Issue - meetings

Report of the Head of Legal and Governance

Councillor David Mellen, Portfolio Holder for Early Intervention and Early Years, updated the Committee on the performance of targets within the Council Plan which fall under his Portfolio remit, as per the PowerPoint presentation circulated with the first publication of the minutes. The Plan was started in 2015 and is coming to an end in April 2019. Councillor David Mellen highlighted the following points:

(a)  out of 29 targets, one is red (target will be missed), one is amber (target may be met), and the rest are green (target will be met);

(b)  Primary Parliaments are now held twice per term as there is so much demand from young people to be getting involved. Meetings are also regularly held of the Children in Care Council and the Youth council. Young people are always involved in the recruitment process for senior staff within children’s services, and the Children in Care Council and the Care Leavers Council regularly attend and report to the Corporate Parenting Board;

(c)  the Priority Families programme (the government Troubled Families scheme) supports families to avoid children having to be taken into care. Nottingham City Council is working to protect youth play services, children’s centres, social services and children’s services from cuts;

(d)  the Dolly Parton Imagination Library scheme’s initial target was rather ambitious, and the project would have cost £500,000.00 if that target was met. However the number of children receiving books through the scheme has more than doubled since 2015 and it is a positive achievement to be proud of. Part of the scheme is funded by Small Steps Big Changes, with the rest funded by businesses, voluntary and religious groups, and individual donations;

(e)  previously the coalition government had announced free school meals for children aged 5-7, and it looked like this would be extended to all primary school aged children. As this has not been extended, Nottingham City Council is now no longer in a financial position to make that commitment, so this target is amber;

(f)  all primary schools in the City did at one point have a breakfast club, however some have now stopped in recent months. Summer holiday hunger is an ongoing issue, with Nottingham City Council working closely with local business and charities to tackle its impact. There is increased child poverty, and more families have referred for support in recent months;

(g)  in the last 6 months there’s been a slight reduction from February 2018’s peak of children in care, and Nottingham City Council is bucking the national trend at the moment. Priority Families funding is not guaranteed past 2020, the case is continuing to be made to central government that this funding is valuable and is helping in Nottingham;

(h)  the introduction of Universal Credit has been a particular issue for Nottingham citizens. Access is online only, and the change to budgeting monthly has been challenging for some. The introduction of additional free early year’s childcare (low income families have 15 hours free from 2 years old, everybody  ...  view the full minutes text for item 26