Memorandum submitted by Newcastle City Centre

 

Sure Start Children's Centre Inquiry
1.	Summary
1.1	· The paper provides an overview of the delivery of Sure Start Children's Centres in the city following a review undertaken in 2008. · The paper summarises the review process and the main recommendations as presented to the Children's Trust Board in relation to strategic planning, management, governance, partnership working, access and reach, performance management and how the model had developed · The paper aims to illustrate how the Sure Start Children's Centres model is effectively supporting joint working and accountability for improving outcomes for children and their families
2.	Context and Background
2.1	The Childcare Act 2006 placed a duty on local authorities and their NHS and employment service partners (Jobcentre Plus) to work together to improve the well-being of all children up to the age of 5 and reduce inequalities between them. This legislation provided a framework to formalise and build upon the work begun through Sure Start Local Programmes providing a focus for the statutory partners in the discharging these new duties.
2.2	In 2008 a fundamental review of the delivery of Sure Start Children's Centres in the city was undertaken. The impetus for the review was the pending requirement to ensure citywide coverage by 2010 (phase 3). To support the planning process for this expansion and in light of the Childcare Act 2006 duties it was an opportune time to review and reflect upon the current delivery and impact of Sure Start Children's Centres in the city and to build on the learning to date.
2.3	At the point of scoping the review there were 16 Sure Start Children's Centres in the city, 5 of which had been original Sure Start Local Programmes and a further 6 which had only been designated in March 2008. By March 2010 a further 2 centres are to be developed as part of phase 3 meeting the needs of a further 3,300 children under the age of 5 ensuring citywide coverage.
2.4	A multi agency Project Board was established to oversee the implementation and scoping of the review process reporting directly to the newly formed Early Childhood Services Partnership delegated by the Children's Trust Board to lead on the Childcare Act 2006 statutory duties.
2.5	The review considered and made recommendations on the following areas:   · The infrastructure required to deliver citywide Sure Start Children's Centres and meet the Childcare Act 2006 duties; · How the core offer is to be delivered across the city and across the different phases · How partners can work together to ensure that policies and procedures provide a consistency of support and access for children, families and other stakeholders · How resources for integrated early childhood services across the city could be jointly planned for using a needs based allocation model · How all partners work together to improve outcomes for young children and their families · How through effective performance management we ensure that the services provided are meeting need and improving outcomes · The identification of any capital requirements as part of the phase 3 roll out and the impact of existing capital delivery
2.6	Underpinning the review process was · The Childcare Act 2006 duties · Sure Start Children's Centre Guidance · Children's Centre Strategy · Locality working · Integrated Frontline Planning and Delivery · Early Intervention and Prevention · Narrowing the Gap principles of good practice for integrated working · Workforce Planning · Linkages with the Extended Services Core Offer · Child Health Promotion Programme
2.7	Integral to the review process was the involvement and participation of all key stakeholders to ensure an agreed direction of travel for the delivery of a strategic Sure Start offer in the city improving the well being of young children. To support this, a series of stakeholder workshops took place, including events specifically for parents.
2.8	Participation and involvement in the review process across all partners and sectors including parents, schools, health, JCP, VCS, PVI providers, social care, adult services, family learning and children's services was very high with good attendance at both stakeholder events and working group meetings. Presentations were also made to the Area Locality Partnerships and Schools Forum.
2.9	In addition to the workshops a series of smaller multi agency and sector meetings taking forward key elements of the work in preparation for the workshops also took place.
2.10	The Review Recommendations were endorsed by stakeholders at an Early Childhood Services Conference prior to being approved by the Early Childhood Services Partnership and the Children's Trust Board.
3	Recommendations
3.1	The overarching message from stakeholders reflected a desire to consolidate the planning for all early years under the umbrella of a "sure start" for all young children and their families. There was wide acceptance for the following underpinning principles · Any delivery of services for under 5's is contributing to the statutory duty to improve the well being of young children • The LA together with the statutory partners has a duty to ensure that those services are integrated • Integrated services improve outcomes for children and families • The delivery of integrated early childhood services is through the model of Sure Start Children's Centres • The role of the Early Childhood Services Partnership is to articulate each partner's (statutory and non-statutory) contribution to the strategic planning for and monitoring of integrated early childhood services to improve the well being of young children and • That the joint planning should include and take cognisance of all resources relating to young children and not just those allocated through the Sure Start Early Years and Childcare Grant
4	Delivering Integrated Early Childhood Services through Sure Start Children's Centres
4.1	The review considered the infrastructure required to effectively deliver and manage citywide coverage of Sure Start Children's Centres by 2010 and to discharge the new local authority duties under the Childcare Act 2006 within a locality planning framework focusing on narrowing the gap though early intervention and prevention and integrated frontline delivery.
4.2	The emerging key principles informing the recommended infrastructure were: • To maintain the strong involvement of VCS input into operational delivery and strategic management • A structure to deliver the Childcare Act 2006 duties • To ensure the overriding principle of joint responsibility for the planning and delivery of integrated early childhood services is met • A structure to support citywide delivery • To change only what contributes to improving outcomes • Building on best practice • Building on local need intelligence • Value for money and • The establishment of an integrated management team
4.3	The strategic management of the citywide Sure Start Children's Centre offer is lead by an integrated management team. The integrated management team includes LA and VCS Sure Start Leads with agreed working protocols between the different partners. The city is divided into 5 Sure Start areas each with a Sure Start Lead responsible for · The direct delivery and/or commissioning of the core offer across a geographical area of the city with 2 or more designated Sure Start Children's Centres · The performance management of integrated early childhood services delivered/commissioned within the area · Being the lead for the statutory duty to improve the well being of young children · Leading on a specific strategy area on behalf of the integrated team including: o Hidden Harm o Childhood obesity o Child Poverty o Special needs and disability o Teenage parents o Breastfeeding o Safeguarding
4.4	The area arrangements supporting citywide coverage have been informed by; · Existing planning arrangements including locality working and school pyramids · EStart and Live link reach data · Child population and levels of need (IMD) · Models of good practice · Local geography · Ensuring that each proposed area is built around an original Sure Start Local Programme.
4.5	The city has benefited from and has built on the partner arrangements for the delivery Sure Start Children's Centres. Out of the 5 Sure Start Areas, 2 are lead by two different VCS partners. Of the 16 individual Sure Start Children's Centres, 5 are delivered by the VCS, 2 are led by schools and of the 10 lead by the LA, there is a high level of services commissioned from the VCS.
4.6	Phase 3 will include the development of 2 additional Sure Start Children's Centres, one which will be a new build whilst the other will build upon a successful Extended Services Centre. In addition 4 existing centres will increase their reach to support families within the less disadvantaged areas of the city.
5	Core Offer
5.1	Through the review and using the Narrowing the Gap Framework with all partners, priority areas for development were identified to inform the 2009-11 delivery plans.
5.2	All centres working within the new area planning model deliver the full core offer with programmes of activities reflecting local need including joint commissioning.
5.2	At a citywide level joint working between children's social care, health visiting, adult services and children with disabilities service is ensuring that the most vulnerable children and their families are identified and supported to access their local Sure Start Children's Centre.
5.3	Joint work between the Sure Start Qualified Teacher and the EYFS Consultants has effectively supported settings in the transition to the delivery of the EYFS which is reflected in Ofsted inspections. Further work is being progressed in the development of personalised packages of support for settings informed by a quality audit.
5.4	Work continues with JCP, Newcastle Futures, Family Learning and Welfare Rights in progressing pathways to work to support families in a range of differing circumstances.
6.	Accessing Services
6.1	The review process recognised that a strength of the Sure Start Offer in the city was the range of partner involvement including schools, VCS partners, both national and local organisations. This however does bring the challenges of aligning policies, procedures and practices to ensure effective and seamless local delivery for children and families.
6.2	Whilst the review provided an opportunity to audit policy and procedure across areas such as HR, IT, H&S to name a few ,a focus of the work in this area was the improvement of access to services.
6.3	Due to the range of partners delivering the Sure Start Services across the city and the fact that 5 of the Sure Start Children's Centres had been Sure Start local programmes, there were a number of different ways to access additional and targeted support dependent on where you lived. This was not useful for families nor did it facilitate the coordination of support.
6.4	The review informed the establishment of the Sure Start Supporting Families Pathway which is now a citywide model for accessing services underpinned by the Common Assessment Framework. This model was designed with partners and complimented the work being undertaken locally by health visiting to embed the CAF within the health needs assessment. The model provides one central point in each of the 5 Sure Start areas where all practitioners can come together; working with families, to ensure that identified need is met and coordinated. This model is also aligned with children's social care processes. The model was launched in April 2009 and with the first 6 month review is evidencing improvement in responding to need at a local level. Work continues to improve the participation in and awareness of the model. The pathway also ensures that linkages are made with the PSA when there are older siblings in the family group.
7.	Allocation of resources
7.1	As part of the review it was important to discuss how resources are planned for in response to identified need. Whilst the allocation of the Sure Start Early Years and Childcare Grant is a significant element of the resource, the review provided the opportunity to consider the wider resources that supports the delivery of integrated early childhood services and how planning could be aligned across the board.
7.2	The Sure Start Children's Centre element of the Sure Start Sure Start Early Years and Childcare Grant had been allocated as per the ringfence for the former Sure Start local programmes and the indicative allocation recommendation from the DCSF for phase 1 and 2. However in the planning for phase 3 and the longer term planning to narrow the gap, it provided an opportunity to review how resources were deployed.
7.3	From April 2009 the Sure Start Children's Centre element of the Sure Start Early Years and Childcare Grant has been allocated by a funding formula with some interim arrangements to support realignment of resources over the next 2 years. The formula incorporates: · Needs led allocation supporting narrowing the gap and reducing child poverty whilst also ensuring citywide coverage · The 0-5 population (Health Data August 2007) · Super Output Areas and levels of deprivation for each Sure Start Children's Centre Area · Minimum level of funding for an individual Sure Start Children's Centre
7.4	The formula takes account of the number of children living in the 10/20/30/70% SOA. The formula for 2009-10 takes account of children living in the areas covered by the existing 16 Sure Start Children's Centre (including children in the extended reach to support city wide coverage). The formula for 2010-11 takes account of the full 0-5yr old population reflecting the date by which citywide coverage is to be achieved.
8	Governance
8.1	The Children's Trust Board has delegated the lead for the Childcare Act 2006 duties to the Early Childhood Services Partnership. The ECSP, established in May 2008 has representation from all the statutory partners, including schools, the VCS and PVI providers.
8.2	The review provided an opportunity to discuss local governance and the relationship with the Children's Trust Board. The model agreed though the review is as follows; · Formalising the role of the Sure Start Advisory Boards as Sure Start Area Partnerships (5 in total) supporting the planning for, and delivery and monitoring of integrated early childhood services within a given geographical area · Local management/advisory groups at individual centre level with representation on the Sure Start Area Partnership · Sure Start Area Partnerships to be represented on the Early Childhood Services Partnership through the Sure Start Joint Chairs Forum · A Parents' Forum in each area which is represented on the Sure Start Area Partnership · Representation from Parent's Forum on the Early Childhood Services Partnership
8.3	The participation of young children is integral to the delivery of all services and remains the responsibility of all staff. The progression of this work is further enhanced by the implementation of the Listening to Young Children Strategy and the support of Children's Services Engagement Team.
9.	Performance Management
9.1	The appointment of a dedicated Performance and Monitoring Officer as part of Children's Services Performance and Monitoring team is now supporting the setting of bench marks, collecting data, effectively evidencing impact and using this data to support review and planning.
9.2	Systems for the collection of large robust data-sets, to support the self evaluation process, from within the local authority and the PCT have been established. Further refinement of the PCT data will be required and effective working relationships are developing.   Contact has been made within JCP to develop data protocols and this is being addressed nationally in collaboration with Together for Children.   While the refinement of large datasets is currently taking place we have also established information sharing systems at child level. These are currently in place between health visiting and the local authority and between E Start and social care systems.   Additional data sets collected by central sources within the local authority have been identified and links established for the regular collection of this data. Examples include domestic violence data and housing benefit data.   The internal systems employed by Sure Start Children's Centres are E Start and Livelink (Livelink is the system used by Banardos who lead an area of the city of behalf of the LA). The reporting mechanisms and inputting protocols within E Start are currently under review.
9.3	All the Sure Start Children's Centres have completed their first SEF as part of the ongoing planning, monitoring and evaluation.
9.4	The Sure Start Children's Centre programme is based on the concept that providing integrated early education with childcare, family support, health services, information services and employability services is a key factor in achieving good outcomes for children and parents.
9.5	In addition to the universal entitlement provided by midwifery and health visiting services, 70% of the children aged under 5 living in the phase 1 and 2 areas were registered with their local Sure Start Children's Centres at the end of March 2009. Further analyses of this data will inform increased reach targets for families living in the most disadvantaged SOA. It is important to note that this figure does not currently include those children accessing the integrated early learning and childcare element of the Sure Start core offer as in the main the PVI sector deliver this element of the offer which is not currently recorded on Estart. However over 90% of 3 and 4 year olds take up their free offer.
9.6	From across the City 38% of all children seen were from black and ethnic minority backgrounds. In the areas of the City with the highest numbers of black and ethnic minority families this accounted for 54% of all children seen.
9.7	In addition to the work being undertaken in the use of data, Sure Start Children's Centres continue to effectively use case studies and user satisfaction surveys to evidence impact. The user satisfaction survey undertaken in 2008 in the phase 1 Sure Start Children's Centres identified high levels of satisfaction across the core offer: The majority of respondents, over 80%, felt that their children had benefited from Sure Start by giving them opportunities to access play and learning opportunities, improved their child's speech and language, allowed them to make friends and gain in confidence. A significant number of parents and carers, between 60% - 70% said that accessing services had made them more confident, helped them make new friends and improved their knowledge and skills. Between 40% - 50% believed services had overall improved their child's health. Case studies, regularly taken as part of the ongoing monitoring and evaluation of services, were used to support Newcastle's successful submission for Child Poverty Beacon Status.

 

October 2009