To receive the final report of the Placements for Looked After Children Task and Finish Group

11.1    Members received the report of the Overview and Scrutiny Officer which provided an overview of the work carried out by Shropshire Council’s Placements for Looked After Children Task and Finish Group.  The Group had looked into the challenges the Council faced in providing residential care for its Looked After Children.  The report had responded to proposals from Shropshire Council to develop its residential care provision for its Looked After Children.

11.2    The Head of Safeguarding, Children’s Services was present and introduced the report.  Councillors Kevin Turley and Kevin Pardy, both members of the Placements for Looked After Children Task and Finish Group, provided an overview of the work of the Task and Finish Group and outlined their personal insight and findings of the group. 

11.3    In response to questions from Members, the Head of Safeguarding, Children’s Services responded as follows:

·         A Member had suggested that if every local authority established their own residential units would this then mean that there would be difficulties in identifying suitable placements for our most vulnerable children in the private sector.   The Head of Safeguarding noted that local authorities had already established residential beds and this had had no impact on the open market.  The majority of authorities were currently looking at ways to meet the needs of the most vulnerable children and doing something similar and setting up 1 to 4 bedroomed units.  It is unlikely that we will find ourselves in a situation whereby we are going to have our own residential units and not need the private sector as we do now.  The demand is there.  Shropshire is not the only authority that has seen a growing number of children – every local authority has seen an increase.  Additional beds will not have an impact.   Private providers are struggling to meet the needs of our vulnerable children and they don’t always have the appropriate skills. Private providers are under a lot of pressure because of the Ofsted rating and if they are not good or outstanding then a number of local authorities will not use them.  Therefore, they do not want to care for complex young people in case it jeopardises their Ofsted judgement;

·         We are doing more but in a different way.  Alongside this proposal is additional work being undertaken across our fostering services.  There has been an increase in the numbers of looked after children and an increasing number of children under 5 coming in to local authority care as a result of the risk of significant harm. There is support and an agreement from Shropshire Council to increase our capacity and recruit more foster carers and not only to recruit more foster carers for younger children but also to recruit more specialised foster carers for older children.  This would mean that complex children who in the appropriate foster placement could live in a family environment.  

11.4    The Director of Children’s Services thanked Councillors for their participation and involvement in this process.  She reiterated that it was important for elected Members to understand the needs of our children and understand the work of the service.  She thanked the Placement Team who work tirelessly around the clock in extremely difficult and highly pressured circumstances and who make a huge impact on some of our most vulnerable children.

11.5    RESOLVED:

That the recommendations put forward by the Placements for Looked After Children Task and Finish Group, as set out below, be agreed:

            Shropshire Council to:

·         develop plans to set-up:

Ø  Two new two-bedroom specialist care residential homes;

Ø  A three-bedroom step-down care residential home;

Ø  Convert Chelmaren’s Statement of Purpose to a children’s home for long-term children;

Ø  Convert office space at Chelmaren to provide for semi-independent accommodation for Shropshire Council’s Looked After Children who will soon be leaving care;

Ø  Develop a pop-up unit; and

·         Delay the building of any step-down residential home, until the two specialist care residential homes are established and working successfully.