The Chair welcomed Members, Officers and members of the public to the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Samantha Frost and Councillor Paul Stuart, who was deputised by Councillor Adrian Jones.

Members are asked to consider whether they have any disclosable pecuniary interests and/or any other relevant interest in connection with any item(s) on this agenda and, if so, to declare them and state the nature of the interest.

Members were asked to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests and any other relevant interest and to state the nature of the interest.

The following declarations were made:

To approve the accuracy of the minutes of the meeting held 31 January 2022.

Resolved - That the minutes of the meeting held on 31 January, 2022 be approved and adopted as a correct record.

Four questions had been received in relation to item 7. The first two questions, read out by Father Michael Coughlan and Carol Corvers, were about St Paul’s Catholic Primary School and the proposed closure. The questions cited early years numbers as an indication that the school would continue to be viable in the future and queried what the council would gain from the closure.

The Chair responded that the council has a statutory duty to secure sufficiency of places for children and young people, this includes addressing any excess or insufficiency. Based on projections calculated using birth rates and housing developments, occupancy will fall to 46% and this will risk the financial viability of the school.

The final two questions were read out by Patrick Landsborough and were in relation to the proposed amalgamation of Manor Primary School and Hillside Primary School and referenced the rivalry between the Beechwood and Noctorum estates and sought clarification on whether the proposal for this stage of consultation could be delayed as both schools had held discussions with Multi Academy Trusts regarding academisation.

The Chair outlined that as part of the consultation process, any concerns from members of the community in relation to anti-social behaviour should be raised to allow an appropriate assessment to be undertaken and stated the importance of the committee supporting parents and young people to feel confident to attend school safely. It was reported that the pupil place planning review included all school types and so it would not be appropriate to delay in relation to exploring academisation.

Full questions and responses can be found in the appended document.

Two statements were read out to the committee. The first statement was made by Patrick Landsborough in relation to item 7 and set out the concerns the governors had regarding the proposed amalgamation of Manor Primary School and Hillside Primary School and stated that the proposals, if approved would destabilise an already disadvantages and vulnerable community.

The second statement was made by Michael Brown in relation to item 7 and reported that the data concerning St Paul’s Catholic Primary school refuted the representations made in the Wirral Pupil Place Planning Strategy 2021-2026 and stated the data published in the report was incorrect. The statement requested that the proposal to close the school be removed from the consultation.

The Assistant Director of Children and Families introduced the report of the Director of Children, Families and Education, which presented the Committee with the Children Looked After (CLA) and Care Leavers Strategy 2022-2025. The Strategy set out the Local Authority and partners plans as corporate parents to ensure CLA and Care Leavers were valued, listened to and supported to be aspirational and to achieve positive relationships and their full potential. The Strategy set out four key priorities all of which were underpinned by listening to the voices of CLA and Care Leavers.

A discussion ensued with Members querying the process for care leavers progressing to full time employment with the Council. The Director of Children’s Services stated that there were many opportunities for care leavers in Children’s Services and that other directorates also offered opportunities. It was highlighted that there was a full coaching programme in place to support these young people. The Assistant Director agreed to circulate information to Members with details of care leavers in apprenticeships and case studies. Details of care leavers in apprenticeships and case studies would be circulated to Members.

Members noted and welcomed the co-production of the priorities with young people.

Resolved – That:

(1) the Children Looked After and Care Leavers Strategy 2022-2025 be endorsed and;

(2) an update on the progress of the Strategy be brought to the Committee in 12 months.

Having previously declared a prejudicial interest, Councillor Helen Collinson vacated the room during consideration of this item (minute 77 refers).

The Assistant Director of Education introduced the report of the Director of Children, Families and Education, which outlined the recommendations which arose from the phase 1 of the pupil place planning review. As the responsible authority for maintained schools, the importance of the council managing surplus and demand for pupil places in line with statutory responsibilities was outlined. It was reported that the dioceses of both Shrewsbury and Chester had supported the recommendations in the report which demonstrated the strength in partnership and collaborative working across the education sector.

Councillor Chris Cooke read a statement which queried the accuracy of the future occupancy projections. It was outlined that the Council should be making the most of opportunities to reduce inequalities by allowing schools in areas of greater social need to remain open and thrive with smaller class sizes which lead to better social and educational outcomes.

A discussion followed with Members querying how the projections were established, and whether the number of children in early years provision at schools was considered. It was clarified that as not all schools had an early years facility, in order to ensure consistency, only foundation 2 to year 6 were taken into account.

Following the proposal of suggested amendments in relation to the removal of recommendations 7 and 8 in the report and keeping the schools referred to open, the Chair agreed to adjourn the meeting at 7.00pm for consultation and legal advice on the proposed amendments.

The meeting resumed at 7.10pm.

Councillor Wendy Clements moved the recommendations as in the report, and having been seconded by Councillor Kate Cannon, the motion was put and carried (8:1), and it was -

Resolved (8:1) – That:

(1)  the outcome of phase 1 of the Pupil Place Planning review regarding small planning areas: Beechwood, Central Birkenhead, North Birkenhead, South Birkenhead, Noctorum and Prenton as outlined in the Findings report attached at appendix 1 be noted;

(2)  recommendation 1, that the Diocese of Shrewsbury decommission existing teaching space in St Anne’s Primary School and repurpose for alternative use to reduce the overall capacity of the school be approved;

(3)  recommendation 2, that in principle agreement is given for the establishment of a new school in the small planning area of North Birkenhead to meet the demand for new school places over the next 15 years be approved. This will be the subject of future reports for Members’ consideration as more details are developed;

(4)  recommendation 3, to reduce Pupil Admission Numbers at St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School as agreed by the Diocese of Shrewsbury and Holy Family Multi Academy Trust (MAT) be approved;

(5)  recommendation 4, to reduce Pupil Admission Numbers at Christchurch Church of England (CE) Birkenhead as agreed by the Diocese of Chester be approved.

(6)  recommendation 5 relating to Woodchurch Road Primary as outlined in the report ‘Admission arrangements for community and voluntary controlled  ...  view the full minutes text for item 81.

The Assistant Director of Education introduced the report of the Director of Children, Families and Education, which provided the Committee with an overview of the feasibility study that had taken place in relation to Clare Mount Specialist Sports College relocating to the former Kingsway Academy, Wallasey. The Assistant Director of Education noted that when this report had been brought to the Committee in November, Members had asked for information on post 16 provision, and he confirmed his intention to bring a further report in the next municipal year with a review of post 16 provision to understand the growth in demand and the types of provision needed in Wirral.

Members praised and welcomed the report and comments on post 16 provision. It was stated that the clear priority was facilitating the school taking the site in September 2022. Assurance was given to Members that additional capacity had been factored in to current plans in the event that the school needed to expand, and it was noted that the remaining space in the school was a significant educational resource that could be used for projects and opportunities for the local community.

Resolved – That:

(1)  a formal consultation for Clare Mount Specialist Sports College to move to the former Kingsway Academy from September 2022 be undertaken;

(2)  the Director of Children, Families and Education explore future options for the remaining part of the building that will be un-occupied.

The Head of Service of Contextual Safeguarding introduced the report of the Director of Children, Families and Education, which provided the Committee with an overview of the response to child exploitation and missing children in Wirral. The report set out the working arrangements across partners, in Wirral and regionally; and included an overview of themes, trends and impact. The working arrangements and governance were described with the intention of reassuring members that exploitation and missing remained priorities for the directorate and partners, with resources and time directed to identifying and managing the risk of harm.

Members received assurance that Wirral was not exposed to the type of child exploitation seen in areas of Greater Manchester. The Head of Service of Contextual Safeguarding stated that Wirral had a team of dedicated professionals actively looking for exploitation and establishing any issues and the working arrangements of the multi-agency teams ensured the Council was well placed to identify and tackle those types of issues.

In response to a query surrounding sibling groups, the Head of Service of Contextual Safeguarding referenced the Wirral Multi-Agency Child Exploitation (MACE) panel, which reviewed social work led Child Exploitation Assessments to determine if the threshold for a MACE plan was met and aimed to reduce the risk of child exploitation, he reported that one of the “four P’s” was protect and that exploitation plans were cross referenced with the child’s plan to consider sibling and associates of the child who might also be at risk.

It was highlighted that the prevention project “In the Zone” was not yet being delivered in alternative provision as it was still being rolled out but the intention moving forward would to be offer the prevention sessions in all organisations.

Resolved – That the approach and ongoing work relating to child exploitation and missing children be noted.

The Commissioning Manager introduced the report of the Director of Children, Families and Education, which provided an update on the Children’s Residential Transformation Programme. It was reported that there were great pressures in terms of delivering placements for Children Looked After (CLA) and Care leavers and the pace of the delivery of projects such as these remained crucial to improve outcomes for local placements for local children.

The Chair noted the importance of the report being brought to Committee as it offered improvements for children in Wirral as well as being a crucial part of budget savings. Members thanked officers for their hard work, a recent article in a national newspaper had indicated that Wirral was ahead of the curve and the rest of the country in this area.

The Commissioning Manager drew attention to a potential financial risk with the market place for supported accommodation for 16-18 year olds due to become regulated by OFSTED by April 2023 and warned there could be an increase in cost of the semi-independent provision.

Resolved – That the report be noted, and the Director of Children’s Services bring an update report to the Committee on the progress of the Programme in 12 months.

The Head of Legal Services introduced the report which outlined the statutory requirement to appoint members to sit on both the Independent Appeal Panel and Independent Review Panel.

Resolved – That the appointment of the following members to the Independent Appeal Panel and Independent Review Panel be agreed:

 · Jane Gordon

 · Rebecca Burke-Sharples

The Director of Children’s Services introduced the report which provided the latest performance information for Children’s Services. The Director drew attention to a recently published OFSTED report which consisted of a detailed review of Children Looked After and response to permanence which had previously been a weak area, the visit recognised improvement in this area and positive changes made. The Director informed Members of feedback received from The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) who had recognised that improvements in safeguarding and community partnerships and approach had brought the service forward.

A discussion ensued citing an article in the press which showed large numbers of social workers in Wirral quitting and members sought clarification. The Assistant Director of Children and Families was keen to give accurate data to the Committee and reported that the data printed was from September 2021 and was national data, not just Wirral, and so gave some comparisons with the North West and England. It was outlined by the Director of Childrens Services that Wirral social workers had the lowest caseloads in the region and so could develop good practice.

Following a query regarding the 40% increase in the child protection rate from 2019-2020, the Director explained that this was a volatile data set and comparison with Wirral’s statistical neighbours was the best comparison. It was outlined that during the pandemic, children remained on plans longer than usual as some services were not up and running. An analysis of child protection plans was to be undertaken and the findings brought to Committee.

It was highlighted that a Member had met some foster carers who had had seven social workers over the course of one year. The Director acknowledged there had been instability in teams with agency workers and that this was not acceptable and suggested a report and update on the fostering team could be shared with Members.

Resolved – That the content of the performance report attached in Appendix A be noted.

The Senior Finance Business Partner introduced the report of the Director of Children, Families and Education, which set out the financial monitoring information for Children, Families and Education as at quarter 3 (Oct-Dec) of 2021-22. The report provided Members with an overview of budget performance to enable the Committee to take ownership of the budgets and provided robust challenge and scrutiny to Officers on the performance of those budgets.

It was outlined that Children’s Services was on course to achieve savings for the current financial year and were planning for savings in the next financial year. The Director of Children’s Services highlighted the considerable underspend of the income budget of £19 million due to an additional £4 million from grants and other funding which were all used to fund projects and put back into services for children. It was clarified that the underspend would be mitigated by the input of final contract costs.

A query was raised about transport costs which amounted to £1 million that were not originally the costs of the Council. The Director confirmed that this cost had come over in the budget gap and had been negotiated as one off pressure due to covid. It was reported that officers were conscious of rising transport costs and re-negotiations of transport contracts were imminent and the Committee would be kept informed as events developed.

Resolved – That:

(1)  the forecast year-end revenue position of £0.890m favourable as reported at quarter 3 (Apr – Dec) of 2021/2 be noted;

(2)  the progress on the achievement of approved savings and the year-end forecast position at quarter 3 (Apr – Dec) of 2021/22) be noted;

(3)  the reserves allocated to the Committee for future commitments be noted;

(4)  the forecast year-end capital position as reported at quarter 3 (Apr – Dec) of 2021/22 be noted.

The Head of Legal Services introduced the report of the Director of Law and Governance which provided the Committee with an opportunity to plan and regularly review its work across the municipal year.

The scheduling of the COVID 19 Education Catch Up Plan was raised and it was agreed that it should be brought to Committee earlier than stated on the work programme.

Resolved – That the work programme be noted.

The following items contain exempt information.

RECOMMENDATION: That, under section 100 (A) (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined by the relevant paragraphs of Part I of Schedule 12A (as amended) to that Act. The Public Interest test has been applied and favours exclusion.

Resolved – That

1)  under section 100 (A) (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined by paragraph 1 of Part I of Schedule 12A (as amended) to that Act. The Public Interest test had been applied and favoured exclusion.

Resolved – That further to Minute No. 85 the content of the exempt appendix circulated with the agenda, be noted.