To receive a report from the Director for Early Help and Children’s Social Care.

The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service brought the presentation to the Board on behalf of the Head of Service, Cared for and Care Experienced children and young people. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service started by highlighting the legal framework around care experienced young people and ran through some of the duties and responsibilities which came with the legal framework.

The Committee were then informed of the four main care leaver categories, which were eligible, qualifying, relevant, and former relevant, and provided the definition to each of these categories. The national and regional picture was then shared, which included the “Ready or not” OFSTED research, which was published in January 2022, and highlighted the need to improve the support for care leavers. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service shared the key themes which the report identified, which included a sense of isolation and fear for care leavers and not having sufficient involvement in their pathway planning. Some of the voices of care leavers in Trafford were then shared with the committee, which called for more options around housing and accommodation, clarity about what they were entitled to, and that they felt that ‘care leaves us rather than we leave care’.

The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service made the committee aware of the commitment and intention for cared for children and care leavers from the Council, which had been set out in the Corporate Parenting Strategy, and had five strategic priorities. These were Participation and Engagement, Health, Education, Providing and Stable Home, and Preparing for Adulthood. The Committee were then told of some of the commitments already made by the Council on the preparing for adulthood priority, which included developing clearer pathway plans for all young people and updating the care leaver offer.

The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service offered the Committee some of the statistics around the upcoming rise of care experienced young people, due to previously high cohorts of cared for children. The Committee were told that the Council was planning to adopt an opt out model rather than opt in, which had a more proactive reach out offer.

The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service reassured the committee that the Council was monitoring how they measure the services performance and data was shared around how the council planned to measure it. This included monitoring data on how the service keeps in touch with young people after they leave the service and analysing suitability of accommodation for young people. Data surrounding the accommodation of current care experienced young people was provided, with the vast majority classified as residing in suitable accommodation.

The accommodation and support options available to young people leaving care was provided to the Committee. There was a range of options available such as ‘Staying Put’ (where the young person can choose to stay with their foster carer) and supported lodgings (where they have their own room in a private home). The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service referred to the House Projects, which was a joint commission between Trafford and Manchester City Council’s, which had already had seven young people successfully identified.

Finally, the Committee was told of those things already delivered by the service, which had included a service improvement plan being in place and the endorsement by the Council of care for and care experience young people being a protected characteristic and shared some of the steps to come on the continued improvement journey of the service.

The Committee was offered the opportunity to ask questions.

Councillor Hirst asked how many care leavers had a continuous personal adviser (PA) from age 18 to 21. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that they did not have access to the figures, however, they did say there had been a high turnover of PAs but there had been a move to more sustainable figures recently. It was agreed that they would provide the figure after the meeting.

Councillor Hirst asked about the offer from the service to eight weekly visits for care leavers and whether this was face to face or if something like a text message would count. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service was very clear that visit should be every eight weeks as a minimum. Councillor Hist asked if there was a target in place for this to be achieved. The response was that this should have be in place. Councillor Hirst responded that it was not.

Councillor Hirst asked how the voices of young people had been captured. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that the Aftercare Forum had provided many of these responses. Councillor Hirst asked how many care leavers engage with the forum. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that this was between six and eight.

Lastly, Councillor Hirst asked how those at university’s voices were being captured. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that the eight-weekly meeting with their PA’s gathered this voice, which was then fed into their pathway plans. Councillor Hirst felt that there needed to be alternative times offered for the aftercare forum to meet, due to 4pm not always working for people due to work commitments for example. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service felt that the member raised a good point and promised to go to colleagues at the advocacy service with this feedback.

Councillor Ennis raised that they felt that language such as former relevant was quite triggering and it should be changed. Councillor Ennis also asked if the Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service could provide further detail on how a young person becomes categorised in the care leaver categories within the legal framework. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service explained how a young person becomes eligible. Around the language used, the Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service informed Councillor Ennis that the language, such as former relevant, was what was used within the children leaving care act. Councillor Haughey asked if the Council could not use this language. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that it was an eligibility status laid down in law, but assured Councillor Haughey that this was not language which was used in conversation with care leavers, and was only used on the system.

Councillor Ennis asked if there was any data around care leavers under 25 who were paying council tax. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that there was none as there was a discretionary exemption in place in Trafford.

Councillor Haughey felt that it was great that many care experienced young people had moved onto higher education, but asked what the relationship was like between Trafford and these further education institutes and whether it was incumbent on the young person to announce their status to access additional support. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that on the UCAS application form there was a question around if an applicant has been in care. The service asks young people to think about ticking this as they could receive additional support if they did. Councillor Haughey asked where they go back to during non-term time. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that the Council was statutorily required to provide accommodation when they are at home.

Councillor Duncan said that it was clear that these young people would like the best help in adulthood. They questioned whether the opt out phrasing could be reconsidered as they felt that it seemed contradictory. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that this was not meant to be misunderstood and was trying to do the most to keep care leavers within council support until 25.

Councillor Duncan asked a further question around the eight-week meetings and whether it was clear that this should now all be done face to face. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service responded that it was clear to staff that all meetings should be face to face.

Councillor Parker asked if the level of support in the pathway plan was impacted by where people are accommodated. The Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service replied that many young people did choose to go back home and live with their former foster carers with the pathway plan influenced by where they live. However, they did affirm that the plan could be influenced by all things.

The Chair finished by saying that the service was about wanting for care leavers the same things one would like for their own children.

RESOLVED:

1.    That the report be noted.

2.    That the Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service provide Councillor Hirst with the data surrounding how many care leavers had a continuous personal advisor from aged eighteen to twenty-one.

3.    That the Interim Head of Service - Care Experienced Service provide feedback to colleagues at the advisory service around alternative times for the Aftercare Forum to meet.