Agenda item

To accept and note the information in the report which reports on the work of the Corporate Parent Panel for the year 2022-23.

 

The report was submitted by Cllr Elin Walker Jones

 

DECISION

 

To accept and note the information in the report which reports on the work of the Corporate Parent Panel for the year 2022-23.

 

DISCUSSION

 

Cyngor Gwynedd and its partners have a clear responsibility to be a Corporate Parent for every child in the Council's care, and specifically to ensure effective, stable, safe and suitable care for looked after children and young people, including those who are leaving care. Section 3.1 of the forward programme was corrected to reiterate this and it was noted that the Report reported on the work that had been completed to ensure that the Council undertook this responsibility.

 

It was confirmed that Cyngor Gwynedd took this responsibility very seriously and it was explained that the Chief Executive was the Chair of the Corporate Parent Panel. Attention was drawn to the fact that this report detailed the work carried out between April 2022 and March 2023 and noted current information about the numbers of looked after children and the support given to those children as well as outlining the intention for the future.

 

It was reported that 25% of the children who came into care during the year 2022-23 were Asylum Seekers through the Home Office Transfer Scheme, as the Council accepted 15 children through the scheme.

 

Concern was expressed about the Home Office Transfer Scheme as the child was not placed at the centre of their processes. It was explained that there were no discussions in advance to meet the needs of the child, to assess whether Gwynedd was a suitable location for their needs. It was recognised that it was very challenging to find a suitable location for the children as they did not want to stay in Gwynedd very often, and longed to be in the big cities. It was explained that individuals over the age of 16 could be looked after in a supported accommodation setting, but if the children were under 16 they had to have a foster placement. It was updated that the Home Office expected local authorities to place the children within five working days of receiving the referral. It was emphasised that this was not possible and as a result, in one case, the child had to be placed in Kent while officers found a more suitable placement, local to Gwynedd. It was reported that these problems which arose as part of the Transfer Scheme occurred throughout Wales.

 

The numbers of Asylum Seekers in each county in the north were confirmed (in accordance with information received in summer 2023, for a period of eight cycles) as follows:

·       Wrexham County Borough Council - 2 children

·       Conwy County Borough Council - 3 children

·       Isle of Anglesey County Council - 4 children

·       Denbighshire County Council - 7 children

·       Cyngor Gwynedd - 9 children

·       Flintshire County Council - 11 children

 

This was compared with other locations in Wales such as Carmarthenshire (12 children), Newport (1 child), Swansea (3 children) and Cardiff (1 child).

 

It was detailed that 26 Asylum Seekers had been in the Council's care for a period of two and a half years and that six additional children were expected before April 2024. It was explained that the children were in the Council's care once a referral was made by the Home Office. It was explained that the Council's responsibility was identical to the responsibilities for any child from Gwynedd in our care. It was confirmed that the team's capacity had recently increased to deal with the additional challenges that derived from receiving more applications.

 

Attention was drawn to the importance of foster parents. Members were reminded that a session had been held at the Llŷn ac Eifionydd National Eisteddfod this year by foster parents, where they discussed the challenges and satisfaction of being foster parents. Pride was expressed in the support the foster parents gave to each other and to the Council.

 

It was explained that the Council had a statutory responsibility following the Children Act 1989 and 2004 to keep families together where it was safe and appropriate to do so. It was explained that the Council received court orders to remove children from the homes if there was a risk to them in the home. It was reported that there was a requirement for the Council to ask if the parents had individuals within their families who could be assessed in order to keep the children within the family. It was emphasised that this was dependent on the child's age and understanding as well as on an assessment of the adults nominated. It was confirmed that the nominated individuals were registered as foster parents if suitable and were supervised by the Council in any way, even if they were outside Gwynedd.

 

It was reported that foster placements were not always suitable and therefore the Council provided a residential placement. It was ensured that these locations were supervised on a monthly basis. It was noted that officers went beyond the statutory requirement to ensure contact with those children. It was emphasised that Council officers went to see children in residential settings as they came from Gwynedd. It was explained that this allowed officers to share information and teaching resources in Welsh with the children as well as communicate with the children in their first language.

 

Many thanks were given to all foster parents in the county and to the officers who supported them.

 

Reference was made to several other aspects that were a part of the Panel's work such as a 'Stable Home', 'Good health', 'Good education' and 'raising awareness'. It was explained that contributions were provided cross-departmentally to support the Panel's work.

 

It was confirmed that the Panel's priorities for the year to come included the 'Small Group Homes' scheme which formed part of the Council's Plan 2023-28, which sought to place all looked after children from Gwynedd within Gwynedd.

 

Thanks were expressed to all the officers of the Department who worked hard to look after all the children in the Council's care.