Newsletters

Welcome to Edition 5 of the Every Child Matters in County Durham newsletter. The theme of this edition is 'Towards a Children's Trust approach' and includes articles on the following:

You can also obtain a PDF version of the newsletter at the bottom of this page.

This edition includes articles on the following:

• The Children Act 2004 and the 'Change for Children' Agenda
• 'Every Child Matters: Change for Children'
• Youth Green Paper: Hints from Margaret Hodge?
• Developing the Workforce: Working with Children, Young People and Their Families.
• Stakeholders' Views from the Roadshows and Conference
• Website Update 'The ECM Website is Now Live...'
• Durham 5 Update
• Audit of Needs and Services Update
• Forthcoming Events
• Request for Your Views About this Newsletter
• How to Contact us

Copies in large print and other forms can also be obtained by specific request from the Every Child Matters Implementation Team.

The Children Act 2004 and the 'Change for Children' Agenda

The Children Bill received Royal Assent on 15 November and is now the Children Act 2004. It encourages integrated planning, commissioning and Multi-disciplinary services. It should remove duplication, increase accountability and improve the coordination of inspections in local authorities. The legislation is enabling rather than prescriptive and provides local authorities with a considerable amount of flexibility in the way they implement its provisions:

Integrated Front-line Delivery

• Children's centres with services for children and families in one place.
• Extended schools with co-location of services for children and young people.
• Multi-disciplinary support to make the link between health and achievement in school.
• A pay and workforce strategy to shape the children's workforce for the future.
• Staff from different services will increasingly be working together.
• Better advice and guidance for parents, carers and families.
• Integrated processes.
• Common Assessment Framework.

Integrated Strategy

• A single Children and Young People's Plan (CYPP) replacing a number of existing statutory plans.
• Greater scope for the joint commissioning of services within Children's Trusts.
• Children's Services Inspection including Joint Area Reviews.

Inter-agency Governance

• All authorities required to appoint a Director of Children's Services and designate a Lead Member for Children's Services.
• statutory duty on local authorities to promote cooperation between agencies.
• Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) will be established by April 2006

Please click on the thumbnail below to download a copy a diagram illustrating Inter-Agency Governance and Outcomes.pdf for Children & Young People/Parents/Families/Community.

Please note that you may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader from the Adobe website in order to view this document. The Adobe Access plug-in also enables vision impaired users to read Adobe PDF documents.

'Every Child Matters: Change for Children'

The Government is moving forward the Every Child Matters Agenda through the Change for Children programme.

Twelve Regional Change Advisers (RCA), have been appointed by the DfES and the DoH to support and challenge the local change programme in 150 Children's Service Authorities.

Before Christmas, Stanley Bradford (our RAC), met with the Chief Executive and members of the ECM Implementation Team to judge how far we have progressed towards delivering on our promises - The Durham 5! The approach we adopted to complete the Durham 'health check' was transparent, robust and, some may say, overtly self critical!

So what did we say about ourselves? We reflected on the enormous amount of work undertaken in local and Countywide partnerships and our determination not to merely shuffle the deckchairs.

We are committed to building on our existing good practice:

• Sure Start Local Programmes
• Communities of Learning
• Sure Start Children's Centres
• COSIP
• Looked After Services
• Many more

We were commended for our approach but recognise there is much still to do. We have highlighted the risks and know the gaps. We have a clear game plan but with no illusions. The 'Onion Diagram' (on the front page), outlines the components of a Children's Trust putting children and young people at the centre.

The next big challenge for Change for Children in Durham will be bringing together the various Performance Assessment Regimes into one Annual Performance Assessment. The most significant change will be work on delivering the outcomes and all that goes with it!

Debbie Jones and Amanda Johnson.

Youth Green Paper: Hints from Margaret Hodge?

We can now expect the long-awaited Youth Green Paper in mid March 2005. Meanwhile we can glean some clues to the likely content from a speech given by Margaret Hodge, Minister for Children, Young People and their families to an Institute for Public Policy Research conference on 19th January. She began by stating that in her encounters with young people, one frequent cry is their frustration and anger at how the actions and behaviour of a few young people are perceived by society as reflecting the actions and behaviour of most young people.

Contrary to many people's perceptions, young people are at the heart of the Government's reforms, and the Green Paper will propose various changes to improve the life chances of all young people, by:

• Considering young people's needs holistically, and not responding to specific risks with specific initiatives.
• Enabling one trusted adult to be able to advise and guide them through issues.
• Breaking down separate professional silos and building services around the needs of children and young people.
• Developing activities and facilities for teenagers: "places to go and things to do".
• Requiring Youth Services to reach more young people.
• Engaging young people in activities they enjoy, that are stimulating, focused and with good adult supervision.
• Involving young people in designing and influencing services that are for them.
• Supporting parents and providing advice about parenting teenagers.
• Ensuring young people get good advice, at the right time, which they can trust, and which helps them make the right choices for them. This includes appropriate and competent support for making curriculum choices.

Janice Bray

Developing the Workforce: Working With Children, Young People and Their Families.

The Children's Workforce Development Council is a new organisation established following the Government's commitment to workforce reform in the Green Paper "Every Child Matters".

One of five bodies in the federated UK Skills for Care and Development Sector Skills Council, the Council Aims to improve outcomes for children and young people. It will focus on workforce excellence through: training provision, career development and improved workforce mobility to encourage better integration.

The Council will implement 'Common Core' standards for all people working with children, young people and their families. A new qualification was recently launched for Connexions Personal Advisers, Learning Mentors and Education Welfare Officers.

The Council will develop our workforce, whether working in statutory or voluntary sector or self-employed. It covers workers in early years, educational welfare, learning mentors, Connexions, foster care and social care, including CAFCASS staff. It also coordinates the Children's Workforce Network including those working in schools, child health, youth services, youth justice and play settings.

As Executive Director of Connexions County Durham I represent Connexions Partnerships nationally on the Shadow Board.

Janice Bray

Stakeholders' Views from the Autumn Roadshows and Conference

Some 270 Road Show participants reached a high level of agreement to:

• Continue dialogue with young people.
• Ensure prevention becomes a priority.
• Implement the Common Assessment Framework and create a single database.

Feedback from the case study groupwork identified a greater need for:

• An holistic approach and early intervention when supporting families
• Clarity of each agency's role, more sharing of information and clarity about access to it

A countywide conference, attended by over 100 people in November 2004, updated staff from all services to children and other interested parties, on the national and local Children's agenda

These issues were identified for our future planning:

Children/Young People/Parents

• Allow children and young people to be meaningfully involved within their own settings.
• Be honest and realistic about influence and change, use jargon free language.
• Ensure involvement of parents/carers to strengthen change.

Voluntary and Statutory Services

• ECM requires innovation to promote the importance and value of the voluntary sector.
• The holistic, early intervention approach needs to continue through school.
• New projects require committed funding, resources and staff development.

Partnership Arrangements

• New Partnership structures should have clear remit and statutory responsibilities.
• Equal influence in decision-making progress amongst services.
• Need clear and comprehensive local mapping of needs and service provision.

Conclusion

There was consistent feedback of key issues from both the roadshows and the conference:

• Staff are keen to be involved in a continuing programme of dissemination.
• Leaders / Champions needed in every agency if the change programme is to succeed.
• There is often conflict between national and local agenda.
• More information is required on Children's Trusts.
• Partnership structures are beginning to develop effectively.

Eva Alexandratou, Partnership Development Officer

The ECM Website is Now Live

The website address is www.everychildmattersincountydurham.org or click on 'Related Websites' on the home page of the Durham County Council Website.

The website aims to inform all stakeholders of developments affecting them:

• Vision, values and outcomes.
• The Partnership Structure.
• The membership of the Implementation Team.
• ECM Project workstreams.
• Minutes of Implementation Group meetings.
• Copies of the ECM Newsletters.

Use the on-line form for enquiries or to provide feedback to Every Child Matters in County Durham.

Durham 5

The outcomes incorporated into our stated vision and values, are that our children and young people will:

• Be healthy
• Stay safe
• Enjoy and achieve
• Make a positive contribution
• Achieve economic well-being

The Durham 5 Outcomes Framework is now available for consultation. It provides an overarching framework to measure what we have achieved, linked to national and local priorities. The document shows the key outcomes with indicators, which all agencies and services working with children, young people and their families can support.

Local Children's Planning Groups are now working to include their own priorities within this document . Download this document from: http://www.everychildmattersincountydurham.org.

The Durham 5 Outcomes will form the basis of our first integrated Children's Service Plan for 2006. We will develop not mine or yours, but our targets.

Audit of Needs and Services

A high level audit of needs and services has commenced in Education and in Social Care and Health and all five PCTs are participating in the NHS pilot.

Indicators of need have been identified and an Editorial Team has been developed to draw all of the information together. It is hoped that the first completed sections will be on the Every Child Matters in County Durham Website in April and a paper version produced soon after that.

Forthcoming Events

• Annual ACT (Association of Citizenship Teachers) North East Citizenship Conference
  The theme will be "Every child Matters"
  At Ushaw College Sunday 22 May 6.00pm to Monday 23 May 4.00pm 2005
• 'Keys for Inclusion' Conference
  Friday 11th March at Ushaw College.
  Contact Claire Willey on 0191 3833130 email: SureStart County Durham.
• COSIP (Co-ordination of Social Inclusion Programmes) Conference
  The Youth Green Paper - 'Youth Offer', Entitlement, Diversion, Reward or Punishment?
  Hardwick Hall Hotel, Sedgefield. Information on 01642803973
• Children's Network 'Every Child Matters' Conference and Exhibition
  For parents of children with disabilities and those working with them.
  County Hall, Durham on 14 April from 9.00am. Call 0191 3833872 for details.

We Need Your Views About this Newsletter

• Does it give you enough information about Every Child Matters in County Durham?
• If not what else do you need to know?
• Are our messages clear to you?

How to Contact us

Write to the:
Every Child Matters Implementation Team
Social Care and Health
County Hall
Durham
DH1 5UG

Phone: 0191 3833655

Minicom: 0191 3833980

PDF Version of the Newsletter

Newsletter Edition 5.pdf

Number of pages:4
Publication date: February 2005
File size: 287KB

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this information. You can download Adobe Acrobat Reader from the Adobe website. Please note that the Adobe Access Plug-in enables vision impaired users to read Adobe PDF documents.