Issue - meetings

Report of the Executive Director of Children's Social Care and Education

The Cabinet considered the report of the Executive Director of Children’s Social Care and Education that:

• provided the Cabinet with an overview of the proposed changes to the Children’s Social Care staffing structure and to provide the rationale for those proposed changes.
• provided the cost implications for the proposed structure which would ensure that matters were dealt with within budget for this financial year.
• sought Cabinet approval for the proposals and approach to be adopted.
• Ensured the recommended proposals provide roles for all permanent staff.

Reference was made to the springboard model, in relation to the Youth Offending Team and further detailed information would be provided to Cabinet Members in due course.

Decisions Made:

That

(1)      all the structural and staffing changes detailed in the report, including the development of the new service areas (subject to the necessary consultation with staff affected, Trade Unions and the application of existing policies and practices as they apply to employees), be approved;

(2)      any prioritisation in implementation be delegated to the Cabinet Member – Children, Schools and Families within the approved budget for the Service;

(3)      it be noted that the review of Market Supplements will be completed within 4 months of the structure (excluding phase 2) being implemented; and

(4)      the virement of £2.450m within the Children’s Social Care budget between the Placements and Packages budget to the Service’s staffing budget, be approved.

Reasons for the Decisions:

To put into place a structure and approach which provided better service delivery and outcomes to children, young people, and families in respect of Children’s Social Care and its Improvement Journey.

There were no redundancies, and the Council was creating jobs to support the service whilst also creating opportunities for staff in terms of resilience, stability, support, training, development, and advancement.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

The current staffing arrangements could continue without implementing the recommended changes. However, this would have a detrimental impact on the quality and efficiency of the service delivery and outcomes to children, young people, and families. It would also prevent the Service’s improvement journey as opposed to the approach within this report.

The current structure was supported by additional posts which were currently filled by agency workers due to the posts not forming part of the substantive staffing structure. Continuation of these high-cost interim posts would create a pressure on current and future budgets for children services.