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148      (12) EDUCATION STRATEGY – SCHOOLS – The Director of People submitted a report which sought approval to adopt and publish the refreshed Appendix A within the North Lincolnshire Education Strategy for Schools – ‘All our Children’, which would refresh the action plan for the academic year 2014/15.

The strategic document recognised that North Lincolnshire Council had a crucial role in ensuring that the needs, aspirations and potential of all children and young people were fulfilled. That it recognised the emergence of new forms of school organisation and governance, the strategy reaffirmed North Lincolnshire’s commitment to ‘All our Children’ – demonstrating how the Council fulfilled its legal duty under the 1996 Education Act for standards of education standards in the area as a whole.

Resolved – That the refreshed Appendix A within the Education Strategy for School be approved, adopted and published.

149      (13) FINANCIAL FRAMEWORK FOR ADULTS RECEIVING COMMUNITY SOCIAL CARE – The Director of People submitted a report which sought approval for amendments to the financial framework for adults receiving community services to be implemented from 1 September 2014.

Councils had a statutory duty to provide financial support to residents with assessed care needs to enable them to fund their packages of care. For people in residential care determination of an individuals financial means was based on statutory guidance ‘Charging for Residential Accommodation Guide’ (CRAG). For people who were cared for in their own home ‘community services’ the council set out how the determination of an individual’s financial circumstances was undertaken using national guidelines and an improved local calculation.

The report related to the framework for financial support for people who were receiving care in their own home and outlined proposals to update the council’s Community Contributions Policy in readiness for the implementation of the Care Act 2014.

The Care Act 2014 proposed to introduce a cap on the costs that people had to pay to meet their assessed needs; therefore from April 2016 the cap would be set at £72,000 for people of state pension age and over.

The report identified that the policy revisions would bring the Community Services financial assessment in line with that of Residential Care thus enabling an equality of choice for people to remain independent for as long as possible.

Resolved – (a) That the policy ‘Financial Framework for Adults Receiving Community Services’ be approved and implemented from 1 September 2014, and (b) that the local buffer rate be 15% above the national guidelines and the maximum contribution for 2014-15 of £250 per week be approved.

The corresponding report of the following item (Minute 150 refers) contains exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

150      (14)  ANNUAL EDUCATION REPORT OF HEADTEACHER OF THE VIRTUAL SCHOOL FOR CHILDREN IN CARE – The Director of People submitted a report which sought approval of the Annual Education Report of the Headteacher of the Virtual School for Children in Care. The report detailed the work of the Virtual School and the impact this had had on educational outcomes of Looked After Children.

North Lincolnshire Council had committed to achieving outstanding outcomes for all of its Looked After Children. The commitment was well articulated within the Council’s pledges, strategic plans and partnership arrangements and enacted through the ongoing prioritisation of resources, expertise and influence.

The Virtual School Head ensured that all of North Lincolnshire’s Looked After Children had appropriate support and access to the educational provision required to enable them to reach their potential, wherever they were placed. The Virtual             School also had a role in liaising with other Virtual Schools in relation to pupils in the care of other local authorities but educated in North Lincolnshire schools.

The recent development of an annual report by the Virtual School Headteacher was to support and encourage further scrutiny and challenge of education outcomes being achieved for the council’s Looked After Children, including from the Cabinet Member in line with the statutory duties placed on this office.

Resolved – That the contents of the report be approved.

Note: Reports are in Portable Document Format (PDF) and therefore require a suitable reader to view them. A reader can be downloaded free from the Adobe website (full instructions for downloading the reader are provided on the site). 

Where there is no report this is because it is exempt, as it contains information which is considered to be of a confidential nature, as detailed in the Local Government (Access to Information) Act.