Children & Young People Now
November 2010
Comment
Christine Davies CBE – Director – C4EO
Last month’s comprehensive spending review has clarified some of the challenges
ahead. We are now working in a period where difficult choices have to be made.
The question is how to invest the limited funds we have to make the biggest impact
in improving the lives of children, young people and their families.
While I am sure we all welcome the retention of funding for our schools and for
most of our early years services, it will continue to be important that all of us,
including schools, keep our focus on supporting those children and families most
in need.
C4EO can help local areas through its evidence-based research and access to the
excellent practice that exists across the children’s sector.
For example, we now have nearly 100 examples of excellent local programmes and projects
on our website.
Increasingly, this validated local practice is being assessed for cost-effectiveness,
giving leaders and managers the unit cost of interventions and helping calculate
the “social return on investment”.
Each example has been rigorously assessed for its impact on children’s outcomes
and capacity to be transferred to other areas.
These examples also demonstrate how the sector can learn from itself, providing
the best solutions, without having to look for, or pay for, outside help.
C4EO’s tailored support service helps local areas to quickly implement best practice.
More than 170 assignments are now being undertaken by C4EO with sector specialists
providing direct support to local authorities, health services and the voluntary
sector to help improve outcomes at the frontline of local service provision.
This offer is now available across all our themes including early years, disability,
child poverty, vulnerable (looked-after) children, safeguarding, youth, schools
and communities, families, parents and carers, early intervention, cost effectiveness
and data.
C4EO will continue to support the sector through these unprecedented times and do
all it can to help those who have to make difficult decisions about where best to
invest their money, energy and time.
Making the difference
Educating vulnerable children - Mulberry Bush School
Mulberry Bush School uses a therapeutic model to improve the lives of some of the
most vulnerable children in the UK
The school uses a group living approach where pupils live alongside adults at the
school
Mulberry Bush School in Oxford works with some of the most vulnerable primary-age
children in the UK.
The independent, non-maintained residential special school caters for up to 36 children
aged five to 13, taking referrals from local authorities.
A significant proportion are in care, with 13 per cent fostered and 10 per cent
adopted.
Most have severe emotional and behavioural problems and the majority struggle with
basics such as reading, writing and maths.
Even so, these children begin to thrive thanks to a "relationship-based approach"
underpinned by theory, explains John Diamond, chief executive of the Mulberry Organisation,
which runs the school.
Pupils live alongside adults in care and treatment units and they are taught a simplified
version of the National Curriculum.
Four departments work together to devise individual care plans and tailored support
for each child.
These encompass "group living", education, the school's own team of psychotherapists
and its family team, which liaises with parents, carers and home authorities.
It is this combined approach that makes all the difference, says Diamond.
The school was again rated "outstanding" by Ofsted in February this year,
having been judged outstanding in 2008 and 2009, and is an example of local practice
validated by C4EO.
Parents, carers and outside professionals say they see the difference in children,
who all make progress academically and leave Mulberry Bush better able to learn
and be taught.
Ninety-two per cent of children who were unable to be placed long-term with a family
when they started at the school can now go to long-term placements.
Crucially, children are able to move into more mainstream provision, which might
include specialist provision in a mainstream school, after a typical stay of three
years.
"One hundred per cent of children are placed in a suitable school when they
leave," says Diamond.
Key points
- Mulberry Bush School is based on a "therapeutic community" model
- Staff work as a multi-disciplinary team with education, health and mental wellbeing,
and family support combined. Working on the same site makes that easier
- Staff training is key. The school offers its own accredited foundation degree in
therapeutic work with children and young people
- Support for staff includes one-to-one supervision and group work
Need to know
Ready for cuts - Using higher education data to plan ahead
With widespread predictions of a big rise in the number of young people not in education,
employment or training (Neet), local authorities need to be prepared.
Using higher education data and other national, regional and local statistics can
help councils assess the potential impact on their local communities of policies
such as the government's decision to allow universities to charge up to £9,000 a
year in fees.
This may mean many young people are put off going into higher education due to the
large amount of debt they will be taking on.
"It will be necessary for local authorities to monitor the impact of the changes
to the fee system to determine the possible impact of increased demand for local
services and the potential damaging effect of an increase in the proportion of Neets,"
explains Simon Rutt, head of statistics at the National Foundation for Educational
Research and C4EO's data lead.
There are a number of sources local authorities can go to. The Universities and
Colleges Admissions Service and the Higher Education Statistics Agency have a wealth
of data on courses and institutions.
Most of this is available for a number of years and is broken down into different
sub-categories. There are statistics for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland,
as well as more localised government regions.
Regional data can be at two levels: the region in which the student lives and the
regional location of the institution.
"Although useful, obtaining data at a lower level will allow local authorities a
greater opportunity to assess the impact of fee changes to students living in their
authority," says Rutt.
Nuggets of useful knowledge
The proportion of 17-year-olds in education and training in 2008 was
77.9%
an increase of 4.2 percentage points from 2002
The proportion of 15-year-olds from low-income families going on to higher education
increased by
1.3 percentage points
in 2007
Nationally, the proportion of 16- to 18-year-olds who were Neet fell by
4.6 percentage points
in 2009
Where to go next?
Families and parents
The latest findings
from C4EO's research on effective work with families, parents and carers
is now available. Resources include a summary for directors of children's services
and reviews of the impact of work to improve parents' mental health and reduce conflict,
including domestic violence, within families.
Early intervention
The importance of getting in early to help children and families in difficulty is
highlighted in a report published by C4EO. Grasping the Nettle: Early Intervention
for Children, Families and Communities is based on examples of effective local practice
gathered by C4EO and the Association of Directors of Children's Services.
The report can be downloaded from the Early Intervention section of the C4EO website.
Cost-effectiveness
A range of tools to help managers and others assess the cost-effectiveness of different
services for children and families are available from the C4EO website. The service
aims to help agencies use public funds as efficiently as possible. Resources include
tools to help identify and compare costs. Visit the cost
effective section of the C4EO website.
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