CAB
117/17 | Consideration was given to the minutes of the meeting held on 25 January 2018. |
CAB
118/17 | Consideration was given to a report that presented the outcomes of the Place Select Committee's review of Billingham Event Infrastructure. |
CAB
119/17 | Consideration was given to a report that gave an update on Stockton Riverside College (SRC).
Stockton Riverside College continued to be a good college as judged by Ofsted in December 2017 and, in terms of Higher Education, by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) in May 2017.
The report presented the College's position as well as future aspirations. An attachment to the report covered a review of College performance and summarised the College's recent Ofsted inspection as well as a review of the Higher Education provision by the QAA. Detail was then provided regarding the various partnerships that the College had continued to develop particularly with the Council, Schools, Businesses and the Third Sector. There was also specific reference to the planned merger with Redcar & Cleveland College in 2018/19. The report drew attention to the significant work undertaken with Employer engagement, apprenticeships and inclusivity. Also featured in the report was the significant investment made in new technologies.
Representatives from SRC were in attendance at the meeting and were given the opportunity to address Members. Mark White OBE (Chair of Governors at SRC) spoke of the continued development and success of the partnerships the College was having with the Council, Schools, Businesses and the Third Sector.
Members gave congratulations to the College on the findings from recent Ofsted inspection. Members also outlined their support for the College and the planned merger with Redcar and Cleveland College at the start of the academic year 2018/19. It was felt that this merger would further develop the curriculum opportunities for people of the Borough. |
CAB
120/17 | Consideration was given to a report that sought consent in principle to the making of the Tees Valley Combined Authority (Borrowing) Regulations 2018 in order to introduce borrowing powers for the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA). These powers would support TVCA in delivering its aim of furthering the sustainable growth of the Tees Valley. |
CAB
121/17 | Consideration was given to a report that gave an update on the Stockton on Tees Borough Council Constitution.
All Local Authorities in England had a statutory duty under the Local Government Act 2000 to maintain an up to date Constitution and to make their Constitution publicly available.
In addition, Article 15 of the Stockton on Tees Borough Council Constitution imposes a duty on the Monitoring Officer:
"… on behalf of and in consultation with the Chief Executive, to monitor and review the operation of the Constitution on a regular basis, in order to ensure that the aims and principles of the Constitution are given full effect and that the Scheme of Delegation, Rules of Procedure, Codes and Protocols and all of the other constituent elements are up to date and reflect legislative changes, the outcome of reviews or inspections and decisions taken by the Council"
The report outlined the findings of the Monitoring Officer's annual review of the operation of the Constitution and proposed a timetable for the conclusion of the review and the process for consultation and approval by Members of an updated version of the Constitution.
A summary of a draft revised structure for the constitution and possible items for removal was attached to the report.
It was proposed that these recommendations for updating the constitution be presented to Members at a Members Policy Seminar on 19th February 2018.
Following the Members Policy Seminar it was proposed that the updated version of the Constitution be drafted, taking into account any matters raised at the Members Policy Seminar. It was proposed that the revised constitution be brought back to Cabinet on 19th April 2018 to seek a recommendation for approval at Council on 25th April 2018. |
CAB
122/17 | In accordance with the Council's Constitution or previous practice the minutes of the meeting of the bodies indicated below were submitted to members for consideration:-
SSP - 12 December 2017
TVCA Cabinet - 21 December 2017 |
CAB
123/17 | Consideration was given to a report that provided a summary of performance across Children's Services. It was based on the Children's Strategy priorities agreed by Cabinet in June 2017.
The report summarised performance information in relation to the Children's Services Strategy 2017-20. The strategy, agreed by Cabinet in June 2017, set out the key priorities for Children's services, and the key performance indicators associated with delivery.
The update report was in two parts:
a. Update on the 2017/18 priorities
b. Update on other actions and progress against the wider strategy, including key performance measures
With regard to focusing on schools and learning outcomes the key areas of update for this priority included the latest data on Ofsted rankings as at end December:
Primary
• % pupils attending a school with Good or Outstanding: 94.2%
• % schools with Good or Outstanding: 94.9%
Secondary
• % pupils attending a school with Good or Outstanding: 92.5%
• % schools with Good or Outstanding: 92.3%
With regard to safeguarding and protecting vulnerable children and young people, backed by outstanding social work practice key highlights included:
a. The continuing successful rollout of Signs of Safety approaches to create better support plans, with greater family engagement.
b. The number of children on child protection plans had continued to remain at a much lower level than in March 29017, down from 307 to 240 at the end of December.
c. The recent Joint Targeted Area Inspection process had identified a number of areas of specific focus:
i. Quality of plans and supervision
ii. The production of chronologies, and in particular multi-agency chronologies when working with children and young people experiencing neglect.
iii. Capacity issues in the Children's hub, especially for Cleveland Police and North Tees and Hartlepool Foundation Trust.
Quarter 4 would see:
• The completion of the mobilisation period for the new 0-19 services and family hubs
• The completion of the first stages of the early help review
• The development of a detailed multi agency response to the findings of the Joint Targeted Area Inspection
• Further evidence gathering around the review of inclusion
• A further report on the reshaping of the Council's education role |
CAB
124/17 | Consideration was given to a report that outlined the rationale, structure and intended impact of the Early Years Assessment and Moderation Toolkit as well as proposing ways in which the positive impact upon the child development, school readiness and therefore pupil outcomes could be further supported by the effective dissemination of this resource.
Early Years outcomes for Stockton (as defined by children achieving a Good Level of Development - GLD) were well below the national average for several years. Sustained focus on improving school performance on this area by the 0-11 Team (Education Improvement Service) had ensured a strong trajectory of improvement, with 69% of pupils achieving GLD in 2017 (national average 71%) compared to 41% in 2013 (national average 52%).
This improvement reflected the impact of the work undertaken with schools and Early Years settings (including nurseries, playgroups, and childminders) to support practitioners in developing their understanding of child development and observational assessment, as well as developing practice and provision in response to these assessments.
A resource had been produced which captures the support and training that had been invested. This Early Years Assessment and Moderation Toolkit was a comprehensive document which aimed to support practitioners in making accurate assessments and providing a support for moderation, within individual schools/settings and across partnerships. It would also promote seamless transitions, particularly when used alongside Moving Forward 0-5 (the Early Years Transition Guarantee) to ensure that standards continued to rise.
The Tool looked at all 437 statements from Development Matters. This was the non-statutory guidance which broke down learning and development into age-related statements which described typical progression in each of the 17 areas of learning. Each of the 437 statements was unpicked, using examples relevant to practitioners and providing ideas for resources and links to further support for teaching and learning. The resource also models assessments of real children in real situations, helping practitioners (and other users of the resource) to understand the sometimes complex language of the original Development Matters statements.
The production of the Toolkit had involved a wide range of practitioners from schools and settings and had received very positive feedback from practitioners. The toolkit had been shared electronically with all schools and Early Years settings across the Borough.
There was interest from practitioners in buying hard copy versions of the Toolkit and it was suggests that the toolkit would be welcomed by settings and staff outside of Stockton. Given a similar resource was not available nationally there was a potential to market the resource (and associated training) more widely. This would start across the Tees Valley by promoting it to childcare chains, training providers, schools and academies, etc. If this approach was endorsed by Members then it could provide income generation for the service.
A full copy of the Toolkit was circulated to Members.
Members were delighted with the Toolkit and wished the achievement by Officers of the Council to be recognised. The Toolkit would be used across Schools and Early Years Centres across the Borough. Members hoped the Toolkit could be used nationally as excellent feedback had already been received from practitioners outside of the Borough. |
CAB
125/17 | Consideration was given to a report that outlined the admission arrangements the Local Authority (LA) was proposing for primary and secondary schools in September 2019. In order to comply with legislation for admissions in 2019, the report included the full Co-ordinated Admission Arrangements, the Admission numbers for Primary and Secondary Schools for that year and the proposed Admission Policy for entry in September 2019.
An attachment to the report provided further detail of the proposed Co-ordinated Admission arrangements timetable - 2019/20.
The proposed Admission Numbers for September 2019 in Community, VA, Academies and Free Schools and highlights those schools to be considered for expansion were attached to the report.
Also attached to the report was further detail on the proposed Admission Policy for September 2019 that would give priority to applications for admission to a school if that school is oversubscribed. |
CAB
126/17 | In accordance with the procedure for the appointment of school/academy governors, approved as Minute CAB 27/13 of the Cabinet (13 June 2013), Cabinet was invited to consider the nominations to school/academy Governing Bodies listed as listed in the report. |
CAB
127/17 | Consideration was given to a report that presented a draft Council Plan for 2018-21, prior to it being submitted for to Council for approval.
The Council Plan set out the vision and key objectives of the Council. It aimed to provide clarity and focus for Councillors, managers, staff, members of the public and partners about the Council's ambitions. The full Council Plan was attached to the report.
The Council Plan summarised the Council's strategic position over the next 3 years and was reviewed and approved annually by Cabinet and Full Council. Cabinet received six monthly update reports that contain key indicators plus key announcements and developments.
The Council Plan described the Council's Vision and Key Objectives across eight themes:-
Economic Regeneration and Transport
Environment and Housing
Community Safety
Children and Young People
Health and Wellbeing
Strong Communities
Adults
Arts, Culture and Leisure
The Council Plan described the Council's four policy principles that support our decision making:
• Protect the vulnerable
• Create economic prosperity
• Tackle inequality
• Help people to be healthier
The Council Plan was fully aligned with four key supporting plans, for which Cabinet received quarterly update reports containing key indicators plus key announcements and developments:
a. Finance - The Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) summarised the Council's financial position over the next 3 years and was reviewed and approved annually by Cabinet and Full Council.
b. Economic Growth - The Economic Strategy set out the Council's long term vision and ambitions in relation to economic growth and was reviewed and approved annually by Cabinet. The Economic Growth Plan set out what would be delivered in the next 3 years to deliver the outcomes and ambitions in the Economic Strategy and was also reviewed and approved annually by Cabinet.
c. Adults - The Adult Social Care Strategy: Promoting Independence set out what would be delivered in the next 3 years to deliver the Council's outcomes and ambitions in relation to adults social care services and was reviewed and approved annually by Cabinet.
d. Children - The Children's Services Strategy set out what would be delivered in the next 3 years to deliver the Council's outcomes and ambitions in relation to children and young people and was reviewed and approved annually by Cabinet.
Discussion sessions had been organised for the 14th and 16th February 2018, for elected members to discuss the Council Plan alongside the Medium Term Financial Plan.
The full version of the Council Plan would be published on the Council's website following approval by Full Council. |
