Agenda and minutes

To receive apologies for absence and notification of any substitutes present

Apologies for absence were received from Mrs Crabtree and Mrs Stockell.   Mr Pearman attended as the substitute for Mrs Stockell and Mr Brookbank attended as substitute for Mrs Crabtree.

To receive any declarations of interest made by Members in relation to any matter on the agenda.  Members are reminded to specify the agenda item number to which it refers and the nature of the interest being declared

There were no declarations of interest.

To consider and approve the minutes as a correct record

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the meeting held on 22 April are correctly recorded and that they be signed by the Chairman.

To receive verbal updates from the Cabinet Members for Education and Health Reform, Community Service and the Deputy Cabinet Member for Specialist Children’s Services; and the Corporate Director for Education, Learning and Skills

1.            Mr Gough, Mrs Whittle, Mrs Hohler and Mr Leeson gave the verbal updates on activities that took place since the last meeting of the Cabinet Committee.

Basic Need and related funding issues

2.            The Local Authority considered the settlement for 2015 to 2017 by the government inadequate as it was significantly lower than £37 million received in the previous session at £27 million for this period, especially with the growth and demand continuing at the same rate.  Representation had been made to the government requesting a detailed examination on how the settlement was determined.  There was also a focus on inward migration into Kent which had come in higher than was forecast and the projections indicated that this would continue to rise and would be key to the Kent’s pitch for the a proper share of the £300 million allocated funds that had been held back by the government.

3.            Many of the provisions of the Children and Families Act  2014 would  be implemented in the Autumn of 2014, in particular the provisions  that related to Special Educational Needs and the establishment of the  Education and Health Care Plan that would replace the need for statements and bring education and health closer together.  Mr Gough added that although the Code of Practise for this was yet to be published Kent had already carried out a lot of work on this and was prepared for this change in Special Educational Needs.

Early Years Foundation Stage - Key Stage 2 Results

4.            Mr Leeson gave an update on the provisional results for the Early Years Foundation Stage - Key Stage 1 and 2 advising that at the early years foundation stage, Kent was above the national average with a significant improvement of 5% increase on the 63% achieved last year. In 2014, 68.5% of 5 year olds had achieved a good level of development.  The national figure was 60%.  At Key Stage 1 there had been an improvement of between 2.5% and 3% in standards at level 2b and above for reading, writing and mathematics, this took Kent above the national average figure.  Standards in reading had improved by nearly 3% and were above the national average and were now 82% in Kent of 7 year olds achieving a level 2b in reading compared to the national average of 81%.  For Level 2b in writing Kent was in line with the national average at 69% that was a 2.5% increase of what was achieved in 2013 and in Maths there was also an increase in the percentage of children that achieved at level 2b or above at 81.5% which was 2% above the national average.  At Key Stage 2 the percentage of pupils in Kent that achieved combined level 4 and above in reading, writing and mathematics had increased by 5%, it was now 80% and the national figure was 78%.  This was the first time Kent has been above the average for primary school standards.  There would be a detailed  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

To receive a report by the Corporate Director for Education and Young People’s Services that sets out the results of the public consultation on the proposal to commission an enlargement of Rose Street School, Sheerness, from 1FE to 2FE from September 2015.

(Report by Mr P Leeson Corporate Director for Education and Young People’s Services Cabinet Committee)

(Mrs M White, Area Education Officer for East Kent and Mr K Shovelton, Director of Education Planning and Access were also present for this item)

1.            The Chairman, Mr Ridings, introduced the report by highlighting the views received on the proposal to expand Rose Street.  Mr Shovelton advised that the Ofsted had judged the school to be a good school.

2.            The Area Education Officer for East Kent, Mrs White, gave feedback on some of the issues raised in the consultation.  Mrs White advised that there was a positive working relationship with the school.  The new build would be positioned where the existing astro-turf was and consultations were taking place with the school governors and Headteacher on where the new astro-turf would be sited.  A new kitchen would be installed ready for September 2015 and in the meantime a local school would be providing school meals to the school.

3.            RESOLVED that the Education and Young People’s Services Cabinet Committee endorsed the decision to be taken by the Cabinet Member for Education and Health and Reform to:-

(i)    Issue a public notice to expand Rose Street School, by 210 places from 1FE to 2FE, conditional upon obtaining planning agreement for the additional accommodation required.

And, subject to no objections being received to the public notice

(ii)    Expand the school

(iii) Allocate £2,700,000 from Education & Young People’s Services Capital Budget; and

(iv)   Find the best alternative location for the astro-turf.

To receive a report from the Corporate Director for Education, Learning and Skills and the Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform on the progress made in implementing the Kent Commissioning Plan for Education 2013-2018 since its adoption by Cabinet in October 2013.

(Report by Mr R Gough, Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Mr P Gough, Cabinet Member for Education and Young People’s Services Cabinet Committee)

(Mr K Shovelton, Director of Planning and Access was present for this item)

1.            The Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform introduced  the report on the progress made in implementing the Kent Commissioning Plan for Education 2013-18 since its adoption by Cabinet in October 2013.  He advised that the overall delivery of targets set out in the Commissioning Plan had been achieved through providing permanent or temporary school places.  There had been a big shift in the number of inward migration into the County which was putting greater pressure on school places but despite this Kent had sustained a high delivery of parent’s first preference of schools.   Work was continuing to establish seven new primary schools in the County and enhance the capacity of Special Educational Needs provision.

2.            Mr Shovelton advised that a detailed report would be submitted to this Cabinet Committee in September which would detail the plans for the next five years.

3.            Mr Gough, Mr Leeson and Mr Shovelton responded to comments and questions by Members which included the following:

a)     Mr Shovelton advised that options were being look at to mitigate the impact of the expansion of Broomstone Primary School, Broadstairs upon the highways to enable planning consent to be requested.  It is anticipated that proposals would be submitted to the Planning Committee in the Autumn 2014.

b)     Mr Leeson acknowledged concerns raised by Members regarding the number of schools in one local area sponsored by the same Academy Trust. He explained that the Local Authority was only able to put forward its preferred sponsors to the Department for Education (DfE) which made the final decision.

c)      Mr Gough advised that little had change on the issue of Barton Court Grammar School’s proposed relocation to the coast. KCC was unlikely to make a contribution to the school’s proposed move.

d)     Mr Leeson advised that there was an awareness of those schools that were in budget deficit and had low forecast pupil numbers and officers were working with those schools.  Options being considered to ensure the schools’ future viability included; having all-through schools [Combining primary and secondary school education], sustainable Special Educational Needs offers in mainstream schools and expanding the 14-19 year old vocational offer in Further Education Colleges. Where a school was an Academy the local authority could not directly subsidise the school but would have discussions with the DfE or sponsors of the Academy.  Mr Leeson stated the Local Authority would oppose a reduction in the choice of schools where needed and said that the County could not afford to lose any of its schools.

4.            RESOLVED that:-

a)    the responses to Members comments and questions be noted;

b)    a report be submitted to the September meeting of this Cabinet Committee setting out the future commissioning plans for the next five years; and

c)    the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.

To receive a report by the Cabinet Members for Education and Health Reform, Specialist Children’s Services, and Community Service; and the Corporate Director for Education and Young People's Services on an Early Help and Preventative Services Prospectus and an interim One Year Plan for 2014-2015 that have been developed.  These two key documents detail the strategic approach and ambitions for Early Help and begin to translate them into practice.

(Report by Mr R Gough Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Mr P Oakford Cabinet Member for Specialist Children’s Services and Mr M Hill Cabinet Member for Community Services)

(Ms F Kroll, Director of Early Help and Preventative Services, and Ms Angela Slaven, Interim Director of Preventative Services were present for this item)

1.            The Corporate Director of Education and Young People’s Services, Mr Leeson, introduced Ms Florence Kroll, the newly appointed  Director of Early Help and Preventative Services  and Ms Angela Slaven, Interim Director of Preventative Services, who would continue in this role until September 2014.

2.            Mr Leeson explained that the report sets out the need for a more integrated approach in bringing together services including Education, Social Care, CAMHS services and CAF to work and support the whole family.

3.            The Director of Early Help and Preventative Services, Ms Kroll, gave a brief introduction of her previous role in the London Borough of Hackney as Assistant Director, Young Hackney.

4.            Ms Kroll explained that the Prospectus and interim one year plan sets out a clear vision and principles for her new role.  She considered that there were seven key areas that were:

·         Strong early identification system

·         Universal Services

·         Support given at schools, community settings and Youth hubs etc

·         Participation – giving young people and parents a voice

·         Work Force Development – Recruiting and retaining the right staff

·         Partnerships -  Services working holistically including Health Services, CAMHS, FE Colleges and Employers

·         Opportunities for Education and Employment – Producing strong employment outcomes

5.            Mr Leeson agreed to a progress report being submitted to this Cabinet Committee in Spring 2015.

6.            Mr Leeson, Ms Kroll and Ms Slaven responded to comments and questions by Members which included the following:

a)    Members welcomed Ms Kroll to her first meeting of the Cabinet Committee.

b)    Members welcomed the report and a comment was made that this was probably one of the most important tasks faced by the County Council.

c)    Mr Leeson concurred that there were a large amount of children that had not received an Early Help assessment and there was a need to ensure in future that children received support.  This would be carried out by providing; a Triage System, move to a Single Data Management System and review the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) process.

d)    Mr Leeson advised that the spread of resource in Early Help was not matched to need at present and work was being carried out on how the resources would be redirect to key priorities and targets.

e)    Mr Leeson confirmed that some staff within the Kent Integrated Adolescent Support Service (KIASS) had been allocated to different teams but there had been no major restructuring of staff. 

f)     Mr Leeson agreed to the request to minimise bureaucracy when monitoring feedback especially for the voluntary sector.

7.            RESOLVED that:-

a)            the responses to comments and questions by Members be noted;

b)            the vision and approach to early help and prevention, detailed in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.

To receive a report from the Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and the Corporate Director of Education and Young People’s Services that sets out details of the profile of the current NEET cohort and explains the work being undertaken to reduce NEETs and increase the take up of apprenticeships for 16-18 year olds.

(Report by Mr R Gough Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Mr P Leeson, Corporate Director of Education and Young People’s Services)

(Ms S Dunn, Head of Skills and Employability was present for this item)

1.            The Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform, Mr Gough,   introduced the report that set out details of the profile of the current NEET cohort and explained the work being undertaken to reduce NEETs and increase the take up of apprenticeships for 16-18 year olds.

2.            Mr Gough highlighted that the number of apprenticeships starts for 2012/13 had decline for all age groups nationally due to changes in the funding arrangements and a number of apprenticeship providers withdrawing from the age 16-18 market.  However, the decline in apprenticeship take up had been significantly less in Kent than elsewhere, which was due to the significant work undertaken by Kent Employment Programme officers.  

3.            The Head of Skills and Employability, Ms Dunn,  advised that this report had a direct correlation with the last item on the agenda “Early Help and Preventative Services” in supporting vulnerable people by providing them with effective vocational pathways.  Ms Dunn advised that new provision was being developed including the new Technical awards for 14-16 year olds which had been established by the government and would provide good progression routes into apprenticeships and campaigns for all levels of apprenticeships to be held in the months of July, January and April.

4.            In response to a question, Mr Leeson advised that there was a specific project for people with learning disabilities for which Penny Southern, Director of Learning Disability and Mental Health, Social Care Health and Wellbeing is the lead. He advised that 460 to 470 of the current 2000 NEETs had a disability and the project was producing good results.

5.            RESOLVED that:-

a)    the response to comments and questions by Members be noted; and

b)    the work being undertaken by the KCC Skills and Employability Service to reduce NEETs and increase apprenticeships for 16 to 18 year olds be noted.

To receive a report by the Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Corporate Director for Education & young People’s Services that presents the strategic risks of relevance to the Education and Young People’s Services Cabinet Committee, in addition to the risks featuring on the corporate risk register for which the Corporate Director is a designated ‘risk owner’.  The paper also explains the management process for review of key risks.

(Report by Mr R Gough, Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Mr P Leeson, Corporate Director for Education and Young People’s Services) 

(Mr M Scrivener, Corporate Risk Manager, was present for this item)

1.            The Corporate Risk Manager, Mr Scrivener, introduced the report that presented the strategic risks relevant to the Education and Young People’s Services Cabinet Committee, which included a corporate risk for which the Corporate Director for Education & Young People’s Services is designated as risk owner. 

2.            Mr Gough and Mr Leeson responded to comments and questions by Members which included the following:

a)    Mr Gough and Mr Leeson responded to comments that referred to a report on Elective Home Education submitted to Cabinet on 7 July 2014 which stated ‘Should the offer of a visit be declined the LA will not be able to state that a suitable education is being offered.  The LA will also record that there has been no opportunity to speak to the child regarding their education. In this case the child’s name will be added to the Children Missing Education register until such time as it becomes possible to ascertain that they are receiving suitable education’ and the argument that this course of action was not legal.  Mr Leeson advised that the issue of the legislation and guidance being vague did not help matters.  He stated that the Local Authority had not proposed anything that crossed the law.  The Local Authority had a statutory responsibility to ensure that those children were receiving a suitable education.  Mr Gough added that in light of the arguments received they would be reviewing their position.

b)    Mr Gough confirmed that funding had been used to install new kitchens and issue new kitchen equipment in schools.  There had been issues regarding the scheduling of school halls for lunch hours which had not been satisfactory.

3.            RESOLVED that responses to comments by Members and the report be noted.

To receive a report from the Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and the Corporate Director of Education and Young People’s Services reviewing the Performance Management Framework, a monitoring tool, for the targets and the milestones for each year up to 2017, set out in the Strategic Priority Statement, Bold Steps for Education, and service business plans.

(Report by Mr R Gough, Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Mr P Leeson Corporate Director for Education and Young)

(Mrs K Atkinson, Performance and Information Manager was present for this item)

1.            The Cabinet Committee received a report that reviewed the performance management framework against the targets  for each year up to 2017, set out in the Strategic Priority Statement, Bold Steps for Education and services business plans.

2.            RESOLVED that the development of a new Education and Young People’s Services performance scorecard to reflect the expanded scope of the work of the Directorate be noted.

To receive a report by the Head of Democratic Services that seeks topics and future items to be considered by the Cabinet Committee.

(Report by Mr P Sass, Head of Democratic Services)

(Ms C Singh, Democratic Services Officer was present for this item)

1.            The Cabinet Committee received a report that gave details of its proposed work programme.

2.            RESOLVED that the Work Programme for 2014/15 be agreed.

To receive a report by the Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Corporate Director Education and Young People’s Services on decisions that were taken between meetings as they could not reasonably be deferred to the next programmed meeting of the Education and Young People’s Services Cabinet Committee for the reasons set out in the report.

(Report by Mr R Gough, Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform and Mr P Leeson, Corporate Director for Education and Young People’s Services)

1.            The Cabinet Committee received a report on the decision that were taken between meetings as they could not reasonably be deferred to the next programmed meeting.

2.            RESOLVED that decisions:  14/00003/2 Proposal to relocate and expand Tunstall CE Primary School; was taken in accordance with Appendix 4 Part 6, paragraph 6.11, of the Constitution; and 14/00013(b) - Proposed expansion of Garlinge Primary School & Nursery, Margate; 14/00057 - Proposal to expand the Aspen I Provision, Dover; 14/00058 - Proposal to redesignate Furness School;  14/00059 - Proposal to expand Goldwyn School, Ashford; 14/00042(b) - Proposal to increase the designated number at Brooomhill Bank School, Tunbridge Wells; 14/00071- Proposal to make a prescribed alteration to Holmesdale Technology College were taken in  accordance with Appendix 4 Part 6, paragraph 6.18 (b) to (d) of the Constitution be noted.