Agenda and minutes

At this point Members are asked to declare any personal or prejudicial interests they may have in the business on this agenda.

At this point in the meeting Members were asked to declare any personal or prejudicial interests they might have in the business on the agenda or any other general interests they might have within the remit of the Committee, other than those already listed in the agenda papers.  No additional interests were declared.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 26 January 2011.

RESOLVED:             That the minutes of the meeting of the Learning and Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 26 January 2011 be approved and signed by the Chair as a correct record.

At this point in the meeting, members of the public who have registered their wish to speak on an item on the agenda or an issue within the committee’s remit can do so.

Anyone who wishes to register or who requires further information is requested to contact the Democracy Officer for this meeting, details of whom are listed at the foot of this agenda.

The deadline for registering to speak is 5.00pm the working day before the meeting, in this case 5.00pm on Tuesday 8March 2011.

It was reported that there had been no registrations to speak at the meeting under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme.

This report analyses the latest performance for 2010/11 and forecasts the outturn position by reference to the service plan, the budget and the performance indicators for all of the relevant services falling under the responsibility of the Director of Adults, Children & Education and the Director of Communities & Neighbourhoods.

Members received a report which analysed the latest performance for
2010 -11 and forecasted the outturn position by reference to the service plan, the budget and the performance indicators for all of the relevant services falling under the responsibility of the Director of Adults, Children and Education and the Director of Communities and Neighbourhoods.

The Principal Accountant and Assistant Director (Lifelong Learning and Culture) provided the Committee with an update on the financial situation at quarter 3. They advised the Committee that the Adults, Children and Education directorate had managed to bring what had been a considerable overspend in the Children & Young People’s Services General Fund budgets of over £400k at Quarter 2 down to a relatively small overspend of only £33k this quarter and explained how this had been achieved. However they stressed that pressures remain within the directorate, including maintaining current staffing levels in children’s social care and the pressure on home to school transport budgets, and they explained how these pressures would be managed.

Officers also reported that Communities and Neighbourhoods were predicting continued financial pressures within Lifelong Learning and Culture due to significant shortfalls in the directorate’s income generating services specifically the Performing Arts Service, Adult Education Service and Library Service as well as other pressures within the directorate and explained how these pressures were being addressed.

With regard to performance indicators, the Director of Adults, Children and Education provided an update on performance indications covering children’s social care, educational achievement and cultural services and stated that York now has one of the lowest numbers of young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET) in northern England, that teenage pregnancy rates in York are the lowest in the city for 10 years and that re-offending rates of young offenders have been reduced. Officers responded to queries raised by Members on specific issues contained in the report.

Members acknowledged that changes would be taking place to the music service which would offer whole class teaching with effect from September 2011 and asked to receive a report in the new civic year on the new music service and how it would operate in the future.

RESOVLED:             (i)            That the report be noted.

                                    (ii)        That a report on the new arrangements for the music service be presented to the committee in the new civic year.

REASON:                  (i)         To update the committee on the latest finance and performance position for 2010 –11.

                                    (ii)        In order that Members are aware of the changes taking place within the music service.

The Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services will attend the meeting to give a verbal update on the work within her portfolio area.

Members received an update from the Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services on the work taking place within her remit.

She provided Members with an update on the following areas of work which she had been involved in over the past year and informed them of forthcoming projects within her portfolio area.

• Looked after Children.
• Changes to schools

• Youth Services 
• Work of Education Psychology Team
• Safeguarding Review
• School Inspections
• Education Bill and Green Papers
• School Admissions
• Post 16 curriculum
• Lowering of school entry age

The Chair thanked the Executive Member for attending the meeting and providing Members with an update. The Executive Member passed on her thanks for the hard work and support of all staff who have been involved in work within her remit.

RESOLVED:             That the update from the Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services be noted.

REASON:                  In order that the Committee is kept informed on work within the remit of the Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services so that Members can make a contribution to this portfolio area.

A presentation will be given to provide Members with an indication of how youth work can be provided in the light of the Council’s budget for youth work in 2011/12 and beyond.

Members received a presentation from new Head of Integrated Youth Support Services and the Assistant Director (integrated Commissioning) on delivering youth work in York. The aim of the presentation was to provide them with an indication of how youth work could be provided in the light of the Council’s budget for youth work in 2011-12 and beyond.

Members were advised that Young People’s Services and the Youth Offending Team had now merged to form one service, with a single head of service (Head of Integrated Youth Support Services) already in post.

Officers advised that a review of the new merged service would be undertaken in light of the forthcoming year’s budget but that this would also look more strategically to how the service would operate in 2-3 years time. They provided Members with an overview of how the individual services could be organised and looked at what role the Council would play in youth support services, stating that this was likely to be more of a commissioning role rather than as a provider. They explained that three options were being developed for the future of the service, each of them distinct but feasible, and that these models would be developed by end of March and would provide material with which to engage with stakeholders. He announced that the service would officially be re-launched in September 2011 and made Members aware that this was a  tight deadline to work towards.

The Director of Adults, Children and Education offered keep Members updated as the review progressed, particularly with regard to what would be the future council “offer” to young people.

RESOLVED:             (i)         That the presentation be noted and Members comments be taken into consideration.

(ii) That Members be presented with a further report on the progress of the review at a future meeting.

REASON:                  In order to progress the work of the Committee.

Members are asked to consider the Committee’s workplan for the remainder of the current municipal year and the draft workplan for the 2011-12 municipal year.

Members were presented with the workplan for the remainder of the current civic year and a draft workplan for the 2011-12 civic year.

In respect of the current workplan, Members noted that there was no further work to complete before the end of this civic year.

With regard to the draft workplan for the forthcoming civic year, the  Democratic Services Manager advised Members that Scrutiny Management Committee (SMC) had considered a further report at its meeting in February regarding developing scrutiny within the Council and it had been suggested that scrutiny chairs liaise with the relevant Executive Members and lead officers at the beginning of the civic year to help inform the committees’ workplans.

The Chair acknowledged that scrutiny should support and inform the Council’s strategic plan and Members noted the need to identify areas where value could be added by scrutiny members looking at them. As an example she suggested the increase in the age of participation would be an interesting subject which this committee could have a discussion on as well as other areas within the Council which are changing dramatically.

As discussed earlier in the meeting (Minute 39 refers), the Director of Adults, Children and Education suggested that he provide a report on how the new music service was progressing during 2011-12.

RESOLVED:             That the draft workplan for 2011-12 be noted with the above additions.

REASON:                  To progress the work of the Committee.