Agenda and minutes

Venue: Hendon Town Hall, The Burroughs, London NW4 4BQ

Contact: Edward Gilbert 020 8359 3469 Email: edward.gilbert@barnet.gov.uk 

Note: The agenda for this meeting will be published on this page on Monday 13th February 2017. The deadline for public questions/comments is 10AM on Thursday 16th February. Requests should be submitted to edward.gilbert@barnet.gov.uk 

Items
No. Item

1.

MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING pdf icon PDF 90 KB

Minutes:

It was noted that Councillor Kathy Levine’s name was mentioned twice in the minutes of the last meeting. This was corrected in the hard copy of the minutes.

 

RESOLVED – The minutes of the meeting held on 17th November 2016 were agreed as a correct record.

 

 

2.

ABSENCE OF MEMBERS

Minutes:

Co-opted Member Darren Warrington sent an apology for absence.

 

Councillor Bridget Perry, Vice-Chairman, was absent.

3.

DECLARATIONS OF MEMBERS DISCLOSABLE PECUNIARY INTERESTS AND NON-PECUNIARY INTERESTS

Minutes:

The following interest was declared:

 

Councillor

Item

Nature

Detail

 

Kath McGuirk

 

9

 

Non-pecuniary

 

That the Councillor was a teaching assistant in a community school in Barnet.

 

 

4.

REPORT OF THE MONITORING OFFICER (IF ANY)

Minutes:

None.

5.

PUBLIC QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS (IF ANY)

Minutes:

A public comment was made by Mr Keith Martin in respect to item 12, Promoting Arts and Culture in the Barnet.

 

Following the comment, Councillor Anne Hutton declared a non-pecuniary interest by virtue of being a trustee for the Barnet Borough Arts Council.

 

Councillor Brian Salinger was invited by the Chairman to make a comment in respect to item 10, Early Years Funding.

 

Councillor John Hart was invited by the Chairman to make a comment in respect to item 12, Promoting Arts and Culture in Barnet.

 

 

6.

MEMBERS' ITEMS (IF ANY)

Minutes:

None.

7.

HMIC (Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary) Report: National Child Protection Inspections, The Metropolitan Police Service pdf icon PDF 256 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee noted that an addendum had been published, which had been provided by the Barnet Borough Commander for Metropolitan Police, Mr Simon Rose. The addendum provided an interim response to the HMIC report from the Metropolitan Police Borough Commanders, pending a full response later in the year.

 

Mr Simon Rose was then invited to the table to introduce the report and answer questions from the Committee.

 

Councillor Helena Hart stated that she was pleased about the new computer system, as stated in the addendum, and asked what specific problems have been raised in Barnet. Mr Simon Rose responded by saying that the criticism in the report was of the Metropolitan Police as a whole, and that the thrust of it was a lack of co-ordination across London. He stated that a mind-set change was needed of Borough Commanders in order to adequately address the issues highlighted.

 

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, stated that the Council has introduced a new adolescent service named Reach, which will have a police officer as part of it. He further stated that the Council will also be strengthening the work of the MASH service. In addition to this, he stated that the Council has recently introduced a new missing persons protocol, which has been developed with colleagues in the Metropolitan Police. He clarified that these actions were being taken by the Council in response to the need of the borough, and not just in response to the HMIC’s report. 

 

Mr Simon Rose added to the comment made by the Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, by stating that the MASH service is of a very high quality in Barnet.

 

Councillor Val Duschinsky questioned what improvements have already been made following the Committee’s receipt of the report. Mr Simon Rose stated that much of the training (as stated in the addendum) has already been delivered, and that the local police force is continuing to provide training to all officers. Specifically, the 4-day course of training – as highlighted in the addendum – has already been delivered.

 

Councillor Kath McGuirk stated that a report on violence against women is scheduled for the March meeting of the Community Leadership Committee, and urged that integration of systems should be prioritised by the Metropolitan Police.

 

Councillor Alison Cornelius questioned whether the loss of local knowledge in Barnet would be a problem if the London Boroughs of Brent, Harrow and Barnet are amalgamated into one police area. Mr Simon Rose stated that in the event that this happens, there is a significant possibility that the headquarters would be based in the London Borough of Barnet. He stated that in the event of this happening, there would be no loss of Barnet inspectors who have local knowledge. However, he stated that the main risk that this would present would be establishing where officers patrol from, and how it is ensured that there is adequate coverage in all areas.

 

Councillor Anne Hutton asked about resource allocation, with Mr Simon Rose  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

8.

School Admission arrangements for 2018/19 pdf icon PDF 302 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Programme Director, Education and Learning, introduced the item which outlined school admission arrangements for 2018/19.

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to the recommendations, which were unanimously agreed.

 

The following was therefore RESOLVED:

 

1.    That the Children, Education, Libraries and Safeguarding Committee agreed the school admission arrangements for community schools for 2018/19 as set out in Appendix A.

 

2.    That the Children, Education, Libraries and Safeguarding Committee delegated to the Commissioning Director, Children and Young People (Director of Children’s Services) authority to determine future admission arrangements where no change is proposed.

9.

Schools Funding pdf icon PDF 300 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, introduced the item which related to Schools Funding.

 

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, noted that a briefing would be arranged for members of the Committee with the Director of Education and Skills and the Deputy Schools Funding Manager on the implications of the proposed National Funding Formula.

 

Councillor Kathy Levine made the following comment in respect to Appendix B (Response to the Government Consultation):

 

·         That in respect to the response to question 14, consideration should be given to existing pressures on schools on top of the proposed National Funding Formula for schools. Specifically, the response should make reference to:

 

-       The rates at which efficiency savings can be made;

-       The need for retraining;

-       New process automation;

-       Losses in operational flexibility;

-       Increases required in staff productivity;

-       Potential redundancy costs;

-       Effective teaching quality and student outcomes;

-       The increases in the amount that schools have to pay to cover pensions and national insurance;

-       Pay rises promoted by the departments;

-       Reductions to services such as the Education Service Grants.

 

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, stated that not all those comments made would be relevant to the response to question 14, however he stated that the issues specifically regarding the reduction to the Education Service Grants and increased pressures identified by the National Audit Office would fit appropriately into the response to the question. The Committee agreed for those relevant comments to be added to the response to question 14.

 

Councillor Kathy Levine commented that, in response to question 1, she is concerned that a £250mn funding gap had been created by the design of the National Funding Formula. Councillor Kathy Levine moved a motion – seconded by Councillor Kath McGuirk – to add the following wording to the end of recommendation 3:

 

·         ‘…and that a comment is made in the response to question 1 of the Response to the Government Consultation [Appendix B to the report] that the Council would like to see the £250mn be put back into the budget for schools’.

 

Votes were recorded as follows:

 

For

4

Against

4* 

Abstain

0

 

* The Chairman used his casting vote against the motion, therefore meaning that it was lost.

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to recommendations 1, 2 and 4. Votes were recorded as follows:

 

For

8

Against

0

Abstain

0

 

Before proceeding to the vote on recommendation 3, Councillor Kath McGuirk stated that she believed the item should be reclassified as a ‘Key’ item. The Legal Officer and Governance Team Leader present outlined the reasons for classifying an item as ‘Key’ or ‘Non-Key’ as defined by Section 6 of the Responsibility for Functions, outlined in the Council’s constitution.

 

A simple vote was then offered by the Chairman on whether the report was incorrectly classified as non-key and should be reclassified as ‘Key’: :

 

For

4

Against

4*

Abstain

0

 

* The Chairman used his casting vote against the request,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

10.

Early Years Funding pdf icon PDF 273 KB

Minutes:

The Committee welcomed the Head of Early Years to the table to answer any questions from Members.

 

The Strategic Lead, Children and Young People, then introduced the item which related to Early Years Funding.

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to the recommendations. The recommendations were unanimously agreed.

 

The following was therefore RESOLVED:

 

·         That the Committee noted that following consultation the local funding formula for early education and childcare has been amended to include a base rate of £5.17, a supplement for deprivation (5% of the funding allocation) up to a maximum of £1.53 and a SEND inclusion fund, as required by the DfE.

 

 

11.

Commissioning Plans - Addendums 2017/18 pdf icon PDF 279 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Strategic Lead, Children and Young People, introduced the item which related to an addendum to the 2017/18 Commissioning Plan.

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to the recommendations. Votes were recorded as follows:

 

For

8

Against

0

Abstain

0

 

The following was therefore RESOLVED:

 

·         That the Committee reviewed and approved the addendum to the Children, Education, Libraries and Safeguarding (CELS) Commissioning Plan for 2017/18 (Appendix A).

 

12.

Promoting arts and culture in Barnet pdf icon PDF 328 KB

Minutes:

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, introduced the item which related to promoting arts and culture in Barnet.

 

The Programme Director, Education and Learning, then provided further information on the report’s contents.

 

She stated that, given the Council’s resource limitation, she would investigate the possibility of additional funding (such as from the London Mayor’s Office) for arts and culture and share any information with the committee.

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to the recommendations, which were unanimously agreed.

 

The following was therefore RESOLVED:

 

1.    That the Children, Education, Libraries and Safeguarding Committee noted what Barnet is doing to promote culture and arts in the borough.

 

2.    That the Children, Education, Libraries and Safeguarding Committee approved the approach for the development of a strategic framework for arts and culture in Barnet as set out in paragraph 1.24 and for the ongoing support for arts and culture as set out in paragraph 1.25.

 

13.

Corporate Parenting Strategy pdf icon PDF 248 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, introduced the item which related to the Corporate Parenting Strategy (recently considered by the Corporate Parenting Advisory Panel).

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to the recommendation, which was unanimously agreed.

 

The following was therefore RESOLVED:

 

·         That the Committee approved the Corporate Parenting Strategy as appended to the cover report.

 

14.

Care Leavers' Strategy and Needs Analysis pdf icon PDF 285 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, introduced the item which related to the Care Leavers’ Strategy and Needs Analysis (recently considered by the Corporate Parenting Advisory Panel).

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to the recommendation, which was unanimously agreed by the Committee.

 

The following was therefore RESOLVED:

 

·         That the Committee approved the Barnet Care Leaver’s Strategy as appended to the cover report.

15.

Placements Commissioning Strategy pdf icon PDF 304 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Commissioning Director, Children and Young People, introduced the item which related to the Placements Commissioning Strategy (recently considered by the Corporate Parenting Advisory Panel).

 

Following consideration of the item, the Chairman moved to the recommendations, which were unanimously agreed by the Committee.

 

The following was therefore RESOLVED:

 

1.    That the Committee approved the Placements Commissioning Strategy.

 

2.    That the committee noted that the strategy aims to achieve the following: to better enable children and families to build their resilience, to increase the number of local placements through improving support for foster carers and to reduce the long term costs associated with residential placements.

 

16.

CHILDREN, EDUCATION, LIBRARIES & SAFEGUARDING COMMITTEE WORK PROGRAMME pdf icon PDF 228 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chairman introduced the report which related to the Committee’s forward work programme 2017.

 

Following consideration of the item, the following was RESOLVED:

 

1.    The Committee noted the 2017 work programme.

 

 

17.

ANY OTHER ITEM(S) THAT THE CHAIRMAN DECIDES ARE URGENT

Minutes:

None.