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(a)
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To champion the life
chances and rights of Children Looked After; Children in need; Care
Leavers and children and young people in the criminal justice
system across the Council, with Elected Members and
partners.
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(b)
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To actively promote
real and sustained improvements by ensuring that there are
mechanisms in place to:
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ascertain and have
regard to the child or young person’s view, wishes and
feelings, so far as reasonable practicable; have regard to the
importance of promoting and respecting the child or young
person’s dignity; have regard to the characteristics, culture
and beliefs of the child or young person; have regard to the
importance of providing appropriate support to enable the child or
young person to participate in decisions that affect them; have
regard to the importance of promoting the upbringing of the child
by the child’s family, in so far as doing so is consistent
with promoting the child’s well-being; Where the child is
under the age of 16, ascertain and have regard to the views, wishes
and feelings of those with parental responsibility for the child,
in so far as doing so is consistent with the well-being of the
child, and reasonably practicable; That there is a follow on
provision for young people leaving care that meets the need of
young adults.
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(c)
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To develop and
undertake a programme of consultation, listening and engagement
events with Children Looked After, Children in Need and Care
Leavers as well as visits to services providing support and advice
to those children and young people.
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(d)
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To recommend ways in
which more integrated services can be developed across all Council
directorates, schools and other stakeholders to lead towards:
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Improved education
attainment and achievement for Children Looked After, Children in
need and Care Leavers; Emotional and Mental Health and Well-being
Support for Children Looked After, Children in Need, and Care
Leavers; Improvements in services for children with disabilities;
To encourage Looked After Children, Children in need and Care
Leavers to become active citizens.
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(e)
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To ensure performance
monitoring systems are in place, and regularly review performance
data to ensure sustained performance improvements in
outcomes;
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(f)
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To benchmark and learn
from best practice of other Local Authorities;
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(g)
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To receive all
relevant Children’s Services inspection and annual reports,
including: Children’s Homes Quality of Care Report; Child
Practice Review Themes, Fostering Annual Quality of Care Report;
Adoption Fostering Annual Quality of Care Report; 4C’s
Commissioning; Out of Area Annual Report; Education Report;
Children’s Complaints reports; and Advocacy Annual
Report;
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(h)
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To develop, monitor
and review a corporate parenting strategy, and ensure its effective
implementation through work plans and corporate parenting training
programmes;
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(i)
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To submit an annual
progress report to the Cabinet and make recommendations where
responsibility for that function rests with the Cabinet;
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(j)
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To report to the
Children and Young People’s Scrutiny Committee as
necessary;
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(k)
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To recommend the
appointment of co-opted members to the Committee for approval by
Council;
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(l)
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To submit an Annual
Report on the work of the Committee to full Council;
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(m)
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All Members of the
Committee will be required to undertake relevant training to enable
them to properly discharge their duties;
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