Agenda item

Context:

To scrutinise the proposal to develop PROJECT 5: A Multi-disciplinary Intensive Therapeutic Fostering Service for Looked After Children and Young People. The project is proposed as a partnership with Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council, under the governance of the Regional Children and Families Partnership Board and initially funded by the Integrated Care Fund (ICF).

Key Issues:

In April 2016, Children’s Services established Delivering Excellence a three year improvement plan. Workstream 3 of this programme concerned the development of services to ensure the right service offer is in place for all children and families needing support.  A key element of workstream 3 is to increase the number of Monmouthshire foster carers available to provide high quality foster placements for Monmouthshire children. Project 5 supports the delivery of Workstream 3 to support in-house carers to meet the needs of the most complex and troubled children.

Now in year 3 of the overall improvement programme, Children’s Services has achieved a stronger position regarding attracting in-house carers and retaining a stable, permanent workforce within children’s services. This means that there is a firmer foundation on which to build further, more specialised services including an intensive therapeutic fostering service through Project 5.

Member Scrutiny:

·         In response to a Select Committee Member’s question, it was noted that this proposal was not a cost cutting exercise. The proposal is about quality outcomes for Monmouthshire’s Looked After Children.  Evidence suggests that the outcomes that are being achieved for people in high cost situations, often located outside of Monmouthshire, are not good, is not value for money and are not good outcomes for individuals. The proposal is a method of reducing the pressures that exist but also adding significant value and ensuring that there are better outcomes for our Looked After Children.

·         The Looked After Children with very specific needs are few in number.  However, the Authority will work with schools and other partners to identify how these children are going to be integrated into an appropriate educational setting.

·         The type of therapies that Project 5 (MyST: My Support Team) uses are creative and play therapies which is a psychologically informed service.  It is about upskilling and supporting therapeutic foster placement. Foster carers are provided with additional training and support so that they understand the impact of trauma and how to provide appropriate support. A key area is the provision of wrap around care to ensure that foster carers never feel that they are unsupported and are also able to access appropriate support at any time of the day.

·         There is a psychologist and therapists that are a part of this model as well social workers and family support workers.

·         The Select Committee agreed to receive a report regarding Team around the family at a future meeting.

·         Wrap around care is important as it can help to reduce the number of Looked After Children placements.

·         Monmouthshire’s special school for children with social and emotional behaviour difficulties is only for boys of secondary school age.  This was a part of the Additional Learning Needs (ALN) review. Currently, most girls who present with those needs become located within the independent setting, often located within County. It is necessary to work more closely with schools to ensure that the appropriate provision is identified for these children.

·         Torfaen and Caerphilly County Borough Councils have had this service in their care model of delivery for some time.  Monmouthshire County Council is in a position where it can learn from these authorities.  Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council, like Monmouthshire County Council, did not have this model and are therefore partnering up to deliver such a model. Monmouthshire County Council has a good relationship with other authorities in the Greater Gwent area and regional working is very strong.

·         With regard to support to foster carers, sufficient support and respite is essential in order to ensure that this model will work. The model includes built in respite care provision.

·         The strategic ‘fit’ is identified at the regional level whereby, the Authority works in partnership with each of those local authorities.  The Authority partners with other local authorities regularly.  The evidence for undertaking partnering with regard to this model is sound and an opportunity to tap into the integrated care fund to help take the proposal forward was available.  The model is being undertaken via a regional approach but being locally delivered.  There is a need for the Authority to bring forward its own foster carers that have the capacity and skill set to support children within the County.