The Corporate Director - Children submitted a report to the Cabinet Committee in line with the Independent Reviewing Officers Guidance Wales (WAG 2006).  The report, aided by a PowerPoint presentation, provided an overview of the role and function of the IRS.

The Head of Safeguarding and Family Support advised that the Independent Reviewing Service in Bridgend comprised of eight workers of which there were six full-time equivalent IRO posts.

In Bridgend County Borough Council, he advised that IRO’s Chair Child Protection Conferences were commissioned under the All Wales Child Protection Procedures and LAC Reviews under the IRO Guidance (Wales).

The Head of Safeguarding and Family Support then confirmed that the population of ‘Looked After Children’ in Wales had increased by 24.49% between 2007/8 and 2012/13, and gave examples of some charts reflecting the increase in Bridgend County Borough, particularly in the last year or so.

In terms of LAC between the 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2014 there were 146 instances of children having “become looked after”.  This represented a near equal gender split of 46% female and 55% male.

He then broke this figure down in both percentages and actual numbers of LAC there were in each of the different areas of the County Borough.

The Head of Safeguarding and Family Support then gave the legal status of LAC for the period 1 April 2013 - 31 March 2014, in terms of those children that were subject to an Interim Care Order, those on Remand, under Police Protection, subject to an Emergency Protection Order, and instances where the parent(s) ask for the child to be looked after, including details of statistical information regarding the age of these children, for the same period.

The Presentation then outlined information regarding the different Permanence Plan types, for example:-

·         Long Term Foster Carers (153)

·         Parallel Planning (98)

·         Long term relatives or friends (47)

·         None (40)

·         Placed with parents (26)

·         Adoption (19)

·         Residential placement (12

·         Eventual return home (8)

·         Supported living (5)

·         Remaining with birth family (3)

·         Other (1)

The next tranche of data included the following information:-

                        Length of time Children Looked After at 31 March 2014 for:-

                        1 year              -           Approximately 117

                        1 - 2 years       -           Approximately 125

                        3 - 5 years       -           Approximately 85

                        6 + years         -           Approximately  88

The next section of the Presentation, then gave details of LAC Reviews due between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2014, and compared the number of reviews due (on a month by month basis) compared with the number of reviews held in compliance with statutory timescales.  The average overall percentage of reviews held within this period in accordance with statutory timescales averaged out at 96.6% which confirmed a high and level of performance in this area.

The Head of Safeguarding and Family Support then shared with Members the number of second LAC reviews due comparable with a Plan for Permanence in place during the course of the last financial year.  These statistics showed an overall percentage of 93.4%, which as above, was very effective in terms of performance.

The next bar chart he referred to in his submission, reflected an average overall performance of Initial CP Conferences held within 15 working days of the Strategy meeting where a decision was taken to undertake Section 47 enquiries for the last year.  This percentage totalled 87.7%, and the Head of Safeguarding and Family Support acknowledged that there was room for improvement in this area of work.

The Head of Safeguarding and Family Support was pleased to advise Members that an overall percentage of 99% had been achieved in relation to Review Child Protection Conferences held within appropriate timescales during the last twelve months.

To conclude his presentation, he advised that the following issues needed to be considered, monitored and developed over the next twelve months:-

·         Improve performance of the IRO Service where level has fallen beneath targets;

·         Better monitoring of children’s cases including quality assurance duties of the Independent Reviewing Officer;

·         Greater emphasis on exit pathways for children looked after by the Authority.

RESOLVED:         That Committee noted the content of both the report, accompanying presentation and Annual Report of the Independent Reviewing Service.