out at the premises and found to be satisfactory, maintaining their control measures. During a programmed food inspection, a mobile street trader was found to be operating with no running water, relying on bottled water to wash hands and clean equipment and surfaces. The issue was resolved within 1 day and the unit now has a supply of running hot and cold water. A restaurant/takeaway in Gorebridge that was recently closed twice due to rat activity within the food premises was showing signs of improvement due to the intensive interventions of the Environmental Health Officers involved. However, a Health and Safety Improvement Notice had to be served on the duty holder to ensure the fixed electrical installation was safe due to evidence of damage to the wiring by rats. The notice was complied with after a short extension, however the electricians report showed remedial works are required and follow up is necessary. Page 72 of 151
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The Canadian Food Safety Institute visited the UK to carry out an audit on UK food manufacturers who export to Canada, and Local Food Authority official controls in place at these premises. An officer from Midlothian Council’s Food and Safety Team joined the Institute on their visit to one of Midlothian's largest manufacturers of meat products. Feedback was provided at the end of the visit to the business with a few minor points raised. They acknowledged the resourcing challenges Midlothian Council’s Food and Safety Team have and were satisfied with the official controls in place. The Food and Safety Team have recently appointed a trainee Authorised Officer. The officer took up post in September and has 6 months of training to complete requirements set by the Royal Environmental Health Institute for Scotland (REHIS). This is a very positive addition to the team and allows the officer to progress over time from a Food Safety Officer to an Authorised Officer with health and safety duties which then has the potential to gain qualifications to be an Environmental Health Officer. Our Trading Standards team received 48 consumer complaints this quarter, a decrease from 56 during the same period last year and 82 in Q1 of 22/23. 96% of consumer complaints were responded to within 5 working days and 84% completed within 14 days. Completion is not fully within service control and is dependent on traders and complainants responding to investigations. This year to date at least £22,065 has been returned to Midlothian consumers following Trading Standards involvement. Trading Standards prosecution cases continue this quarter with guilty pleas obtained in two cases and a further case submitted: • a sole trader pled guilty to operating a fraudulent scheme relating to retaining deposits for 9 bathrooms he did not provide, a total of £10,875.75. Trading Standards reported the case in 2022 with 15 complainers, 3 of whom were from Midlothian, under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. • a Mayfield shop owner pled guilty to intending to supply oversize vapes in June last year and was fined £500. • a report was submitted by Trading Standards to the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) for offences under the Trade Marks Act 1994. In December 2023 Police Scotland assisted Trading Standards in enforcing a warrant at a home in Gorebridge where a private Facebook group was being ran selling counterfeit goods, mainly brand clothing but also handbags and perfume. The private group may have had over 3,000 members and counterfeit goods were recovered from several buyers in Midlothian. Page 73 of 151
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As reported last quarter, 3 other cases are proceeding in court with a December trial date set after Trading Standards involvement. 39 Trading Standards primary inspections took place this quarter of a targeted 145 for the year, although off target, most inspections take place over quarters 3 and 4 so our overall annual target is expected to be met. Due to extensive inspections to farms and small holdings over the last year, only 8 small holdings/farms are required for inspection this year. This quarter 36 intelligence logs were recorded on IDB, the national Trading Standards Intelligence database (IDB) by our Trading Standards team. In comparison to other Scottish Councils, Midlothian continue to sit in the top quartile for logs created. Our Public Health Environmental Protection team successfully applied and were awarded college fee funding from Skills Development Scotland for two Regulatory Services Apprentice posts. Recruitment took place this quarter and apprentices will be in post during quarter 3. This new pilot apprenticeship scheme is aimed at partially addressing the national shortage of regulatory services officers and is hoped to assist future staffing requirements by providing a new route into the field of Environmental Health. The team received 290 public health service requests this quarter from Midlothian residents and businesses. A further 62 service requests were received from internal sources. Key activities for the Public Health Environmental Protection team this quarter included: • The issuing of 93 Short Term Let Licences under the new scheme • Progression to court of an animal welfare case reported to the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) earlier in 2024. A further case is currently being prepared and will be submitted in Q3 to the COPFS regarding alleged offences under the Antisocial Behaviour Scotland Act 2004 Part 8 Housing: registration of certain landlords • Planned out of hours assessments commenced this quarter to assess noise and others Environmental Health matters in Midlothian. These assessments include licensed premises. • A number of statutory notices were served this quarter regarding a various issues including fly-tipping and vermin. All notices served in quarter 2 have been complied with. • Investigations this quarter led to the identification of 2 unlicensed HMO’s both of which are now going through the licensing process. Page 74 of 151
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Neighbourhood Services – performance Energy from Waste 42.1% Recycled 43.9% Landfill 12.8% % OF ALL DISPOSED WASTE* 0.22% 0.44% 0.64% 0.01% 0.16% 1.23% 1.72% 2.15% 0.51% 1.00% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/34 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of Roads and footpath resurfaced (cumulative) % of Footpath % road network217 tonnes of carbon emissions saved from street lighting this quarter. 901.76 tonnes of material used to fill temporary and permanent potholes this quarter. 6,031m2 of permanent patching achieved this quarter. 967 potholes were permanently repaired this quarter. 3,300 5,244 6,990 1,890 3,342 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of vounteer hours in countryside sites (cumulative) Target (24/25 is 6,000) 10 park and greenspace improvements/new facilities complete up to this quarter out of 50 planned Other 1.2% *data shows figures for Q4 23/24. Q1 and Q2 24/25 not available until Q3. Page 75 of 151
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Protective Services – performance 36 48 35 66 35 3 4 7 18 73 3 6 4 2 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of abandoned vehicles (quarterly) Reported Notices served Vehicles removed for destruction 98% 100% 100% 100% 96% 90% 97% 81% 88% 84% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of Consumer complaints completed within 14 days responded to within 5 days 86% of food related service requests from mid residents and Businesses responded to with target of 10 working days. Food Standards 82% of Priority 1 and 2 premises receiving completed food law intervention in line with the service plan. 42 food law service requests received this quarter Public Health 96% of public health complaints receiving first response within timescale this quarter. 290 Public Health service requests received from residents and businesses this quarter. (360 in Q1). 48 consumer complaints received this quarter (decrease from 56 in Q2 23/24) 158 Civic Government license applications received in Q2 with 67% determined 106 liquor licence applications received in Q2 with 95% determined Trading Standards Page 76 of 151
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Housing Key achievements Q2 24/25 Meeting housing need The Council’s Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP) 2024/25 to 2028/29 was submitted to the Scottish Government during 23/24. The SHIP identifies the Council’s priorities for investment in new affordable housing in Midlothian over a 5 year period. The delivery of more affordable housing remains a high priority for Midlothian, as reflected by our ongoing and ambitious housing development programme. From March 2024 to date we have received the completed handover for 96 new build homes in Conifer Road, Mayfield, St Cuthberts in Bonnyrigg High Street and Buccleuch Wynd. This quarter 8 golden share applicants for low cost home ownership were reviewed and accepted. There were 6,564 active housing applicants placed on the Common Housing Register at the end of this quarter, a 25% increase compared to the same period last year. 144 lets were made this quarter, 6 houses were let through our Housing First model. 56 lets were made to new build and open market purchases. This quarter the team successfully made changes to our Capita ONE reporting system, through weeks of testing we now have the ability to record ‘rough sleepers’ in Midlothian, where our older system didn’t capture this level of detail. An initial review of our supported accommodation commenced this quarter to look at better ways we can support, protect and house women within our supported accommodation sites. More information on the review will be shared in the next few quarters. Page 77 of 151
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Homelessness There continues to be a significant demand placed on homeless and temporary accommodation services, alongside the increase in energy, food and fuel costs, requiring a comprehensive preventative approach. Homelessness is not inevitable and can often be prevented. The Homeless Persons (Suspension of Referrals between Local Authorities) (Scotland) Order 2022 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. The removal of the necessity to have a local connection to an area under this legislation has seen a shift in persons now presenting to Midlothian and as result the total number of households in temporary accommodation at the end of quarter 2 was 406, an increase of 23% compared to the same period last year. Although we did not experience immediate negative effects of this the changes to legislation, the impact is now changing and we continue to monitor the long terms effects. Despite a 34% increase in single male parents and added pressures of placing 44 households in unsuitable temporary accommodation, this quarter we successfully avoided breaching the Unsuitable Accommodation Order (UAO) due to the dedication and hard work of our Housing Team, moving people urgently and exchanging properties where tasks had been completed to be able to accommodate. Our aim is to reduce the length of time that an applicant is in Temporary Accommodation and through our Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan we see households moving through the homeless system more quickly. Officers take a proactive approach when allocating properties to place applicants in their area of choice where possible, increasing the opportunity to accept the property being flipped to permanency and allows for a more sustainable community. Latest figures from quarter 1 show the length of time homeless applicants waited until receiving a permanent housing outcome was 51 weeks, showing a continued downward trend from 106 weeks at quarter 1 of 22/23 and 58 weeks for quarter 1 last year. It should be noted figures for quarter 2 are not currently available however we expect current figures to remain within target. Similarly, figures for the length of time homeless applicants spent in temporary accommodation is currently not available the most recent available data for Q4 23/24 shows that an average of 40.3 weeks was spent in temporary accommodation compared to an average of 62 weeks over the same period in 22/23. Page 78 of 151
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It is expected that figures will continue to remain within our 60 week target. The number of temporary accommodation households that have been flipped to permanent accommodation was 74 this quarter, reducing the need for multiple moves before being permanently housed, allowing for links established within the local community to be maintained. Homelessness prevention assists around 20 households with advice and assistance about homelessness prevention per week. This is rental assistance advice, financial awareness advice and mediation. The number of homeless cases provided with advice and assistance this quarter was 222. We continue to promote this service to ensure early successful intervention when possible. Tenants sustaining permanent accommodation continues to be high this quarter with 97% of homeless applicants sustaining a permanent tenancy after 1 year. Page 79 of 151
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Building Maintenance The total number of jobs completed internally by our Building Maintenance Service this quarter was 7,925. A total of 15,977 jobs have been completed so far this year. Jobs include all reactive, planned works, voids and inspections. This year the Building Maintenance Service (BMS) Capital upgrade programme has been set at just over 3000 upgrades across our estate, continuing from achievements last year. These upgrades include the continuation of our new windows, doors, bathrooms and kitchen programmes helping Midlothian Council maintain its Scottish Housing Quality Standards. The service also aims to complete the remaining fire door installs to all our flats to ensure that we are also compliant with the latest fire regulations. This quarter we have increased the percentage of Council Housing stock meeting the Scottish Housing Quality Standards criteria to 76.55%. Although this is still off target there has been a significant increase from 34.3% meeting standards at Q2 of last year. Due to changes in the Energy Efficiency regulations affecting the Scottish Housing Quality Standards (SHQS) criteria, 431 houses were identified as failing the Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH). We have reduced these failures to meet 2025 targets. However, with the Electrical Installation Condition Reports (EICR’s) now part of the SHQS we found that 4733 were failing assessment. We have reduced this figure to 1,708 during quarter 2, resulting in 76.55% now meeting standard. Work is progressing to bring this indicator back on target. 100% of smoke alarms comply with current legislation. In line with our Damp and Mould policy the service continues to roll out the environmental sensors throughout our portfolio. This year BMS are aiming to install around 2,000 monitors across 1,000 homes. This continued roll out will provide us with valuable information from within our homes, allowing us to achieve our targets set out in our Damp and Mould policy. The information collated by the monitors is sent through to a portal using a gateway system that also monitors our smoke alarms. Page 80 of 151
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Housing – performance 47 32 45 23 47 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Time taken to re-let permanent accommodation properties (calendar days) 6,564 applicants on housing waiting list this quarter (General needs and Homeless) (increase from 5,251 in Q2 23/24). 58 58 58 44 51 Q1 23/24 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Length of time (weeks) homeless applicants wait until recieving a permanant housing outcome General needs 50.3% Homeless 49.7% % of lets made to applicants 141 housing lets this quarter. 56 Lets to new build and open market purchases this quarter. 6 Lets to Housing First applicants this quarter. 97% of Homeless applicants sustaining a permanent tenancy after 1 year. 62 46 58 39.5 40.3 Q4 22/23 Q1 23/24 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Length of time (weeks) homeless applicants spend in temporary accommodation Due to reporting issues, recent data for quarters 1 and 2 will not be available until quarter 3. Page 81 of 151
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Percentage of housing repairs completed on time this quarter: Building Standards Building Services – performance 15 hours Average time taken to complete emergency repairs for Q2. 34.3 49.3 59.47 72.1 76.55 0 50 100 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of Council housing meeting Scottish Housing Quality Standards (SHQS) (cumulative) 7,925 jobs completed this quarter by our Building Maintenance Service 95.72% of emergency repairs completed on time 89.15% of priority 2 repairs completed on time 87.14% of priority 3 repairs completed on time Building Standards customer satisfaction rate: 7.7 out of 10 58.0% 50.7% Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of first reports for building warrant applications issued within 20 working days 74.0% 72.4% Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of building warrants issued within 10 working days, following receipt of satisfactory information Page 82 of 151
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Economy & Regeneration Key achievements Q2 24/25 Midlothian Council’s Economic Renewal Strategy sets out our ambitious approach to managing the transition from pandemic 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. Work is ongoing to refresh the Economic Strategy and will be presented for approval to Council later in the year. Business gateway Service The Business Gateway Service has seen a similar level of demand this quarter compared to the same quarter last year. 52 ‘Planning to Start’ enquiries were received in Q2. Enquiries are received 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. The total number of new Business start-ups this quarter was 20, creating a total of 23 jobs and an estimated contribution of £1,020,000 to the Midlothian economy in their first year of trading. This is a Page 83 of 151
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decrease compared to 32 starts over the same period last year however the 52 ‘Planning to Start’ enquires this quarter means the pipeline is still healthy leading to more starts up over the next few quarters. of 13 new business starts. Business Gateway Expert Help Programme Work continues with our Net Zero Nation Programme which is supporting 13 diverse local businesses to accelerate their Net Zero Journey. The businesses will take part in 12-month Net Zero Business Accelerators with funding support from Midlothian Council/Business Gateway Midlothian. In return, they must sign an agreement where they commit to approach their Net Zero strategy and credible carbon reduction plan with vigour, speak at physical and online events to encourage other business leaders to start their own transition to Net Zero. The companies will receive a 12-month carbon accounting software license, an expert partner providing 1:1 support over 12 months to help them produce their audited carbon accounts, their carbon reduction plan produced, an auditor to verify and certify their carbon accounts and carbon reduction plan. After completion in December 2024, the team will commence case studies on the outcomes for businesses. Our first Learn e-Commerce Expert Help programme commenced last quarter in April. 18 businesses enrolled for the digital course, with 6 going on to receive 121 expert help guidance form the trainers. The feedback from clients has been extremely positive with tangible improvement to their businesses immediately felt. A second round of this programme has received a good level of interest with 13 businesses applying and now approved for programme with an estimated launch date during October. The team continue to provide expert help consultancy in financial management and Human Resources to support the Fair Work Policy to Business Gateway clients on an as needed basis. 30 businesses have been supported since the programme began, with budget left for another 20 interventions. Page 84 of 151
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Business Gateway Midlothian Summer Events A Business Gateway coffee morning was held on Friday 6th September 2024 at The Craigie Hotel in Penicuik. James Palmer, Development Director of Penicuik Estates, presented an in-depth picture of the plans for the estate, their green approach and the opportunities for partnering with the local business community. Skills Development Scotland, Edinburgh College and the team from the Workforce Mobility Project attended and had stands to introduce themselves to the business.44 businesses attended the event with the majority based in Penicuik and the surrounding areas. The next scheduled BG Coffee Morning is on Friday 8th November at the newly opened conference suite at Energy Training Academy in Dalkeith, Midlothian Energy LTD and the CR Deal Workforce Mobility Project will present. On the 6th July the Business Gateway team presented to the members of the Rosemains Steading Business Association on the forthcoming UKSPF grant. Focusing particularly on the exporting fund, 12 business attended the event. The team also presented at the Moredun Scientific Tenants Meeting within the Midlothian Science Zone on the 21st August, outlining the support Business Gateway offers and the UKSPF grant process. 17 businesses attended the event. Business Associations There are 3 active Business Associations in Midlothian covering Dalkeith, Penicuik and Pathhead within Midlothian. An event has been arranged for the 24th Of October to bring together Midlothian food and drink businesses to develop a business association. This will include producers and retailer. UKSPF Local Business Support Page 85 of 151
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The Green Skills programme to upskill local plumbers, heating engineers and electricians in the installation of Heat Pumps and Solar Panels/Battery Storage was launched this quarter. This programme will upskill in the region of 8 local tradespeople with a further 4 places available to unemployed people to access the Managed Learning Programme which takes an individual with no experience of the trade to become fully qualified gas and heat pump installers. Social Enterprise 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 support projects from the Social Enterprise Conversation sessions as they develop. The service supported 12 Social Enterprise organisations in quarter 2. Support provided included: • 3 Community Interest Companies provided with support to access grant funding, expert help and Community Asset Transfer. • An existing charity in a precarious financial situation was supported to develop revenue streams and explore avenues for becoming financially sustainable. Business Gateway Learn Ecommerce expert help in progress. • 1 Third Sector Organisation has been provided with support to collaborate with a private sector business that had outgrown their current facility, this will provide a new audience for the business as well as utilise catering facilities that are not viable for the Charity to realise revenue generation. • 1 pre-start development Trust has been provided with support with planning and developing its organisational structure. • 1 pre-start social enterprise has been provided with support to develop their idea and been given advice on support available with the current social enterprise landscape. Land and Property Property enquiries are specific premises enquiries and sign ups to the property mailing list. We had a total of 9 enquiries from local businesses in Q2 of which 3 were from businesses outside of Midlothian, these could be considered Inward Investment enquiries however they are all smaller businesses looking to relocate from Edinburgh or surrounding areas. Page 86 of 151
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Property Assets This quarter our Estates team concluded the sale of the Leadburn dwelling and the sale of the former Loanhead Police Station (subject to planning consent). In addition, the conclusion of the acquisition of 3 houses under the Ukrainian Resettlement Programme. In conjunction with Midlothian Energy Limited (MEL) the team concluded options into future heating alternatives for the Bonnyrigg Heating Scheme Planning Following the adoption of the National Planning Framework No.4, the Planning Service formally commenced its review of the Council’s adopted spatial strategy, the Midlothian Local Development Plan 2 (MLDP2). The first phase consisted of engagement with community groups, key agencies, the development industry, local residents and elected members. This engagement was ongoing throughout 2023/24 and continues into 2024/25. At its meeting in June 2024 Council approved the MLDP2 Evidence Report, including setting a Local Housing Land Requirement at 8,851, for submission to the Scottish Government for ‘Gate Check’. This is the first major milestone in the MLDP2 process. The Evidence Report has now cleared the ‘Gate Check’ process, the second Council in Scotland to clear this process. Building Standards Although performance targets in relation to building warrant applications issued are off target this quarter, our Building Standards service continues to provide a high level of customer satisfaction against an increasing service demand. The Building Standards service review has been agreed and the first phase now implemented. The new service structure will now seek additional resource to manage the increase in workload and meet the nationally agreed service level performance targets. Page 87 of 151
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32 24 23 37 20 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of new Business start ups (quarterly) 81% 79% 75% 70% 80% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of planning applications completed within target of 80% Planning, Sustainable Growth & Investment–performance Social media 1,736 Locate in Midlothian followers. 2,436 Business Gateway followers 10 weeks Average time to determine planning applications for local developments. 66 weeks Average time to determine planning applications for major developments. 21 Businesses signed up to the Midlothian Business Green Pledge this quarter (increase from 15 in Q2 23/24) 12 Social enterprises supported this quarter (12 in Q2 23/24) 52 ‘Planning to Start’ enquires/submissions this quarter (decrease from 56 in Q2 23/24) 5 Instances of Local Growth Advisor support (LGAS) this quarter 2 ‘Strengthen your business’ enquiries this quarter Page 88 of 151
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58.85% 60.74% 59.08% 54.44% 54.02% 45.71% 44.41% 38.03% 34.35% 40.50% 70.62% 69.70% 67.75% 67.76% 68.27% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of school meal uptake Primary Secondary Free school meals 101.62 102.45 106.76 109.1 106.96 103.82 107.28 105.75 107.84 109.03 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Percentage of cleaning hours against budgeted hours achieved primary school Secondary school 5.71% 5.15% 5.21% 4.98% 4.35% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Target less than 7.5% of waste Property and Facilities – performance 6.7 nursery and primary school meals prepared per hour this quarter (7.27 compared to last year Q2 23/24) 9.05 secondary school meals prepared per hour this quarter (8.46 compared to last year Q2 23/24) TARGET: APSE national average 8.84 meals prepared per hour Percentage of school meal food waste Page 89 of 151
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Health and Wellbeing Key achievements Q2 24/25 Catering Services The percentage of Secondary school meal uptake this quarter has increased to 40.5% and continues to sit above the APSE average of 36.23%. This is due to changes made to the menu offered to secondary schools to attract pupils back into the dining room. The percentage of Primary school meal uptake for quarter 2 was 54.02% and again remains steady compared to previous quarters. Primary school meal uptake continues to sit well above the APSE average of 41.24%. The percentage of school meal food waste has decreased to 4.35% from 5.74% compared to the same period last year. In addition, our Catering Service were awarded the Bronze Food for Life Award and the Pro-veg School Plates Bronze award. Across Sport and Leisure services, our Tonezone memberships continues to grow through improved marketing and promotion with a total of 4,527 memberships up to the end of quarter 2. An increase of 8% compared to quarter 2 of last year. Towards the end of quarter 1, a new Sport and Leisure mobile app was launched. The new app makes it easier for customer to access and manage their account, book classes, get live pool updates, news and Active Schools information. The app had 500 downloads within the first week of launch. By the end of quarter 2 the app now has over 8,000 users. Our app can be found on the Apple and Google store. 1,765 primary 4 pupils attended free swimming lessons this quarter (within a 5 week block) after an effective system was put in place from our programme development officer. Page 90 of 151
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Our Alpine coaster at Midlothian Snowsports Centre opened successfully on the 14th of September. The overall length of the coaster is 980 meters (315 metres uphill and 667 metres downhill) with a vertical drop of approximately 170 metres. After a successful communications campaign the coaster was fully booked since its opening weekend to the 13th of October with 11,479 tickets being sold. Our Active Schools Midlothian Sharing good practice, our Midlothian Active Schools Young Ambassador programme was delivered by our Active Schools team as an opening presentation at the East Regional Young Ambassador conference this quarter. All Midlothian secondary schools were engaged to deliver the programme. Using a similar model to Edinburgh Leisure and Active Schools, we have extended our partnership with Edinburgh college into our health and fitness courses with opportunities for placements within our centres. Our summer holiday programme was well attended generating income and resulted in a good base to build on for future years. Midlothian Active Choices (MAC) is a sport and leisure physical activity referral programme, aimed at adults who are inactive and experience various health conditions. The programme offers a range of supported activities across Midlothian to help manage these health conditions. This quarter saw 1,653 Midlothian Active Choices attendees, an increase of 8% compared to the same period last year. 444 new referrals were received after completion of MAC sessions showing an increase of 20% compared to the same period last year. Page 91 of 151
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65,520 39,881 80,164 70,366 77,017 44,405 24,016 45,613 52,615 57,321 22,099 21,589 30,661 28,187 28,223 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of attendances at Sport and Leisure facilties (quarterly) All facilities (excl pools) Swimming pools Outdoor facilities -pitches/pavillions 4,193 4,574 4,628 4,386 4,527 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 1,529 1,414 1,447 1,670 1,653 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of MAC attendees (quarterly) 370 341 379 416 444 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of new refferals after completion of MAC sessions (quarterly) Ageing Well £331,817.45 £328,623.85 £341,220.85 £368,200.35 £372,559.38 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Sport and Leisure - performance Number of Tonezone memberships (cumulative) Midlothian Active Choices (MAC) 728 660 660 741 780 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of activities offered by Ageing Well to 50+ age groups (quarterly) Total income generated from Tonezone memberships Page 92 of 151
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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 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. 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. Page 93 of 151
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Midlothian Council is overseeing a significant housing programme. Phase 1 provided 864 additional houses within Midlothian. The total number of new homes from phase 2, 3 and 4 is currently estimated at 1134, comprising of 489 from phase 2 budget and 645 from phase 3 and 4 budgets. Progress continues with 645 homes currently being constructed on site either through commencement of enabling works or main contract works as of November 2022. An additional 327 homes are funded for delivery in phase 5. This included the largest Passivhaus programme in Scotland, with 191 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. At present any further Passivhaus developments are paused for a cost benefit analysis exercise. 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 in the cost of living crisis, the growing and ageing population and the increasing demand for services that this brings. The recent Census results 2022 highlights that Midlothian remains the fastest growing local authority in Scotland with an increase of 16.1%. The 2011 census data lists Midlothian as having a population of 83,187 which has risen to 96,600 in the 2022 census data. The level of growth is 2.3% higher than our previous calculation and is now 13.4% higher than the Scottish average of 2.7%. In terms of households, Midlothian saw the highest percentage increase at 17.2% since the 2011 census. Population density in Midlothian is 273.1 residents per square kilometre compared to the Scottish average of 69.8. Page 94 of 151
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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: • 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. 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 drive change and redesign services. Page 95 of 151
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31 Pentana Performance Dashboard – Q2 24/25 A full review of quarterly performance data is available via Pentana (Browser login link - https://midlothian.pentanarpm.uk/login) Page 96 of 151
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Corporate Solutions delivers forward looking services fit for a modern 21st Century organisation, with the citizen at the centre of service redesign. Corporate Solutions encompasses Human Resources, Digital, Customer Engagement, Legal & Governance, Corporate Resources, Transformation PMO and Continuous Improvement. Corporate Solutions supports the whole Council, delivers services to internal and external stakeholders, plays a key role in the delivery of the Council’s Medium Term Financial Strategy and ensures organisational compliance, develops the workforce, and advances transformation. Transformation and opportunities Transformation Blueprint (2023-2028) Reprioritisation and redesign are crucial to balancing the Council’s financial position, as well as preparing for further challenges, continued growth, and unknown changes that we will face. The Council’s three strategic aims, as set out in the Single Midlothian Plan are: • 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 Transformation Blueprint was approved by Council in 2022 and sets out key areas of concern that need to be addressed over the next five years. Corporate Solutions Q2 24/25 Performance report Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 5.6 Page 97 of 151
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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 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 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 delivering digital first approaches, embedding automation to improve customer access to services and hybrid working. We will continue to work to address the inequalities that our communities face, respond to the demands of being the fastest growing local authority in Scotland, and deliver our vision of being a great, green place to grow. Page 98 of 151
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Aligned to the Transformation Blueprint, Customer Engagement priorities for 2024/25 are set out below: • Continued rollout and implementation of Customer Service Platform • Reviewing service delivery across all Contact Centre teams • Increased use of eResources • Community and school library design • Active promotion of library space, for Council and partner services, and enable out of hours access for communities • Rollout of the Hub and Spoke delivery model with libraries providing and facilitating increased local service provision • Refreshed Customer Engagement Strategy including revised communications and engagement plan • Launch of the new mobile One Stop Shop in partnership with the Third Sector • Increase income within Registrars through alternative ceremony offer Communications and Marketing: • Promoting the council's vision, strategy and plans such as a Great Green Place to Grow, Transformation Blueprint, Wellbeing Strategy, Climate Change Strategy and carbon charter to internal and external audiences. • Raising awareness of the ways that people can take part to influence how public services operate e.g. public consultations such as Midlothian Local Development Plan, town centre regeneration projects, and school catchment area consultations. • Supporting service redesign and the delivery of change, e.g. supporting the shift to the new customer service platform which will enable citizens to do much more online. • Promotion of behavioural change, for example by encouraging residents of Midlothian to recycle more or travel more actively or improve their health and wellbeing. Customer Engagement Page 99 of 151
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Key achievements this quarter: Library services Our library services continue to transform and thrive in responding to the needs of our communities. This quarter overall figures for library visits remain high although there has been a 11% decrease in physical library visits compared to the same period last year. 40,111 virtual library visits were made this quarter, an 8% increase compared to this period last year and 3% increase compared to last quarter. Similar to the previous quarter, the increase is mainly a result of more customer visits to our online catalogue which has increased in popularity since the library management system was upgraded this year. Library membership continues to increase with a 5% rise in members compared to the same period last year and a 3% compared to last quarter. This quarter a new partnership was developed with the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID). Working with volunteers, sessions were held in Dalkeith Library providing hearing checks, hearing aid maintenance and repairs and general information and signposting. The sessions will be extended throughout the year once more volunteers have been brought onboard. August saw the launch of Midlothian's second Near Me location at Dalkeith Library. Near Me provides a safe, secure private space for appointments and supplies the technology and support for people to access them. The space in Dalkeith Library is in addition to the space in Gorebridge Library. In partnership with Midlothian Foodbank, new processes were put in place with Penicuik Library allowing food parcels to be collected from the library rather than residents travelling to the foodbank centre located at Gorebridge. Page 100 of 151
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1,617 library events were held during quarter 2 which is an increase of 12% from the same period last year. This covers regular events and activities for both adults and children as well as standalone events and reflects additional classes and sessions ran this quarter. The theme for this year’s Summer Reading Challenge was Marvellous Makers focussing on all things crafty and creative with libraries across Midlothian running a host of free creative events from junk modelling and Lego animation to music making and storytelling. Nearly 1,000 children signed up for the challenge with 52% completing it. Children signed up from 30 of our 31 primary schools with a further 18 schools outwith Midlothian also being represented. This was particularly evident in Loanhead Library where participants came from 30 different schools with 15 outwith Midlothian. Total issue figures increased by 11% compared with the same period last year with over 22,000 issues for print and e-Resources. 179 events were delivered as part of the Summer Reading Challenge as well as 114 Bookbug story, song and rhyme sessions. Over July and August 1,816 adults and 2,068 children attended Bookbug and overall attendance at events was up 8% compared with the same period last year. All events were promoted as part of the Council’s wider summer event programme which helped to increase audiences. “E really enjoyed the Summer Reading Challenge. She liked counting down the number of books she read & loved putting her stamps on the sheet. It kept us reading regularly as a family. Thank you 😊😊” “My daughter has really enjoyed taking part and it has been good to see her still enjoying reading especially through the “long” holidays. Helpful for long journeys and rainy days” “We all love visiting the library & getting new books. The Reading Challenge is a great reminder to actually come and get new ones so we can read a greater variety” “This Challenge encouraged my daughter to read more books during summer holidays – she was very keen & excited to collect the stickers, stamps + the medal at the end. She enjoyed the hunts in the library too! Summer Reading Challenge Feedback “I really enjoyed The Reading Challenge. I really like to ready with mummy & daddy at bedtime. It’s the best ever xx” “I thought this was a fun idea since I love reading and yeah!” Page 101 of 151
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Channel shift Channel shift work continues with the rollout of customer services through our Customer Service Platform. This quarter focused on the re-development of Waste Services replacement bin workflows to aid the service in managing customer demand. Several other service requests continue in test phase and due to go live in 24/25: • bulky uplifts • online application forms for school clothing grants and free school meals • general enquires • direct debit online sign up for Council Tax, rent and other payments • access protection markings requests • Subject Access Requests • Vogrie parking passes • Garden waste direct debit sign up This quarter our Customer Services team collaborated with Waste Services to introduce a more dedicated role within Waste Services to manage escalated customer contact. This role is having a positive effect on dealing with repeated customer contact and resolving ongoing customer queries more efficiently. This quarter contact centre call numbers have remained steady with a slight increase in calls received compared to the same quarter last year and 18% decrease compared to quarter 1 this year. Quarter 2 shows an increase in the percentage of online customer contact against telephone contact with channel shift figures showing 13% compared to 11% in quarter 1. Email contact has decreased by 8% from the same period last year with 11,650 emails handled by the contact centre during quarter 2. This can be attributed to changes made to customer forms which now go directly to the service which means quicker responses direct to customers. The number of webforms received via the contact centre has also decreased this quarter after the launch of the missing bin form via our Customer Services Platform. The number of webforms handled by Contact Centre staff will continue to reduce as more services are automated and rolled out through the Customer Services Platform. Page 102 of 151
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Due to a reduction in call volumes this quarter compared to last, the percentage of calls answered within 120 seconds has improved from 48% during quarter 1 to 67% in quarter 2 with call abandonment rates also reducing to 10% compared to 17% in quarter 1. This abandonment rate calculates the total number of calls that come into the call queue and then leave the queue. There is no ability to analyse why calls are abandoned, callers may choose to hang up because they would rather not wait, or they have called at an inopportune time. Front-end messages are updated on contact centre lines to provide information to the customer waiting, for example, if a whole street of bins had been missed, this would be reflected in the front end message. Lines also have messages directing people online to carry out transactional activity. With work ongoing via our Customer Services Platform and the Revenues Improvement Programme, to implement e-billing and self-service through 2024/26, we expect call volumes to reduce over time as more people move to self-service, resulting in a higher percentage of calls answered within our customer target response times. Stage 1 complaint responses across Corporate Solutions are off target this quarter with 86.1% of stage 1 complaints responded to within 5 days. As part of the implementation of the new online complaints portal, there has been an increase in stage 1 complaints received through this self-service option. However, some of these are service requests and not complaints, and work is ongoing to better signpost customers to service request options that are more appropriate. As a result, complaint volumes for Corporate Solutions has decreased by 19% over quarter 1 and 2 of this year compared from the same period last year. Communications and promotion Our communication and marketing team continue to support services across the Council by promoting key initiatives on our social media platforms, news releases, website and community radio channel. Key successes this quarter include: The Summer Activities Campaign launched between June to August 2024. A creation of a one-stop shop webpage was introduced promoting all free and paid activities. 70 lamp post wraps were distributed, and 85 sets of posters issued to sites across Midlothian. Daily posts were added to our social media accounts to target events which were undersubscribed. The campaign led to 6,453 visits to the webpage, making it one of the most popular pages on the Council website for that period, with an average of 570 visits to each of the 15 supplement pages on the directory. Positive results were seen across council services with an increase in library summer event attendance, print and e-Resources issued, the most summer sessions booked as part of the Community Lifelong Learning and Employability programme, an increase of repairs at the summer Dr Bike events held by Active Travel and an increase in income for the Sport and Leisure summer programme with 39 of 49 sessions making a profit and 19 sessions fully booked. Page 103 of 151
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The Launch of the Free School Meals Campaign from June 2024 onwards. Promotion was carried out through two press releases targeting the application process and encouraging parents to apply prior to the summer break. The campaign was also promoted via our social media channels. The best performing Facebook post reaching 8,238 with a total reach of 37,077. Twitter (X) reaching a total of 7,090. The campaign saw 1,541 unique visitors to the free school meal and clothing grant webpage with overall page views increasing by 435 compared to July last year. 500 applications were received prior to the main social media campaign being launched and following the second press release and social media campaign a total of 1,149 applications were received. Local Transport and Active Travel public consultations. A single landing page was created which directed the public to both consultations. Activities to promote these consultations took place. Promotion was carried out via press releases, posters in libraries and paper copies of the surveys being made available. Regular social media promotion of both surveys took place as the survey was live and an additional, more intensive social media promotion 10 days prior to the closing date. Across the 48 social media posts, the launch post achieved 15,630 impressions alone, with the rest of the posts accumulating 136,553 in total. While the average impression for each post was 2,845, the increased activity in the countdown to closing date increased impressions to 3,225, with the most popular post receiving 5,742 impressions. The Active Travel Survey received 178 responses from the public and 12 from organisations/stakeholders. The Local Transport Strategy received 256 responses with 10 from organisations/stakeholders. Alpine Coaster opening. Activities to promote the opening of the coaster and maximise bookings and income consisted of editing and uploading of GoPro video to our website, YouTube and social media channels. Across all channels the promotional video received 896,513 views. A new website page was created with general information and links to download the new sport and leisure app to book online. This received a total of 95,621 views. Content also included ribbon cutting, first passenger celebrations and opening day announcement. The best performing post was on Facebook reaching 877,310 news feeds with 52,951 engagements. The opening of the Alpine coaster attracted press coverage in media including BBC, Daily Record, Herald, Edinburgh Live, Evening News, Midlothian View and Midlothian Advertiser and was featured on STV. Maximum press and influencer interest was received including an Instagram video of the ride by influencer which was played 6,646,418 times. Easthouses Primary School opening event. Activities to promote the opening of new school and encourage people to attend tours/events included various social media campaigns with best performing post was on Facebook reaching more than 14,800 news feeds, alongside media releases issued on handover week and featured in Midlothian View, Evening News, Midlothian Advertiser as well as trade press. A video ‘sneak peek’ on Youtube was viewed 1,578 times. More than 200 local people attended the open day on Tuesday 13th of August and positive feedback was received about the facilities. Walk the Line event. The annual Ageing Well walking event was publicised to drive sign-ups from all age groups, highlighting the health and social benefits of staying active in later life. Promotion of the event was carried out through a media release with photographs taken at Dalkeith Walking Rugby Club, a website piece, updated leaflet produced by in-house graphic designer, further adapted for use on social media. Supporting social media posts were scheduled from August through to the event itself in late September. One of the best performing was from the day of the event itself, which created 8,058 impressions, and 33 engagements. 103 people signed up in total for the event. Page 104 of 151
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37,200 38,333 40,123 38,762 40,111 153,262 144,133 158,023 146,809 136,493 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of Library visits (quarterly) Virtual Phyiscal 34,668 33,837 34,312 35,375 36,428 668 416 369 321 539 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of Library memberships Child memberships - new Total 36,784 35,833 42,358 45,296 37,084 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of Contact Centre calls(quarterly) Customer Engagement – performance measures 13% Customer contact received digitally (webform versus telephone) this quarter. 67% of calls this quarter answered within 120 seconds 1,208 Contact Centre Webforms received this quarter (decrease from 1,775 in Q2 23/24) 11,650 Email contact handled this quarter (decrease from 12,855 in Q2 23/24) Social Media 22.4k Midlothian Council Facebook followers 18k @midgov twitter followers 1,617 Library events held this quarter. 1,008 Children’s library initiatives taken place in Q2. 640 Library customers supported with digital queries in Q2. Library services Customer contact Page 105 of 151
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To achieve the Council’s strategic priorities, we recognise that people are our most important asset. Workforce is a key priority in the Council’s Transformation Blueprint. The Council aims 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 ways of working mark a clear desire for cultural change and a shift towards a more agile and modern operating model. In order to ensure a thriving workforce, key areas of focus for 2024/25 are: • Investment in Organisational Development through focused programmes of work e.g. launch of Managers Forum, refresh of Leadership Forum • Development and delivery of the new Workforce Strategy 2024-2029 • Completion of workforce plans in all services, with a particular focus in high risk areas, aligned to the new Workforce Strategy • Continued rollout of the Wellbeing Strategy with measures to demonstrate impact and visible contribution to reducing absence levels • Development and delivery of the Recruitment Strategy aligned to the Workforce Strategy Key achievements this quarter: Wellness@Midlothian The rolling programme of Wellness@Midlothian initiatives continues to support the positive health and wellbeing of our staff. This quarter 20 wellbeing events were held covering financial support, carer support, physical wellbeing and information sessions. A total of 166 staff attended various events. Human Resources Page 106 of 151
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Financial support for our employees: • Two onsite visits from Lothian Pension Fund at Stobhill depot and Saltersgate School • Through Affinity connect, a pre-retirement course was delivered • 4 webinars from Money Advice Scotland were promoted to all staff • An onsite visit from Capital Credit Union at Saltersgate School. • 6 Additional Voluntary Contributions Wise webinars were promoted to staff • A Home Energy Scotland event was held at Saltersgate. • Money advice campaign was promoted to staff on cost of living topics, Blue Badge and Social Security benefits. Events to support employees with carer responsibilities • A Vocal Carers Managers online forum was held • On site visit from the Vocal Carers Centre • 3 sessions held at Cowan Court on staff wellbeing with additional trauma session and 1 to 1 staff wellbeing sessions with HSCP leads • A MacMillian Cancer support coffee morning was held at Fairfield House. • In terms of physical health and wellbeing, health checks were carried out at Saltersgate school, providing employee wellbeing information and details of where to seek support on a large range of topics. Two employee health walks delivered by our Active Travel team. Absence and case management The HR team continue to proactively work with managers and their teams to support them in their absence management, helping to tackle and reduce sickness absence, complimenting the range of health and wellbeing support provided by the Council to all employees. The HR team provides training for managers in absence management processes and provides management information to enable managers to measure and manage the long and short term absence in their areas. This work is resulting in progression of absence cases, capability hearings and return to work as well as the more efficient management of employee relations cases to bring these to a conclusion. This quarter the number of long term absence cases supported by HR reduced to 102 from 147 during quarter 1. Page 107 of 151
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HR commission services including an Employment Assistance Programme, Physiotherapy services, Occupational Health and work in partnership with local and national agencies to offer counselling, health and lifestyle advice, health plans and treatment guidance for the workforce. Employees can self-refer to the Employment Assistance Programme from MCL medics which provides lifestyle support regarding relationship issues; work/life balance, stress, nutrition, sleep and can be accessed 24/7. 8 sessions of counselling can be offered free of charge, where the employee requires this level of support. Physiotherapy services of up to 4 free sessions can be accessed by the employee to receive treatment and advice for musculoskeletal injuries and various health conditions to improve movement and mobility. Our Human Resources continue to support various employee relations cases with a few long standing cases closed this quarter. All business partners attended a half day settlement agreement HR academy sessions at Brodies (Solicitors) during September. In addition, mediation training was provided to a small selection of interested staff. The result of this training will give managers the tools to carry out mediation to reach a quicker resolution between our employees and reduce cases escalating. Investing in our workforce Work commenced this quarter on the development of the Workforce Strategy 2024-29. The key aims of the Workforce Strategy is to ensure talent is available when needed, prepare for the future by anticipating and planning for change, be agile, aligning processes and organisational priorities and mitigate current and future workforce-related risks. Using an evidence based approach, interviews were held with all key stakeholders over circa 6 weeks to gather information to inform the Strategy. As part of this work the Employee Survey launched this quarter to gather as much feedback from our employees as possible which will inform the Strategy development process. The Leadership Forum continues this quarter. Two forums were held focussing on Digital Transformation and Equalities and Inclusion. The new Managers Forum continues to support management staff. The forums also provide a safe space for leaders and managers to share experiences. Continued promotion on supports available to all staff took place this quarter with the promotion of MLC medics health booklets, access to work details, eye voucher information, mental health and wellbeing booklets, occupational health referral information, physiotherapy referral forms and HR polices on menopause promoted to all staff. Carers and staff wellbeing directory was also shared with managers and staff. 8,311 staff accessed our mandatory e-learning courses this quarter compared to 5,885 staff accessing courses last quarter. Courses include training on Bribery Act 2010, Information Security and GDPR, procurement fraud, cyber security, records management and threat of terrorism. In conjunction with our Equalities team and the joint Public Protection team, evidence was pulled together for the Equally Safe At Work accreditation with submissions due in October. Page 108 of 151
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Workforce measures We track our employee turnover rates on a half yearly basis by expressing it as a percentage of employees overall when taking account of all leavers. Consideration of the levels of turnover across services, locations and particular groups of employees helps to inform workforce planning and resourcing. Compared to last quarter, staff turnover rates have increased this quarter to 2.6% from 1.9% during quarter 1. This increase is usually expected due to the time of year and reflects teaching staff who left employment in August. The gender pay gap measures the average female pay (£19.91) versus average male pay (£20.30) within the organisation. The figures show that the Council has more male staff at higher rates of pay by 1.92% this quarter which shows a reduced pay gap compared to the same period last year at 2.22% The percentage of female employees in the top 5% of earnings continues to gradually increase compared to the same period last year with 122 female employees in the top 5% of earnings compared to 113 during quarter 2 of last year. Sickness absence rates for all employees has slightly increased compared to the same period last year with average sickness days at 6.51 for this quarter compared to 5.17 during quarter 2 in 2023/24. Data shows similar results for Corporate Solutions where the average number of working days lost due to sickness absence this quarter is 5.25 compared to 4.35 for quarter 2 of 2023/24. Of the FTE days lost, 72% was due to long term sickness, 14% self-certified, 14% short term absence. Work continues with each service area to review attendance levels and support those absent to return to work. Page 109 of 151
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2.22% 2.74% 2.70% 2.65% 1.92% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Gender pay gap between average hourly rate of pay for male and female (all employees) Scottish Average (3.51%) 5.1 8.3 11.7 3.1 6.5 2.2 4.4 6.4 1.8 2.7 6.3 9.9 13.8 3.6 8 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Average Sickness Absence days All employees Teachers Local Government workers 2.9% 1.8% 2.26% 1.9% 2.6% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of staff turnover (quarterly) 8072,389 1,797 16-30 31-50 over 50 Human Resources – performance measures 102 Long term absence cases ongoing this quarter 98 Occupational Health referrals via OHIO this quarter 17 HR cases in progress this quarter 275 Physiotherapy referrals made this quarter No. of staff by age group 1,224 (24%) Employees with over 15 years of service 247 Leavers at end of Q2 (cumulative figure) 65.2% of employees are Midlothian Residents Employee Health and Wellbeing Workforce demographics 122 female employees in top 5% this quarter. • 21 wellbeing events held this quarter with 166 attendees • 8,311 employees accessing mandatory eLearning courses • 1,073 employees accessing non-mandatory eLearning courses Page 110 of 151
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Digital solutions underpin the Transformation Blueprint. Key work streams include: • Review and refresh of the Council's Digital Strategy, including reprioritisation of projects to enable change and transformation • Development of a data analysis capability and pilot projects such as multi-source analysis of cost of living data and streamlining of performance and other standard reporting • Expanding digital automation efforts via Power Automate, to improve efficiencies and process quality • Continued rollout of compliance and cyber security protective measures, including attainment of PSN and Cyber Essentials certification, staff training and engagement and establishing a Security Operations Centre • Deepening the adoption of Microsoft O365 capabilities and applications to enable organisational efficiencies, collaboration and lay the foundation for future AI initiatives • Delivering service improvements in frontline teams through projects such as the digital transformation of Neighbourhood Services • Continue the roll-out of the Customer Services Platform solutions to promote channel shift • Equipped for Learning: support the EfL project to provide best in class, secure digital ecosystem for optimal learning outcomes • Developing Council telephony digital strategy and implementing upgrades to education estate • Upgrading all Windows devices to the latest operating system standard (Windows 11) • Ensure all digital aspects of Council operations are well supported and operational Key achievements this quarter: Education and Equipped for Learning As part of the equipped for learning project, the procurement process for new Wi-Fi hardware in schools was completed this quarter. The new Easthouses Primary School infrastructure and digital hardware provision was completed on schedule. 377 PCs in schools were replaced and 147 PCs reimaged. 267 laptops were updated as part of the Windows 11 upgrade programme. Digital Systems and Infrastructure A range of improvements have been completed this quarter to facilitate a more efficient organisation and improve how we work: Digital Page 111 of 151
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• The next phase of the Scottish Wide Area Network (SWAN) migration is underway. SWAN is one of the most significant single public sector ICT initiatives ever undertaken in Scotland. The programme establishes a single shared network and common ICT infrastructure across Scotland’s public sector. This quarter 50% of our 52 SWAN internet circuits across the region have been migrated to SWAN2. • Further reduction in on premise hardware after the recent replacement of file services. Two servers were to replace 8 old pieces of hardware (2 servers, 2 switches and 4 storage arrays). • As part of the Windows 11 upgrade, the Corporate Laptop Windows 11 refresh pilot was complete (approximately 50 devices) and the mainstream staff device upgrade workstream is now underway. Roll out of Microsoft 365 across the whole corporate estate was completed last year, enabling widescale collaboration and co-production with work efficiencies now being realised in many ways across various service areas. Phase 2 started in December 2023, focusing on user adoption, service-level workflow re- design, SharePoint deployment, software rationalisation and data reporting and visualisation. Progressing with the roll out of SharePoint and OneDrive for corporate users by engaging with Infotechtion (a leading M365 delivery organisation), who are providing advice and guidance for key parts of the project. Various activities have taken place this quarter to support staff with M365 across the organisation including: • Completion of the SharePoint Hubs initial framework. • Successful roll out of Teams and SharePoint for sharing with external organisations. • Sharing of M365 forms externally, outside the organisation now enabled. • 365Tribe commissioned for a 12 month staff engagement and training programme to build upon internal knowledge and capacity. • SharePoint consultant engaged to provide first generation of a new M365 based intranet site as a first step to replacing the existing vulnerable site. Page 112 of 151
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Cyber Security Work continues this quarter to maintain and strengthen our cyber security and includes: • Leadership Forum cyber security business resilience training and CMT Crisis Communication Training sessions held this quarter. • Responded to several cyber security related incidents. • Provided Cyber Security support to the general election. • Numerous security upgrades and patching work was completed in line with National Cyber Security Centre guidance. • Provided security oversight onboarding new applications and technical services. Page 113 of 151
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40 9 Planned Complete 49% 53% 58% 58% 61% Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 % of IT helpdesk incidents complete within 48 hours (quarterly) Digital – performance measures Key Digital projects Cyber security performance Progress of total number of Customer Service Platform modules (cumulative) 346,508 Midlothian Council Website visits this quarter (242,239 website visits in Q2 23/24) 100% of Cyber Essentials and PSN implemented 57% of cyber security training complete 35% of Neighbourhood Services digital project complete Website Customer satisfaction and helpdesk Digital Services Customer satisfaction rate: 4.6 out of 5 for quarter 2 Page 114 of 151
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Key priorities for the service in 2024/25 • 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 supporting the Council’s transformation agenda e.g. increasing automated and online payments Key achievements this quarter: Invoicing Work continues in the rollout of invoice approval processes. Moving away from paper-based invoicing to invoice approval system management allows for a greater level of audit, performance management and data, leading to more up to date financial monitoring and real time reporting. The Business Applications Team continue to work with Scottish Government’s e-commerce team on next steps for the e-invoicing programme and onboarding of suppliers to this service. The rate of invoices paid on time across the Council this quarter was 92.3% (target is 95%). A total of 47,355 transactions were processed up to quarter 2, of which 41,081 are included in the Statutory Performance Indicator (SPI) invoice calculation with an average of 11.7 days to pay an invoice. The team made 4,584 direct payments to bank accounts to cover free school meals during the holiday periods, Ukrainian Host payments and Business Covid recovery grants. 1,690 internally generated payments were processed including grants, corporate appointees, salary deductions and treasury activities. Business application upgrades were completed this quarter for DRS (dynamic scheduling tool for Property Maintenance). The ONE Housing system upgrade and implementation of a mobile app for Legend system was also completed this quarter. Corporate Resources Page 115 of 151
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A new 5 year contract was awarded for our finance system Integra and employee management system, ITrent. Procurement of insurance claim control software was completed this quarter with a 3 year contract awarded. An annual review of all casual employees within our Itrent system was completed. Two Business cases for the Customer Payments project and Open Revenues Project were completed and recommendations accepted to commence these transformation projects which will result in improved customer experience and reduce manual internal processes. Payroll This quarter improvements were completed and implemented to manage our employee processes more effectively and efficiently. A workflow was introduced for the purchase of annual leave. Improvements to the business process for unpaid special leave and mileage was introduced to improve our payroll processing. Supporting the Cost-of-Living Crisis Requests for crisis funding continue to remain consistently high with only a 1% decrease in applications received over quarter 1 and 2 compared to the same period last year. 76% of our total Scottish Welfare Fund (SWF) budget up to and including quarter as been allocated. 3,480 applications were received for Crisis Grants and 668 received for Community Care Grants up to and including this quarter. This demonstrates the continued significant financial challenges faced by our communities. The successful recruitment of the Scottish Welfare Fund Assessors will not only allow the team to respond and address the current backlog of processing activities but also analyse the reasons for the high number of applications and refusals to identify preventative activity to mitigate people reaching this crisis point. This is identified as a key action in the Child Poverty Action Plan. In addition, 2,896 customers received help and support via housing benefits this quarter. The percentage of current housing rent arrears sits at 14.01% for Q2, an increase from last year of 11.77%. In year Council Tax collected year to date is 52.5% showing a similar rate of collection this time last year of 52.4%. It is anticipated that the Cost of Living Crisis is affecting households and their ability to meet all their household bills. Page 116 of 151
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1730 1464 1789 1,824 3,480 818 755 962 1,005 1,868 37 27 13 27 45 875 682 814 792 1,567 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of Crisis Grants (quarterly) 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. 46 50 54 48 63 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 New claims Revenues and Benefits 3999 3999 2531 5753 5364 2551 2579 2767 2890 2967 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of online transactions (quarterly) Rent Council Tax 52.5% of in year Council Tax collected year to date. 17 17 29 12 15 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Change of circumstances 385 280 320 344 668 141 91 94 120 239 6 0 3 4 5 238 189 223 220 424 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/34 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of Community Care Grants (quarterly) received awarded declined ineligible 76% of Scottish Welfare Fund budget spent this quarter. Corporate Resources – performance measures £564,675 granted from Scottish Welfare fund for crisis grants £343,755 granted for community care grants in Q2. Scottish Welfare Fund Average processing times (days) Page 117 of 151
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Key priorities for the service in 2024/25 • Review of the Council’s governance framework with revised Standing Orders and Associated Scheme(s) • Implementation of the new Subject Access Request 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 Services Various commercial transactions took place by our in-house legal team this quarter including: • Completion of the acquisition of a site for social housing at Mauricewood, Penicuik. The site has permission for 68 units and the Council may submit a further proposal for more/different housing mix. • Completion of sale of land and related land rights to facilitate the Hillend Substation as part of the Hillend project and completion of waiver in regard to Hillend Alpine Coaster. • Settlement on the sale of Station House, Leadburn. • Completion of 3 Golden Share Property transactions. • Grant of Discharge of Standard Security in regard to facility at Thornybank. • 13 Temporary Traffic Regulation Orders (TTRO’s) completed. • Grant of Deed of Restriction from Overage Security to facilitate land sale at Shawfair. • Grant of consent by the Council as heritable creditor to lease of part of Rosewell Community Hub. • Sale of garden ground at a property in Bonnyrigg. • Completion of S75 agreement for Inveravon House, Loanhead to secure developer contributions. Legal and Governance Page 118 of 151
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The legal court team continue to protect the Council’s interests and deliver suitable outcomes for children and vulnerable adults through attendance at court this quarter. Various activities were undertaken by our Court team this quarter including: • Response to 76 individual legal queries. • Raised 9 applications for guardianship and/or Intervention Orders under the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000. • Raised 3 applications for permanence orders/permanence orders with authority to adopt under the Adoption and Children (Scotland) Act 2007. • Raised 12 actions for recovery of possession under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001. • Prepared for, and negotiated settlement of, a four-day permanence proof. • Provided ongoing advice to Children and Families Social Work in an opposed section 11 application under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995. • Provided substantial ongoing representation and advice in 2 ongoing permanence matters. • Provided advice and representation in relation to a substantial heritable court action. • Represented Children and Families in two actions for Child Protection Orders under the Children’s Hearing (Scotland) Act 2011. • Advised on three cases at the education Additional Support Needs Tribunal. • Attended and/or provided advice for 14 Adults with Incapacity/Adult Support and Protection Case Conferences. • Provided advice at 1 Adoption and Permanence Panel, for three individual children. • Provided advice to education on policy revisions in relation to two existing policies. • Provided advice to education on statutory duties. • Advised on proposed response to the Scottish Government AWI Consultation. • Advised on an appeal to the Sheriff Court of a placing request appeal and arranged for external legal representation. • Advised on implementation and readiness for UNCRC. • Advised Adult Services Social Work on statutory duties and liaised with Counsel. • Provided policy advice to the Data Protection Team and Education Authority relating to responses under Subject Access Requests and Pupils Educational Records (Scotland) Regulations 2003. Page 119 of 151
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Procurement Work undertaken this quarter includes: • 21 Tenders from the previous quarter have been managed but not yet completed on Public Contracts Scotland (PCS) at either final evaluation or recommendation stage. • 3 New Tenders have been issued (all on PCS) either at evaluation or recommendation stage. • 3 new quotes have been issued. • 9 mini competition have been issued on PCS. • 7 Direct Awards have been issued on PCS. • 7 Light Touch Agreements have been issued. • 65 New suppliers have been registered of which 13 are based in Midlothian. Page 120 of 151
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22 3 3 6 32 27 Q1 23/24 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of regulated procurement excerises undertaken Legal and Governance – performance measures Access to information 337 319 397 304 266 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of Freedom of Information requests recieved (quarterly) 49 46 49 50 54 Q2 23/24 Q3 23/24 Q4 23/24 Q1 24/25 Q2 24/25 Number of Subject Access Requests recieved (quarterly) 9 Legal commercial transactions carried out this quarter Page 121 of 151
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The Continuous Improvement team supports the required step-change to ensure that as an organisation we learn from feedback and complaints received and improve service delivery as a result of driving forward a culture of continuous improvement. Key priorities for the service in 2024/25: Working with services to focus on performance measures and supporting approaches which deliver improved outcomes, including: • The introduction of a revised Planning and Performance Management Framework (PPMF) and a newly developed Best Value Framework (BVF). • Revising the Midlothian Excellence Framework (MEF), our corporate self- evaluation tool, to reflect changes to the Public Service Improvement Framework (PSIF). • External data submission, monitoring and reporting of Local Government Benchmarking (LGBF), including maintenance of the LGBF dashboard on Pentana for elected members. • Key contact for corporate level external scrutiny activities such as the Best Value Thematic exercises undertaken by our external auditor. • Facilitating a review and update of all policies and procedures in place to deliver the Council’s strategic outcomes and ensure alignment with overarching strategies. • Review and refresh of the Equalities work programme including increased awareness of equality and diversity and the redesign of the staff equalities group to facilitate greater diversity and inclusion in the Council’s decision making processes, policy development and a more diverse workforce reflective of the communities the Council services. Continuous Improvement Page 122 of 151
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Key achievements this quarter: Equalities • Published the Employee Equality Monitoring Report 2024 detailing the composition and characteristics of the current workforce, leavers and new recruits, and presenting information about pay gaps and occupational segregation. • Re-established the Equalities Working Group to oversee and assist with the fulfilment of public sector reporting duties and the delivery of the broader equalities agenda. • Working with the Lothian Regional Equalities Partnership to develop key equality themes for consultation and engagement to inform the Midlothian Equality Plan 2025-2029. Contact Us • Currently preparing the Annual Complaint Handling Report for 2023/24 detailing the statistical data for the first time since going live with the new Complaints Management System. • Continuing with planning for Child Friendly Complaints roll out since its introduction following parliamentary approval in July. • Early stages of planning for documenting procedures for the wider service Business Continuity Plans for the Complaints Management System. • Work continues to support services in dealing with customer feedback. • Plans in place for a further Contact Us training session to be delivered in Q3. Page 123 of 151
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Challenges and risks Financial position Council approved the 2024/25 budget at its meeting on 27 February 2024. Whilst the 2024/25 budget is agreed, the challenge remains to reach ongoing financial sustainability. Cost and income projections for future years are embedded in the Council’s Transformation Blueprint which contains a range of transformation themes to drive towards a position of financial sustainability. Officers continue to work closely with the Business Transformation Steering Group to respond to the challenges. Financial Services continues to work to ensure the Council has robust financial management arrangements in place with a full suite of financial monitoring reports for quarter 1 of 2024/25 presented to Council this quarter. The team continues to provide in-depth financial input to revenue and capital projects embedded into the Medium Term Financial Strategy with regular updates being presented at Council. Growing Council The recent 2022 Census results have now been published. Between 2011 to 2022 data shows that Midlothian had an increase in population of 16.1%. The 2011 census data lists Midlothian as having a population of 83,187 which has risen to 96,600 in the 2022 census data. The level of growth is 2.3% higher than our previous calculation and is now 13.4% higher than the Scottish average of 2.7%. In terms of households, Midlothian saw the highest percentage increase at 17.2% since the 2011 census. Population density in Midlothian is 273.1 residents per square kilometer compared to the Scottish average of 69.8. 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 high quality services to its citizens. Page 124 of 151
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Capital Investment Strategy Midlothian’s approved Capital Investment Strategy sets out the infrastructure required to meet these 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: • Data Driven Innovation: £751 million • Integrated Regional Employability and Skills: £25 million • Transport: £156 million • Culture: £45 million • Housing: £313 million 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 aims to deliver new schools, 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. In response to all these pressures, a range of reprioritisation activity is taking place, with a revised Capital Investment Strategy 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 recommended to Council. Cost of Living Crisis Midlothian’s citizens are facing significant financial challenges. The impact on households continues to be noted across the UK with 49% of adults reporting an increase in their cost of living in December 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 11.1% in October 2022 has been the main driver of the cost of living crisis which has outstripped wage and benefit increases. After this peak in inflation, rates have continued to decline, dropping to 2.0% in May 2024. Over the three years between May 2021 to May 2024 food prices rose by 30.6%. The price rises continue to impact low-income households hardest as a larger proportion of their costs are on energy and food. The Resolution Foundation forecasted that absolute poverty will increase by 300,000, from 11.7 million in 2023/24 to 12 million in 2024/25. 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 in 2022, which is chaired by the Council Leader and meets regularly to coordinate mitigating activities. Page 125 of 151
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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 driving forward transformation. Page 126 of 151
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Pentana Performance Dashboard – Q2 24/25 A full review of quarterly performance data is available via Pentana (Browser login link - https://midlothian.pentanarpm.uk/login) here Page 127 of 151
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Performance, Review and Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 26 November 2024 Item No 5.7 Midlothian Council Report Quarter 2 2024/25 Progress Against Strategic Outcomes The new Single Midlothian Plan focuses on three 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. In recent Census results, Midlothian is projected to have the highest percentage change in population size of all mainland council areas in Scotland with an increase of 16%. In addition, Midlothian has 10 zones which fall into the most deprived areas living a local share of 8.7% living in the most deprived areas in Scotland. 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 a summary of the key service updates, against the thematic areas of the Single Midlothian Plan. Page 128 of 151
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Single Midlothian Plan Themes in 2023/27 Midlothian will be Healthier – Achievements 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. Achievements from Public Health include: • The health inclusion team continue to provide outreach and have carried out a health assessment with 111 people since April 2024. Have mostly helped people with housing, substance use, and welfare rights issues this quarter. • Chaired a group of stakeholders from East and Midlothian to scope a pilot looking at the feasibility of technology enabled care to help as a harm reduction measure to substance use. To help link this with national work and gain learning from other areas, attended a webinar hosted by Scottish Government sharing practice and learning on digital as a Human Right with Digital Lifelines Scotland and Drugs Research Network for Scotland. • Reviewed and updated quarter 2 data for the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment working alongside data colleagues in NHS Lothian Intelligence team and published on the Health and Social Care Partnership website. The updated data has been used to update the community justice needs assessment which was reported as helpful to give context to the offending we see in Midlothian and shows the complexities that our clients face. The data has also been used to update the NHS Lothian healthcare governance committee, specifically the inequalities data section in the annual report. • Learning session planned with physiotherapists and wider HSCP staff to share findings of the Masters dissertation hosted in Midlothian, to explore views, improve processes and raise awareness of green health prescribing within the HSCP. • Better ME (WSA): This project will help the people of Mayfield and Easthouses to have more access to healthy food options, keep physically active and have more money in their pockets. Currently have completed 6mnth evaluation. One particular project has developed a cooking group for young men, they have reported an increase in confidence in cooking and also being able to try new foods. • Developing weight stigma post that will focus on helping practitioners develop skills and confidence to talk about client’s weight, it will also raise awareness of the bias and stigma professionals have with overweight and obese people. • Promote a public health agenda and increase strategic partners. Members of various groups including trauma training steering group, Mid & East Lothian Drug and Alcohol Partnership Group, Midlothian Suicide Prevention Group, Equally Safe Strategy Leadership Group, Midlothian will be Healthier Thematic Group, Lothian Green Health Network and the Third Sector Summit. 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. Page 129 of 151
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Individuals become formally involved with Justice Social Work at the point of conviction when a Court makes a request for a Justice Social Work Report; requests for assessment and risk management planning are received from the Scottish Prison Service and the Parole Board. Between 1st July and 30th September 2024, the team received 176 requests for reports, an increase of 3% on last quarter. Staff in the Justice Service work with men and women subject to Community Payback Orders who present with a wide range of presenting risk and needs. This includes individuals with mental health, substance use, adverse childhood experiences, trauma and negative experiences of education and or employment. Staff working within Justice Services require the appropriate level of support and training to enable them to effectively engage with people to progress interventions towards positive changes in behaviour. An important part of ensuing that men and women in the justice system have ease of access to services and resources is the provision of robust community-based alternatives to custodial sentences as it enables individuals to remain in their community, maintain relationships and ensures continuity of care. The main community-based sentence is a Community Payback Order (CPO), which can have several requirements attached to it. The most frequently imposed requirements are Supervision and Unpaid Work. During Q2 the Courts imposed 50 Community Payback Orders. The work undertaken by our Unpaid Work Team is underpinned by the ideals of reparation, rehabilitation and reintegration to support those who have been convicted of offences to achieve a positive destination and provide meaningful benefit to our local communities. Those undertaking unpaid work have the opportunity to gain a range of skills, experiences and opportunities to promote their rehabilitation and ability to desist from offending. Midlothian will Get it Right for Every Child – Achievements In Midlothian the Getting It Right for Every Child Board (GIRFEC) is one of the subgroups of the SMP, and one of the main drivers for the effective delivery of services to children. The GIRFEC Plan also known as the Integrated Children’s Service Plan 2020-2023, is a statutory three-year plan devised by the local authority and health. The plan develops key outcomes and priority actions which are designed to improve the lives of children, young people and families. The plan is coming to an end and a new three-year plan 2023-2026 is currently being drafted. The GIRFEC outcomes for the final year of the three-year plan for 2022-23 are: 1. More children and young people are safe, healthy and resilient 2. More children and young people receive timely and effective mental health support when they need it 3. Inequalities in learning are reduced We are fully committed to realising a children’s rights approach to all of our work and ensuring that we embed the principles of the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) alongside our Promise commitments. 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 The Promise Midlothian continues to progress towards the key foundations of The Promise Scotland Plan 2024- 2030. Page 130 of 151
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Committed to listening and acting on the feedback from the voices of our care experienced children and families, we secured a 3 year contact with Who Cares? Scotland to support delivery of a participation strategy and to re-fresh our current ‘champion’s boards’. This work is currently being shared across the entirety of Midlothian and wider partnerships to raise awareness of The Promise and Corporate Parenting duties. Who Cares? Scotland Awards In August Who Cares? Scotland held the first ever Corporate Parenting awards ceremony. The aim of the awards was to recognise and celebrate transformative and innovative practice from the past ten years and most importantly highlight how this has benefitted Care Experienced people. Young people in Midlothian had nominated the council for the Stable Foundations, and Outstanding Corporate Parent categories. We were thrilled to be awarded first place in both categories. Foster Carers Day out In July Family Centred Care supported 19 children and 21 Foster Carers to attend a Family fun day at Blair Drummond Safari Park. The trip was a great chance for our care experienced children and carers to come together. The feedback was very positive and carers told us they felt valued. We are now planning for a Christmas event. Family Wellbeing Service The Family Wellbeing Service is now well established and working hard to engage with schools and early learning centres to identify families who may require additional support. The team moved to Easthouses Primary School with the start of the new school year. The new facilities will benefit both the staff and more importantly the parents as they shall have rooms where they can do some 1:1 work and have meetings. Team Around the Child (High School) has been tested and introduced to support more consistent and robust planning for high school aged children. This replicates the model that has been long established and successful for early years and primary schools. Team Around the Child (TATC) allows multi agency discussion about a child and their family’s needs, to create a plan about which service within the council or third sector are best placed to provide support in a timely manner. It avoids families or professionals having to send multiple referrals and provides access to the Family Wellbeing Service and other supports funded by the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund. Midlothian will Support Residents to Improve Employability and Outcomes in our Communities - Achievements The vision for this is to reduce the gaps in learning, economic circumstances and poverty. Summer Funding/Supports Over the Summer holidays, as part of reducing inequality and poverty Children’s Services gave a total of 272 families vouchers to enjoy activities which included soft play, trampolining, zoo trips, swimming, cinema, camera obscura, restaurants/clothes shopping, mini golf and laser tag. Over 45 of these activity vouchers were shared with families affected by disability who are awaiting assessment for self- directed support. Income Maximisation As part of our effort to reduce Child Poverty Children’s Services fund three income maximisation projects. These projects support families subject to Child Protection processes or those engaged with Hawthorn Family Learning centre and the Family Wellbeing Service. The three projects continue to support families to access their entitled benefits, grants and reduce debts. Over Q2 the projects collectively generated £186,175 income for 39 families 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 Page 131 of 151
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government agencies, Third Sector organisations, Midlothian Council, local chamber of commerce, landowners and Midlothian Energy Ltd. The National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) 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 In quarter 2 the food waste collection service was expanded to include a further 2,500 properties in the rural area. Initial figures show that this has been a great success with 2 tonnes of food waste collected in the first week alone. This is potentially 100 tonnes of food waste recycled rather than going into the residual bin. The expansion of the food waste collection service is the latest phase of the plan to transform the waste collection service as part of the move to twin stream recycling in 2025. The Greenspace Team have continued during quarter 2 to work with our brilliant volunteers across Midlothian. The work we carry out jointly has a huge impact on the quality of the local environment and we are determined to strengthen these partnerships over the rest of 2024. Our volunteer groups provide added value to the work that we do with litter picking, gardening and fund raising to brighten our local areas. Up to and including this quarter, 3,342 volunteer hours (557 days) were spent in countryside sites. Volunteer numbers continue to remain high. 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 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 support projects from the Social Enterprise Conversation sessions as they develop. 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 Page 132 of 151
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• 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). Midlothian Council’s Economic Renewal Strategy sets out our ambitious approach to managing the transition from pandemic 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. Work is ongoing to refresh the Economic Strategy and will be presented for approval to Council by the end of 2024. The Business Gateway team continue to promote localised procurement with clients, encouraging registration with the Supplier Development Programme and Public Contracts Scotland (PCS). The team 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. Work continues with our Net Zero Nation Programme which is supporting 13 diverse local businesses to accelerate their Net Zero Journey. The businesses will take part in 12-month Net Zero Business Accelerators with funding support from Midlothian Council/Business Gateway Midlothian. In return, they must sign an agreement where they commit to approach their Net Zero strategy and credible carbon reduction plan with vigour, speak at physical and online events to encourage other business leaders to start their own transition to Net Zero. The companies will receive a 12-month carbon accounting software license, an expert partner providing 1:1 support over 12 months to help them produce their audited carbon accounts, their carbon reduction plan produced, an auditor to verify and certify their carbon accounts and carbon reduction plan. After completion in December 2024, the team will commence case studies on the outcomes for businesses. Our first Learn e-Commerce Expert Help programme commenced last quarter in April. 18 businesses enrolled for the digital course, with 6 going on to receive 121 expert help guidance form the trainers. The feedback from clients has been extremely positive with tangible improvement to their businesses immediately felt. A second round of this programme has received a good level of interest with 13 businesses applying and now approved for programme with an estimated launch date during October. The Business Gateway service continue to provide expert help consultancy in financial management and Human Resources to support the Fair Work Policy to Business Gateway clients on an as needed basis. 30 businesses have been supported since the programme began, with budget left for another 20 interventions. 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. There continues to be a significant demand placed on homeless and temporary accommodation services, alongside the 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 refreshed vision for the service is that individuals and families will be able to access housing that is affordable and of good quality in sustainable communities. Housing Services are currently exploring a new approach to deliver services and are trialling new team set ups consisting of a community housing team, aiming to ensure every tenant and resident has their individual needs and rights recognised and is treated fairly with respect to enable tenancy sustainment. A core housing team, improving quality and turnaround of our properties, ensuring residents are informed of housing options and homeless applicants are provided temporary accommodation and a Homelessness team focused on preventing and supporting homelessness. Page 133 of 151
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From March 2024 to date we have received the completed handover for 96 new build homes in Conifer Road, Mayfield, St Cuthberts in Bonnyrigg High Street and Buccleuch Wynd. This quarter 8 golden share applicants for low cost home ownership were reviewed and accepted. The number of temporary accommodation households that have been flipped to permanent accommodation was 74 this quarter, reducing the need for multiple moves before being permanently housed, allowing for links established within the local community to be maintained. Homelessness prevention assists around 20 households with advice and assistance about homelessness prevention per week. This is rental assistance advice, financial awareness advice and mediation. The number of homeless cases provided with advice and assistance this quarter was 222. We continue to promote this service to ensure early successful intervention when possible. Tenants sustaining permanent accommodation continues to be high this quarter with 97% of homeless applicants sustaining a permanent tenancy after 1 year. The percentage of Secondary School meal uptake this quarter has increased to 40.5% and continues to sit above the APSE average of 36.23%. This is due to changes made to the menu offered to secondary schools to attract pupils back into the dining room. The percentage of Primary School meal uptake for quarter 2 was 54.02% and again remains steady compared to previous quarters. Primary school meal uptake continues to sit well above the APSE average of 41.24%. The percentage of school meal food waste has decreased to 4.35% from 5.74% compared to the same period last year. In addition, our Catering Service were awarded the Bronze Food for Life Award and the Pro-veg School Plates Bronze award. Challenges and Risks Financial position: Council approved the 2024/25 budget at its meeting on 27 February 2024. Whilst the 2024/25 budget is agreed, the challenge remains to reach ongoing financial sustainability. Cost and income projections for future years are embedded in the Council’s Transformation Blueprint which contains a range of transformation themes to drive towards a position of financial sustainability. Officers continue to work closely with the Business Transformation Steering Group to respond to the challenges. Financial Services continues to work to ensure the Council has robust financial management arrangements in place with a full suite of financial monitoring reports regularly presented to Council. 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 high quality 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 recommended to Council. Growing Council: Scotland with an increase of 16.1%. The 2011 census data lists Midlothian as having a population of 83,187 which has risen to 96,600 in the 2022 census data. The level of growth is 2.3% higher than our previous calculation and is now 13.4% higher than the Scottish average of 2.7%. In terms of households, Midlothian saw the highest percentage increase at 17.2% since the 2011 census. Population density in Midlothian is 273.1 residents per square kilometre compared to the Scottish average of 69.8. In addition, Midlothian has 10 data zones which fall into the most deprived areas. To ensure Midlothian is ‘building back better’, this investment is also creating new jobs, apprenticeship opportunities, opportunities for businesses and communities and families hardest hit by the impact of the pandemic. These new opportunities help lead the way towards a better future for Midlothian. Page 134 of 151
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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 Council, 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 continues to be noted across the UK with 49% of adults reporting an increase in their cost of living in December 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 11.1% in October 2022 has been the main driver of the cost of living crisis which has outstripped wage and benefit increases. Recent data shows the annual inflation rate was 4.0% in December 2023, up slightly from 3.9% in November. The price rises continue to 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). 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, which is chaired by the Council Leader and meets regularly to coordinate mitigating activities Page 135 of 151
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Pentana Performance Dashboard – Q2 24/25 Page 136 of 151
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Balanced Scorecard Indicators Half Year Report 2024/25 This section of the Council report is presented using the Balanced Scorecard approach. The four Balanced Scorecard perspectives and key areas of focus are shown in the following table and the associated key indicators that follow are drawn from across the Councils services. Customer/Stakeholder Financial Health • Improving outcomes for children, young people and their families • Ensuring Midlothian is a safe place to live, work and grow up in • Creating opportunities for all and reducing inequalities • Growing the local economy and supporting businesses • Responding to growing demand for Housing and Adult Social Care services • Maintaining financial sustainability and maximising funding sources • Making optimal use of available resources • Reducing costs and eliminating waste Internal Processes Learning and Growth • Improving and aligning processes, services and infrastructure • Developing employee knowledge, skills and abilities • Improving engagement and collaboration • Developing a high performing workforce Each of the perspectives shown above are supported by a number of key measures and indicators which ensure that the Balanced Scorecard informs ongoing performance reporting and helps to identify areas for further improvement. The strategy map below provides an at a glance summary of the key performance indicators identified for the Single Midlothian Plan and under each of the perspective headings of the Balanced Scorecard. Detailed performance data is available in the quarterly service performance reports. Page 137 of 151
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Single Midlothian Plan Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs) draw together public, voluntary and private sector bodies, and local communities. CPPs deliver a shared ‘plan’ based on evidence to improve the lives of local people, in Midlothian, the plan is called the Single Midlothian Plan. By working together as a Community Planning Partnership, individuals and communities 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. The Single Midlothian Plan from 2023-27 consists of 7 thematic priorities with key actions and measures across those four years and will be refreshed annually. • Midlothian will be Healthier • Midlothian will be Safer • Midlothian will Get it Right for Every Child • Midlothian will support residents to improve Employability and Outcomes in our Communities • Midlothian will be Greener • Midlothian will have a Wellbeing Economy and be Better Connected • Midlothian will work towards reducing Poverty Page 138 of 151
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Customer Perspective - Midlothian will be Healthier 1. Midlothian will be Healthier Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Health and Social Care specific LearnPro modules working / accessible that relate to registered professional practice. N/A 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% All Health and Social Care specific LearnPro modules with up to date content that relate to registered professional practice. N/A Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Number of actions collaboratively achieved with other areas of the organisation involving early intervention/prevention. Annual target 10 N/A N/A Annual measure - Annual measure - Newbyres Village Care Home occupancy rate N/A N/A 72.92% 60% 85% 60% Percentage of Care Providers with risk status rated as low. N/A N/A 91% 90% 91% 90% Total amount of additional income generated for individuals through welfare rights service. N/A N/A £1,169,21 8.00 - £1,250,5 67.84 - Performance against revenue budget N/A N/A £63.534m £63.534m Data not available - Average number of working days lost due to sickness absence (Adult Health and Social Care staff) (cumulative) 21.16 24.26 5.21 10.53 10.52 10.53 % of Adult Health and Social Care service priority actions on target / completed, of the total number 72.97% 93.75% 94.12% 90% 88.24% 90% Number of Midlothian Active Choices (MAC) attendees (quarterly) N/A 5,688 1,670 - 1,653 - Number of activities offered by Ageing Well to 50+ age groups (quarterly) N/A 2,763 741 - 780 - Achieve a response rate above 50% to the annual iMatter survey sent to all N/A N/A Half yearly measure 65% 50% Page 139 of 151
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Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status employees across health and social care. Maintain or improve the iMatter Employment Engagement Index Score. N/A N/A Half yearly measure 78 78 Page 140 of 151
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Customer Perspective - Midlothian will be Safer 2. Midlothian will be Safer Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status % of people subject to a Community Payback Order and effectively participate. - 92% 95% - 95% - Successful completion rate of Community Payback Orders is maintained at or above the national average. - 78% Annual measure - Annual measure - Page 141 of 151
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Customer Perspective - Midlothian will Get it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) 3. Midlothian will Get it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Number of outcome focused assessments undertaken (cumulative) 1,329 1,397 394 - 796 - Number of external "Foster" placements purchased this year 3 10 3 - 5 - Number of referrals to the duty service (cumulative) 9,016 7,179 1,170 - 2,102 - Number of children adopted (cumulative) 3 2 2 - 2 - Length of time children in permanence process before reaching forever family (months) 27 35 - Data not available - Number of foster carers going through prep groups on a quarterly basis (cumulative) 14 10 2 - 12 - Number of new foster carers approved (cumulative) 1 1 0 - 0 - Number of foster carers de-registered quarterly (cumulative) 4 5 4 - 1 - Number of permanence LAAC Reviews happening quarterly (cumulative) 27 19 3 - 12 - Number of children matched in quarter – (average months from perm LAAC to matching panel) (cumulative) 4 1 1 - 1 - Number of places taken at residential houses - capacity 10 10 10 10 - 9 - The number of children living in kinship care 59 69 79 - 74 - The number of children living in foster care 61 62 64 - 60 - Number of Midlothian children on the Child Protection Register 43 40 59 - 54 - Rate per 1,000 population of Midlothian children on the Child Protection 2.4 2.2 3.5 - 2.6 - Page 142 of 151
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Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Register in relation to the Scottish average (2.3) % of Child Protection plans which have integrated chronology 94% 90% 100% - 70% - Rate per 1,000 of Midlothian Looked After Children AT HOME in comparison with the Scottish average (2.6) 1.3 2.1 2.2 - 2 - Rate per 1,000 of Midlothian Looked After and Accommodated Children in comparison with the Scottish average (9.7) 6.7 7.4 8.6 - 6.8 - The number of looked after children and young people not in residential placed out with Midlothian 8 9 10 - 10 - The number of looked after children and young people placed in Residential School out with Midlothian 2 2 2 - 2 - The number of young people who are allocated/engage with Through Care and After Care service 64 54 51 - 51 - Child Protection: % of Core Group meetings held within a 8 week period. 99% 100% N/A 100% - Data not available 100% - Child Protection: % of Core Group meetings held within 15 days for Initial 89% 86% N/A 100% - Data not available 100% - Improve Primary School attendance 93.03% 93.42% 93.23% 95% 94.96% 95% Improve Secondary School Attendance 87.11% 87.14% 87.09% 91.5% 89.48% 91.5% Reduce exclusions in Primary schools (Rate per 1,000) 3.03 7.59 11.25 15 0.73 15 Reduce exclusions in Secondary schools (Rate per 1,000) 22.6 18.27 25.55 15 7.1 15 Number of Children looked after away from home 140 152 N/A - Data not available - Page 143 of 151
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Customer Perspective - Midlothian will support residents to improve Employability and Outcomes in our Communities 4. Midlothian will support residents to improve Employability and Outcomes in our Communities Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Improve Primary School attendance 93.03% 93.42% 93.23% 95% 94.96% 95% Improve Secondary School Attendance 87.11% 87.14% 87.09% 91.5% 89.48% 91.5% Reduce exclusions in Primary schools (Rate per 1,000) 3.03 7.59 11.25 15 0.73 15 Reduce exclusions in Secondary schools (Rate per 1,000) 22.6 18.27 25.55 15 7.1 15 % of those leaving school secure a positive destination N/A 95.29% N/A 95% - Data not available 95% - Percentage of Midlothian Care Experienced school leavers progressing to positive destinations 90% 100% N/A 85.96% - Data not available 85.96% - Percentage of Unemployed People Assisted into work from Council (LGBF) 23.91% N/A LGBF annual indicator LGBF annual indicator Page 144 of 151
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Customer Perspective - Midlothian will be Greener 5. Midlothian will be Greener Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Percentage of Council fleet which is 'Green' (cumulative) 8.2% 8.2% 8.2% 8% 8.2% 8% Percentage of waste going to landfill per calendar year (quarterly) 13.3% N/A N/A 15.0% - Data not available 15.0% - Percentage of the Council's housing stock meeting the 'Modern facilities & services' Scottish Housing Quality Standard criteria 98.4% 98.4% 98.4% 100% 98.4% 100% Corporate Indicator - Percentage of the Council's housing stock meeting the Scottish Housing Quality Standard criteria (LGBF) 32.28% 56.47% 72.1% 100% 76.55% 100% CO2 emissions are wide: emissions within scope of LA per capita (LGBF) N/A N/A LGBF annual indicator LGBF annual indicator Street Cleanliness Score (LGBF) 88.5% 92.6% LGBF annual indicator - LGBF annual indicator - Percentage of total household waste that is recycled (LGBF) 47.0% N/A N/A 54.0% - Data not available 54.0% - Number of Businesses signed up to the Midlothian Business Green Pledge (quarterly) 50 108 21 - 21 - Number of volunteer hours in countryside sites (cumulative) 5,604 6,990 1,890 1,125 3,342 3,000 Number of lighting columns replaced (cumulative) 136 752 0 0 22 22 Percentage of household waste used to generate heat and electric (Energy from Waste) 43.5% N/A N/A - Data not available - Page 145 of 151
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Customer Perspective - Midlothian will have a Wellbeing Economy and be Better Connected 6. Midlothian will have a Wellbeing Economy and be Better Connected Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Number of New Business Start Ups (LGBF) 118 103 37 - 20 - Number of 'Planning to Start' business enquiries/submissions (quarterly) 195 235 55 - 52 - Number of jobs created by New Business Start Up N/A 147 53 - 23 - Contribution to Midlothian Economy in 1st year of trading by Start Up Business N/A £5,790,00 0 £1,640,00 0 - £1,020,00 0 - Submit Midlothian Local Development Plan 2 evidence report for Scottish Government’s Gate Check stage N/A N/A 75% 25% 100% 100% Page 146 of 151
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Customer Perspective - Midlothian will work towards reducing Poverty 7. Midlothian will work towards reducing Poverty Performance Indicator 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Number of Scottish welfare fund crisis grant applications awarded (cumulative) N/A 3,352 1,005 - 1,868 - Number of customers receiving help/support via housing benefits (quarterly) N/A 11,721 3,028 - 2,896 - The proportion of Scottish Welfare Fund Budget Spent (LGBF) 106.65% 100% 34% - 76% - Claimant Count as % of Working Age Population (LGBF) 2.3% 2.4% LGBF annual indicator LGBF annual indicator Claimant Count as % of 16-24 Population (LGBF) 3% 3% Percentage earning less than the Living Wage (LGBF) N/A N/A Length of time (weeks) homeless applicants wait until receiving a permanent housing outcome 70 63.8 51 85 Data not available 85 - Percentage of free school meal uptake (P1-P5) N/A 70.59% 67.76% 77.57% 68.27% 77.57% Page 147 of 151
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Financial Health Perspective Short Name 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Corporate Indicator - Primary Education - Cost per pupil (LGBF) £7,149.0 0 N/A LGBF annual indicators LGBF annual indicator Corporate Indicator - Secondary Education - Cost per pupil (LGBF) £8,372.3 5 N/A Corporate Indicator - Pre- Primary Education - Cost per pupil (LGBF) £9,917.0 0 N/A Corporate Indicator - Central Support services as a % of Total Gross expenditure (LGBF) 3.74% N/A Corporate Indicator - Cost of collecting council tax per dwelling (LGBF) £9.44 N/A Corporate Indicator - Percentage of invoices sampled and paid within 30 days (LGBF) (quarterly) 90.0% 92.6% 94.6% 95.0% 92.3% 95.0% Corporate Indicator - Net cost of waste collection per premise (annual) (LGBF) £66.99 N/A LGBF annual indicators LGBF annual indicator Corporate Indicator - Net cost of waste disposal per premise (annual) (LGBF) £31.25 N/A Corporate Indicator - Net cost of street cleaning per 1,000 population (LGBF) £12,368. 00 N/A Corporate Indicator - Cost of maintenance per kilometre of roads (LGBF) £10,980. 56 N/A Corporate Indicator - Cost of Trading Standards, Money Advice & Citizen Advice per 1000 population (LGBF) £8,390.0 0 N/A Corporate Indicator - Cost of environmental health per 1,000 population. (LGBF) £12,780. 00 N/A Total useable reserves as a % of council annual budgeted revenue (LGBF) 34.1% N/A Uncommitted General Fund Balance as a % of council annual budgeted net revenue (LGBF) 1.8% N/A Ratio of Financing Costs to Net Revenue Stream - General Fund (LGBF) 0.38% N/A Ratio of Financing Costs to Net Revenue Stream - Housing Revenue Account (LGBF) 36.03% N/A Page 148 of 151
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Short Name 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Actual outturn as a percentage of budgeted expenditure (LGBF) 96% N/A Corporate Indicator - Older Persons Home Care Costs per Hour (Over 65) (LGBF) £56.96 N/A LGBF annual indicators LGBF annual indicators Corporate Indicator - The Net Cost of Residential Care Services per Older Adult (+65) per Week (LGBF) £627.00 N/A Page 149 of 151
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Learning and Growth Perspective Short Name 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status Percentage of staff turnover (including teachers) (quarterly) 10.36% 9.2% 1.9% - 2.6% - Corporate Indicator - The Percentage of council employees in top 5% of earners that are women (LGBF) 56.9% 58.9% LGBF annual indicator - LGBF annual indicator - Corporate Indicator - The gender pay gap between average hourly rate of pay for male and female - all council employees (LGBF) 2.86% 2.7% 2.65% - 1.92% - Corporate Indicator - Sickness Absence Days per Employee (All employees) 11.04 11.71 3.11 - 6.52 - Corporate Indicator - Teachers Sickness Absence Days (LGBF) 5.62 days 6.44 days 1.81 days - 2.74 days - Corporate Indicator - Local Government Employees (except teachers) sickness absence days (LGBF) 13.20 days 13.79 days 3.63 days - 8.02 days - Page 150 of 151
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Internal Processes Perspective Short Name 2022/23 2023/24 Q1 2024/25 Q2 2024/25 Value Value Value Target Status Value Target Status % of internal/external audit actions progressing on target. N/A 97.16% 86.18% 85% 92.81% 85% % of high risks that have been reviewed in the last quarter N/A 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% Corporate Indicator - Percentage of adults satisfied with libraries (LGBF) 66% N/A LGBF annual indicators LGBF annual indicators Corporate Indicator - Percentage of adults satisfied with parks and open spaces (LGBF) 85.3% N/A Corporate Indicator - Percentage of adults satisfied with leisure facilities (LGBF) 66.7% N/A Corporate Indicator - Percentage of Adults satisfied with local schools (LGBF) N/A N/A Corporate Indicator - Percentage of Adults satisfied with refuse collection (LGBF) 84.7% N/A Corporate Indicator - Percentage of adults satisfied with street cleaning (LGBF) 60% N/A Total number of complaints received (quarterly) 6,459 1,750 380 - 295 - Percentage of complaints at stage 1 complete within 5 working days 90.62% 83.4% 73.04% 95% 86.09% 95% Percentage of complaints at stage 2 complete within 20 working days 77.55% 58.67% 81.25% 95% 100% 95% Page 151 of 151