A
report of a Conference on 25th September 2003, set up as part
of the launch of the Governments Green Paper on services for
children and young people
A
galaxy of agencies had co-operated to set up this major conference
within a period of four weeks. Could it be that this cross-agency
and cross-sector initiative augurs well for the kind of seismic
change which this Green Paper might herald ? Time will tell.
Certainly
on 25th September 2003 around 600 people gathered at Imperial
College, London, to hear from the Minister for Children, Young
People and Families herself of the measures which the Government
is minded to enact to make things better for children.
Judging
by the number of name badges waiting to be claimed at the Reception
Table at 10.30am I was not the only one whose journey had been
delayed. Maybe Mrs Hodge could next be sent to make things better
for those who keep on doggedly trying to get to places by public
transport and arriving late or not at all.
Certainly
the Minister must be congratulated on honing her performances
and paying meticulous attention to her self-presentation. She
exudes self-confidence and sincerity. She so clearly enjoys her
new role and in coming to terms with its enormous scope, she
bubbles with enthusiasm.
However
there were two phrases in her presentation which caused some
concern. One was We will legislate ( to enforce compliance ).
The other was, accompanied by a small wave of the hand, We have
not worked out the detail here ( we shall leave that to local
discussion).
Nevertheless
so as not to seem to cynical and overly critical, here is a summary
of the brief outline of the Green Paper, as seen from the point
of view of the Minister, who has presumably spent much of her
summer fighting her new colleagues in DfES to achieve this final
version which we can access via www.dfes.gov.uk/everychildmatters
.
The
Ministers passion showed as she spoke about getting this once-in-a-professional-lifetime
opportunity and asked how we could grasp the awesome challenge
offered by the ideas in the Green Paper. She challenged participants
with the contention that it was not only about making things
better, but making things fairer for all children.
Sadly,
the Green Paper has its origins in the deaths of Victoria Climbie
and numerous other children over an extended period of time.
For example, Lord Laming had pointed out that over the ten months
before her death there had been twelve missed opportunities across
all the involved services and at all levels for the professionals
to save Victoria Climbies life.
Nevertheless,
good law does not come from one case. The Laming Report, while
very influential on the Green Paper, is only the latest of the
summaries of lessons to be learned from the tragic lives and
deaths of vulnerable children over twenty-five years. A very
real effort has now been made to learn from the history of past
failures and to look forward positively.
The
Minister summarised the main points as;
1.
There must be accountability at senior level in all agencies.
2.
There must be better information-sharing across the professions.
3.
At present the separated agencies do not work effectively to
meet the needs of children and families.
4.
Front line workers are over-loaded and under-supervised.
She
went on to state that at present too many children fall through
the welfare safety net. Too many children are passed around the
system.
The
protection of children must be at the heart of what we offer.
We must look carefully how best to protect children within mainstream
services, but whilst protecting them, we must also help children
to develop to their full potential by minimising the risk and
maximising opportunities.
The
workforce issues of recruitment and status have to be tackled
in order for the moves forward to take place.
On
a party political note the Minister reminded delegates that we
were not starting with a blank sheet to make the proposed progress
and pointed to the Governments record over the last six years,
with such initiatives as improved benefits for families, Sure
Start, the teen pregnancy campaign and the work of tackling crime
carried out by the Youth Justice System and the Youth Justice
Board.
The
Minister pointed out that it should be remembered that many of
the proposals are based on existing innovative practice in the
voluntary and statutory sectors.
1.
A priority must be supporting families and carers, especially
when research shows that good parenting can have a 10% impact
on educational achievement of children in school. The intention
is to put in new resources, but this could be seen as intrusive
by some families, so the resources will be universal and targeted.
But they will also be made compulsory where necessary.
There
will be an examination of how to expand Home Start. There is
£25 million in the Parenting Fund, which needs to be spent.
Some initiatives such as an instant access phone line and better
work with fathers might be part of using the breadth of the DfES
to reach and better support parents.
2.
Early intervention is crucial. The sooner it is made the better,
in order to overcome the disadvantages of class and poverty.
A mothers lack of educational attainment can severely affect
the school performances of her children. At present children
often get too little help too late. They can get passed on and
re-assessed, instead of being helped at the onset of problems.
3.
Information sharing. This was highlighted as an area where the
Government wants further consultation before legislating. It
is felt that it is in the best interests of children for professionals
and agencies to share information, but there is a huge problem
over confidentiality. There will not be a national data-base,
but each Local Authority will be expected to have a local data-base
and every child will be given a number. The question of how information
will follow a child when she/he moves has to be addressed.
4.
Accountability and Integration. There are big questions about
what this will mean for jobs. Things can only move forward by
breaking down barriers in institutions and among professionals.
The really good news for Local Authorities is that local changes
and local implementation will be made at local level. However,
in each Authority there will have to be
A
Director of Childrens Services to include Education and Social
Services
A lead Council Member for children
Integrated services around Childrens Trusts
Local Safeguarding Childrens Boards
Support for local services by National Services such as Ofsted
Clear National Standards.
When
all of this is in place the Government will be tough where local
services are failing.
5.
Childrens Commissioner for England. This is clearly a huge step
forward. The Minister hopes that the Commissioner will not become
over-involved with individual casework, but be able to take a
wide perspective. She felt that her own appointment as Minister
for Children and Families was the first important step towards
establishing a Commissioner.
6.
Improving teamwork. Strong emphasis will be placed on workforce
reform, in order to raise the esteem, status and morale of the
childcare social workforce. There must also be improved team-working
across professional boundaries. The service needs :
New
career pathways
People staying in the workforce
The ability to move across areas
A common core of training
Reduction of bureaucracy.
There
will also be a new Sector Skills Council established.
The
Minister reiterated that she feels optimistic that the Green
Paper signals a turning point for the better, but things will
take time. It requires both Government and individual commitment
to make it work. Cultural changes will have to be made. Everyone
will have to work and learn in partnership so that the centrality
of the care for children will become embedded in all services
and on all committees, in order to turn the vision into reality.
