Agenda item

To receive a report of the Director of Children’s Services updating Members on citywide and local developments on locality working including membership of partnership governance groups, and highlighting some of the current good practice in an outer west cluster.

(Council Function)

Alison Larkin, Extended Services Adviser, presented a report of the Director of Children’s Services updating Members on citywide and local developments on locality working, including membership of partnership governance groups, and highlighting some of the current good practice in an outer west cluster.

Allison Chin, Headteacher, Swinnow Primary School and Liz Hardaker, Extended Services Development Officer were also in attendance to assist in the presentation of the report and to respond to Members’ comments and questions.

Alison Larkin provided some information on the history of clusters, and the work that was being undertaken to improve their governance arrangements, including a report which would be submitted to Member Management Committee on 25^th October 2011, seeking to appoint at least one Member to each cluster.  Data profiles for each cluster relating to the Outer West were appended to the report. A performance dashboard for all clusters was also provided to Members, which is prepared on a monthly basis.

Members expressed concern that Five Lanes Primary School is in the Farnley and Wortley ward, but in the Armley cluster. Members were informed that the clusters were established by schools, and that the level of funding would not be affected by this.

Liz Hardaker then explained the four local priorities (which are linked to the Children and Young People City Priority Plan), and how they are being met:

• Children living in safe and supported families and communities;
• Additional health needs, especially emotional health and wellbeing – for example the Targeted Adolescent Mental Health Project, which had levered in national funding;
• Improving attendance – a multi-agency panel has been set up to deal with this, which children can be referred to;
• Activity participation and healthy lifestyle – for example enabling the most vulnerable families to access activities.

A query was raised regarding how the clusters deal with children who live in a different area to their school, for example children who live in Leeds but go to school in Bradford. Members were informed that the cluster assesses individual children and matches the services to their needs, therefore if a child lived in Bradford, contact would be made with the relevant services in that area.

It was also reported that work is undertaken with children all year round, and activities are arranged during school holidays and targeted at the most vulnerable families. It was confirmed that this is not restricted to families who receive benefits, and the schools are asked to use their judgement to identify the most disadvantaged children. Further to a request, it was agreed that the disadvantaged subsidy reports which would be submitted to the Children and Families Scrutiny Board would be circulated to the Members of the Area Committee.

Members noted that the Pudsey cluster is working well, but there are some issues with the Farnley cluster. It was reported that the Farnley cluster now has a strong new Chair and Cluster Manager, and that issues are now being resolved.

On behalf of the Committee, Councillor Coulson congratulated Allison Chin on the excellent work she had undertaken in schools, which had resulted in her receiving an OBE. Members were invited to visit Swinnow Primary School, where Allison is headteacher.

A query was raised as to whether it would be possible to remove data relating to Five Lanes Primary School from the Armley cluster and add it to the Farnley cluster, however it was reported that this would not be possible as the profiles also include non-school data.

RESOLVED – That the continuing development of partnership clusters be supported.

(Councillor Lewis left the meeting at 2.40pm, during the consideration of this item.)