Agenda item

To approve and adopt the revamped Response Plan (Appendix 1).

The report was submitted by Cllr Nia Jeffreys.

DECISION

To approve and adopt the revamped Response Plan (Appendix 1).

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted and the opportunity was taken to acknowledge the bravery of the victims, and it was emphasised that they were at the forefront of everyone's minds when discussing this difficult subject.

The background to the report was provided and it was noted that the Plan was live and had evolved over time, particularly since the publication of the Our Bravery Brought Justice report.

Reference was made to the Council's vow to implement all of the recommendations in the Our Bravery Brought Justice report, noting that the Response Plan had been revamped in order to address all of these recommendations. It was explained that the Plan followed seven Work Streams, to correspond with the main themes of the Our Bravery Brought Justice report.

It was confirmed that this Response Plan, in its new form, had been submitted before the Care Scrutiny Committee, the Governance and Audit Committee and the Education and Economy Scrutiny Committee. It was highlighted that the recommendations of these Committees were included in appendix 3 of the pack.

In addition, the Response Plan had been submitted before the Full Council last month to ensure that every councillor within the Council had been given the chance to provide their input, and to offer any further suggestions to strengthen the Plan. In thanking all members who had been a part of that, reassurances were given that all members' comments had been considered before this Plan had been submitted to this meeting of the Cabinet.

The Chief Executive highlighted that the response to what happened continued to be a main priority for the Council, and that every effort would be made to ensure the best possible Response Plan. Reference was made to the Quarterly Report by the Chair of the Response Plan Programme Board, and it was acknowledged that the Council was fortunate to receive this input from the Chair, and all agencies and organisations serving on this Board.

It was confirmed that the next steps would be to continue with the achievements that were progressing, and the encouraging progress that continued to be made was acknowledged.

It was noted that the narrative of the Plan explained what would be done by the Council to deliver under all fields identified.

Attention was drawn to the concise version of the Response Plan in the pack, noting that it was a response to the comments within committees for the need to summarise what had been done, and what continued to be done by the Council in response.

Reference was made to two further documents that were in development, in order to ensure that the information was being seen and understood by all within our society.

It was noted that resources had been allocated within the Council's budget to deliver the improvements identified, drawing attention to the Voice of the Child field in particular.

The Chair of the Care Scrutiny Committee was welcomed to the meeting to present the committee's recommendations to the Cabinet. Pride was expressed that the call for an extraordinary meeting of the Full Council had been met. The recommendations of the Committee, included in appendix 3 of the pack, were considered, and several of those recommendations that had already been addressed and incorporated into the Plan were identified. The full-time appointment of the new Headteacher of Ysgol Friars was welcomed.  

The Chair of the Education and Economy Scrutiny Committee was welcomed to the meeting to present the committee's recommendations to the Cabinet. Reference was made to the substantial number of recommendations made by the Committee at its extraordinary meeting, noting that they encompassed a broad range of issues across the 7 Work Streams and broader matters. It was noted that the recommendations submitted to the Cabinet sought to strengthen and expand some elements of the Response Plan, in order to ensure that the lessons were fully reflected in the implementation work. It was acknowledged that the Cabinet report submitted before them reflected several of those changes deriving from the Scrutiny work, including the restructuring of the Plan around clearer systems, and placing more emphasis on monitoring progress. It was emphasised that the genuine test over time will be whether these changes will lead to definitive change in systems, in practice and in organisational culture within the Council. 

Observations arising from the discussion:

·       The revamped Plan was welcomed, and it was underlined that it was a live Plan. Pride was expressed that the public could see the relationship between the Response Plan and the Our Bravery Brought Justice report as a result of corresponding Work Streams, and that there was a leader for each Stream. Reference was also made to the section of the Council's website which offered information about what had been achieved to date, and what would be achieved in the long-term. It was acknowledged that this contributed towards ensuring that the Council was transparent and open in terms of their response. The pride on the permanent appointment to the Headteacher post at Ysgol Friars was reiterated, and the new Headteacher and the School were wished well. 

·       Reference was made to the opportunities lost that had been identified in the Our Bravery Brought Justice report, and confirmation was sought that a robust system was now in place to ensure that any concerns were dealt with formally. In response, reassurances were given that several lessons had been learnt as a result of the Report. It was identified that Welsh Government were looking to develop a Low-Level Concerns Policy for the field of Education and County Councils, noting that there was collaboration between the Council and officers within the Government to discuss how the Policy would be developed. It was confirmed that the Council was in the progress of renewing an internal system to keep a record of concerns, and it was added that two systems were about to be submitted to the Council to enable them to keep a better record of any allegation.

·       Attention was drawn to the description of Work Stream 1, and members asked how confident officers were that the Council were satisfying this description. It was identified that the Head of Education Department was leading that Stream, and reassurances were given that the Council listened to every child. It was confirmed that should a Part 5 referral be made, then this child would receive a visit from a social worker.

·       It was highlighted that this theme looks beyond the responses to allegations only, reiterating that it considers how the Council as a corporation considers and listens to the voice of the child. Reference was made to the Youth Forums, and the challenge of being able to measure their effectiveness when ensuring that the voice of the child is heard. It was noted that work was progressing, in order to understand the views of the children. The importance of ensuring that various groups of children from different backgrounds were included in these Forums and Focus Groups was emphasised. 

·       ⁠The high number of members who had an opportunity to provide their input to this Plan, and the importance of that, was acknowledged. Members asked about who the grooming training would be targeted towards, and it was proposed that the training should be a part of the safeguarding training of all of the Council's workforce. In response, it was confirmed that it had been added to the general training for staff, drawing attention to the developments progressing to provide for those people who needed a higher level of training.

·       As several children were transported to school in taxis, members asked whether the training was mandatory for the taxi drivers to complete also. It was noted that safeguarding arrangements were in place when awarding contracts for education transport. It was confirmed that it was mandatory for taxi drivers to complete safeguarding training, and that the Council verified that. It was added that the Council were not the ones who provided this training.

·       Members asked about the next steps in terms of reporting on progress with the Response Plan, and the arrangements to enable members to challenge that progress. In response, reassurances were given that many arrangements were in place, highlighting the arrangement with the scrutiny committee to report back within 6 months on this progress. The key role of the Response Board when challenging the progress of the work programme was highlighted, reiterating the importance that everything was public also. Attention was drawn to the Ministerial Assurance Group that had been established to report on the progress from the Response Plan.

·       By referring to ensuring that training and associated matters remained live within the Council, it was disclosed that the Council's Corporate Safeguarding Policy would be reviewed, and that safeguarding matters were a standing item on the agenda of every department's management team meetings. It was also noted that statistics regarding safeguarding training were now a part of the performance challenge data of every Council department.  It was highlighted that work was also progressing to provide different forms of training in this field to impose across the Council, ensuring the accessibility of the training for all parts of the workforce. It was emphasised that this was ongoing work and the importance of embedding this culture change within the Council was emphasised. Reference was made to long-term projects within the Response Plan such as being a Trauma-informed Council and a Child-friendly county.