Transcript As the CWDC moves towards NDPB status, what issues will we

Jane Held
The Narrowing the Gap Programme has
tried to answer fundamental question?
What is it, if applied universally and
pursued relentlessly, would make a
significant impact on the outcomes
of vulnerable groups of children
and young people?
NtG is;
 A 2 year programme, hosted by the LGA,
supported by IDeA, funded by DCSF.
 Focussing on 3-13 years (with additional
work on 0-3 years).
 Across all 5 outcomes
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Staying Safe
Enjoying and achieving
Being healthy
Making a positive contribution
Economic well-being
Includes:

Children from poorer socio-economic groups (including
white ‘working class’ boys)

Children in Care

Children with disabilities

Children with SEN

Children excluded from school


Children with poor records of attendance at school
Children from different ethnic minority backgrounds

Young Offenders

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Young Carers
Children at risk from significant harm

Children living with ‘vulnerable’ adults
 Identified the critical ‘must-do’s’ for ‘narrowing
the gap’ (for vulnerable children, young people
and families).
 Drawing on lessons learnt from;
- research
- data
- expertise across children’s sector
- practice on the ground
5 themes (key lines of enquiry)
 How to create and sustain the right links
between schools, children’s centres and
Children’s Services.
 How to engage and support parents and
carers in helping their children to succeed.
 How to use the new systems and process
brought into being by Every Child Matters
to orientate services more towards
prevention and early intervention.
Why do it?
 5 years on from ‘Every Child Matters’. We need
to tell the story more clearly – successes and
challenges.
 Despite 10 years of sustained investment in
public services – the ‘gap’ remains steep and
wide. Essential social and economic imperative.
Cost of
: individuals
not doing : communities
it is high : the nation
 Need for real practical evidence about ‘what
makes the difference’ to vulnerable groups of
children, young people and their families.
 Strong ‘sense of moral purpose’ – help build on
commitment of Local Government as leaders of
their communities.
At heart of local social
and economic regeneration
What are the
challenges?
Poverty (and social class) matters:
• Despite all efforts, UK has one of the strongest
links between circumstances into which a child
is born (socio-economic group) and their adult
outcomes.
• The lower the social economic group, the
higher the risk of poor outcomes.
• ‘Poor’ circumstances, leading to poor
qualifications, transmits poverty across
generations.
and it starts early!
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
22 months
4 years
5 years
6 years
10 years
(Reducing Inequalities - NCB 07)
Health matters:
 Infant mortality falling –

But incidence of ‘low birth weight’ high
(11% of total) compared to other
developed countries - correlates directly
with social class and gives rise to poor
health, development and educational
attainment.
• Mental Health declining – (13% 11-16 years old
boys) and (10% 11-16 year old girls) clinically
diagnosed mental disorders.
• Children living in lone parent families most
vulnerable (19% compared to 9%) as well as
those in poorer families (21% compared to 6%).
Poor mental health also directly correlates with:
- poor record of school attendance
- being excluded from school
- in public care (‘looked after’)
Schools matter:
 Attainment has risen all round.
 Teachers recently qualified are best ever
(Ofsted).
 Class sizes down, absenteeism down,
post-16 participation up.
 98% 3 and 4 year olds accessing early years
education and quality improving.
But:
• Performance gap between
advantaged and more
disadvantaged pupils, little
changed in 10 years.
• Those who do least well –
poorer white boys, mixed
race and black Caribbean
boys, Irish travellers.
Crime matters:
 Minority of offenders commit majority of offences
(7% 10-25 year olds for 83% offences)
 Significant links:
- ‘poor’ background
- poor attendance / excluded from school
- being in public care
- not in education, training or employment (NEETs)
15% compared to 5%
Final guidance – published 31st October
 Moving towards early intervention and prevention
(so that fewer children fall behind the rest)
 Engaging and supporting parents and carers in
helping their children to succeed.
 What children’s centres and early years settings
can do to ‘narrow the gap’.
 What schools can do to ‘narrow the gap’
 Links between children’s centres, schools and
extended services to ‘narrow the gap’.
Our year 1
Conclusions
And then - year 2
• Leadership –
– Across whole system
– Distributive model
– From billions to pence
• Governance –
– Across whole system
– Anyone responsible for the governance of an
organisation or system
Top 12 Golden Threads
The critical building blocks
- each supported by Case Studies
from across the country
You can do it! (Expect the best)
- creating a culture of high aspirations
- and giving children and parents
access to a trusted (dependable)
adult (e.g. mentor / health visitor)
From good to great – ‘passion with
purpose’
- having transformational leadership in
place, political and professional (local
and national)
- a clear vision communicated well.
Planning and processes to back it up
and deliver results, including the use
of ‘Outcomes Based Accountability’.
‘It takes a community to raise a child’
- regenerating local communities
(housing, play, safe streets)
- open accessible local services
- Council’s/PCT’s employ local people
- bring together all capital funds
including BSF
Together with parents (“you know
your child, we know about children’s
services, together we can do better”)
- working in real partnership with
parents and families and building
on their strengths
- ‘doing with, not doing unto’
Through the voice and eyes of the child
- ensuring children’s views are listened to
and their participation supported
- making all services more family centred,
with adult services more sensitive to their
clients as parents and alert to the needs
of children
- ‘Think Family’
Holding onto the baton
- ensuring as much stability and
continuity as possible, in
relationships between trusted
adults, with children and parents
- managing those transitions that
are unavoidable with care
‘Learning to learn’
- making the building of children’s
resilience a major policy objective
- ensuring education benefits the
most vulnerable or disadvantaged,
encouraging their participation and
giving them lots of supplementary
and ‘catch-up’ support
‘Cornflakes to Canoeing’ - extended
schools
- taking active steps to make
extended services available to
disadvantaged or vulnerable
children and their families within,
and beyond, the school
Unite to succeed – ‘sanity not vanity’
- deepening the integration of services,
systems and processes
- focus on early intervention/prevention
- locally based, multi-disciplinary teams
‘Shape up and keep fit’
- re-shaping the workforce and
ensuring it is appropriately
trained, supported and
celebrated!
Culture not structure
- ensuring structures and processes
underpinned by a culture of
co-operation and high aspiration
for all children (and all services)
- driven by leaders who ‘walk the talk’
‘Prove it’ – making change happen
- right performance management
systems in place nationally/locally;
with a clear focus on improving
outcomes of vulnerable groups
- shared approaches to this across
services, including Health
- underpinned by shared data
And finally
• We will never narrow the gap unless
we focus on the workforce
• They are the agents of change and
the people who make the difference
• They need to be knowledgeable,
confident and use what works
• They also need to know that
narrowing the gap is a central part of
the job
• Simple truths and common sense
Want to know more?
• WWW.C4EO.org.uk