What are we trying to achieve?
Outcomes
We want all our children and young people to have successful, productive lives and we want to provide the services and supports that will help them succeed, particularly when they have problems to overcome.
Our work to strengthen corporate parenting sits within the Single Outcome Agreements and the National Performance Framework.
It may be helpful to express what we are collectively trying to achieve in terms of outcomes.
As corporate parents, the overarching outcome we are collectively aiming for is:
Young people who have experienced the care system will be successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors whose life outcomes mirror those of their peers.
The specific outcome relating to the function of corporate parenting is:
Councils and their community planning partners will fully understand and accept their responsibilities as corporate parents and governance arrangements will be in place to make sure that work within councils and their partner organisations is child-centred and focused on achieving the overarching outcome.
Aims
Our ultimate aim is that there is no discernible difference between the outcomes of children and young people who have been looked after and their peers who have not.
The aim of this guidance is to support councils and their community planning partners in closing the gap which has existed for decades between people who have experienced the care system and people who have not.
We must improve educational achievement and attainment, achieving sustained positive post-school destinations, reduce looked after children and young people and care leavers’ involvement in the criminal justice system, their levels of homelessness, and help them to live full and healthy lives.
Measuring success
Public services will be measured against national indicators, in the context of the National Performance Framework, and are developing local indicators which provide evidence of how well they are doing and what they need to improve.
Inspectors and regulators are increasingly incorporating an evaluation of corporate parenting. Self-evaluation will increasingly be the starting point against which external scrutiny mechanisms will monitor progress.
Children’s services are subject to a range of inspection and regulation, and all of these take a particular interest in looked after children and young people.
Sharing information
Information-sharing, and managing confidential information, is central to delivering effective, joined up services. However, it can be a source of concern for those working with looked after children and young people.
The guiding principles should be that sensitive information is shared in a professional manner and only to the extent needed for an individual to carry out their role effectively. This will usually mean that managers will have a good knowledge of the relevant factors in a child or young person’s background and current circumstances.
This information will be shared through the care planning process, wherever possible with the consent of the child or young person, and their parent or carer.
The information then passed on to frontline staff such as teachers, early years workers or health visitors may be limited, for example highlighting the need for increased support or vigilance as a result of family upset, change of placement, forthcoming stressful events or uncertainty in the child’s life.
All staff must know who they can speak to for clarification or support.
In this guidance, we look at roles, duties, responsibilities and opportunities across the spectrum of services delivered through community planning partnerships, as well as the wider community.
We have included examples of individuals who have had a positive experience of the corporate family; their stories will bring that concept to life.