3. Background
3.1 In order for looked after children to gain the maximum benefit from education, the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and its associated Regulations and Guidance require that:
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Kenny8 (11) was 9 when he started to be looked after. At this time a very detailed and skilled assessment was carried out concerning the relationship between Kenny and his mother, and his aggressive and uncontrolled behaviour towards her. Kenny’s mother has both learning and physical disabilities. The assessment was conducted residentially with Kenny and his mother living in an annex of a children’s residential unit. The conclusion of the assessment was that it would not be appropriate for Kenny to return home and he has since resided, by choice, in the same residential unit. Kenny’s school attainments, attendance and behaviour did not form part of the assessment. His attainments matched those of his peers but his school behaviour was, and still is, very aggressive and disruptive. He has had a number of exclusions and brief periods of truancy. |
Evaluation and recommendations
Assessment
3.2 Assessments should aim to provide a clear and full picture of the child's development. The developmental dimensions addressed should include: health, education, family and social relationships, emotional and behavioural development, identity, social presentation and self-care skills. Whilst co-ordination of a multi-disciplinary assessment is likely to be undertaken by the child's social worker, education and health professionals have an essential contribution to make. For many children, allied professionals such as psychologists, psychiatrists, careers advisers or youth workers may be appropriately involved. If the assessment is undertaken when the child is already looked after, his or her carers9 have a crucial contribution to make. The knowledge and views of the child and his or her parents are also central to the assessment.
3.3 It was unusual for any form of assessment to have been carried out on the 50 sample children at the time they became looked after. It was even more unusual to find an assessment which addressed educational needs. Where educational progress was described it was often inaccurate. For example, one child who was well behind expected achievements for her age was described as having "appropriate development and functioning for her age".
3.4 Using a standard proforma10, an assessment had subsequently been completed on a small number of children, because a permanent family placement was planned. The question on this form which asked about educational attainment had not been completed in a single case nor were school end-of-session reports appended as requested. Only 2 authorities had started to use Looking after Children in Scotland: Good Parenting, Good Outcomes11 (LAC) materials at the time of the inspection. Only one completed Assessment and Action Record was found on the social work files, and in that case the answers to the educational questions were incomplete.
3.5 Schools did not, as a matter of course, conduct assessments on children who became looked after. All schools issued end-of-session reports and conducted assessments for special educational needs. However, these reports did not necessarily coincide with the time the child became looked after, nor were they always supplied to social work services when a child became looked after. Schools could make a greater and more helpful contribution to assessments of looked after children, both by supplying the reports, results and assessments they already undertake, updated as necessary, and by sharing their considerable knowledge of children's educational, physical, emotional and social needs. A full, multi-disciplinary assessment involving education and social work personnel, and others as appropriate, should be carried out around the time a child becomes looked after. This assessment should provide a baseline for future educational progress. Points for action should be identified in the care plan and placement agreement.
Care plans
3.6 Care plans were in place for most or all children in 3 authorities although in one they had all been completed just prior to the inspection. In the other 2 authorities, care plans were in place in only a minority of cases in spite of the fact that one of these authorities had piloted LAC materials. Social workers, in the cases where there was no care plan, said that it was "implicit in the reviews" or "implicit in the case record" or that LAC materials had not yet been implemented. There was a failure to appreciate that care plans have been a legal requirement since 1997. Local authorities should ensure that all looked after children have care plans as specified in the legislation.
3.7 The care plans which were in place varied in quality and comprehensiveness. They did not address educational needs and goals in any detail or, in some cases, at all. The plans recorded on LAC materials were all completed retrospectively due to the length of time the children had been looked after but they did contain some more detail about educational needs and goals. There was no evidence that schools had been consulted about the content of care plans, nor were they supplied with copies. Under normal circumstances schools should receive a copy of the care plan.
Placement agreements
3.8 There is a statutory duty to have a placement agreement for children in foster care, and such agreements are useful for children in residential care. It was unusual to find a placement agreement or a "day-to-day placement arrangements"12 form. Those that were seen were almost all within one authority which was not yet using the LAC materials. These agreements tended to be reasonably detailed concerning educational arrangements, for example, outlining transport or homework arrangements. However, there was no evidence of direct involvement of schools in drawing them up, although schools may have been consulted. School staff should be involved in a meeting to draw up the educational part of the agreement. Such a meeting, repeated if the child moved placement or school, would bring much greater clarity and mutual understanding. Local authorities should ensure that all looked after children have placement agreements as specified in the legislation.
Reviews of care plans
3.9 Almost all of the cases in the 5 authorities were reviewed regularly and within statutory time limits, once children were in care. Children and their parents were regularly invited to reviews, and most attended. Reviews of the care plan13 were a robust aspect of local authorities' child care planning systems and could potentially provide a very beneficial forum for identifying strengths and difficulties, and making plans to support looked after children's education. There were, however, some weaknesses in the review process.
3.10 It is important that children are consulted about who attends reviews of their care plan. They may not wish a teacher to be present when personal issues are discussed. Nevertheless, the majority of children interviewed accepted or welcomed a trusted teacher attending all or part of the review. Where a child is in agreement, a teacher should be invited to attend at least part of the review meeting, and their contribution could helpfully be supported by a written report from the school. Where it is not in a child's interests for a teacher to attend the review meeting, a report should always be supplied by the school. In addition, for some children, a school based educational review system will already be in place or may be appropriate. Where this is the case, the main findings and the decisions from these reviews should be fed in to review of the care plan meetings. The Scottish Executive should work with local authorities to add an education pro-forma to the LAC review of the care plan folder.
3.11 Where siblings were being looked after there was a tendency in assessments, care plans and reviews of the care plan to conflate the progress and needs of siblings. Discussion could be of the "girls" or "the children" without differentiation and, where a child was placed with a sibling or siblings whose behaviour was much more troublesome, his/her educational progress and needs could be almost wholly overlooked. In one case, a child was being harassed by older siblings because of information about his learning difficulties revealed in joint reviews. Reviews of looked after siblings should usually be held separately. Sometimes there is value in holding them consecutively.
Case recording
3.12 Social work case files and pupil progress records (PPRs) held by schools were examined. The quality of social work records in terms of accuracy, detail, legibility and how up to date they were, varied among authorities. In 3 authorities the quality was mainly acceptable and in one authority mainly good. Contacts with schools were usually recorded. It was not always easy to find which school a child currently attended, the contact people there and their telephone numbers and, if found, the information was sometimes out of date. Most files had little or no information about the schools the child had previously attended or about their educational progress. Most did not contain school reports, although in all cases these were sent to each child’s carer. If LAC materials are implemented fully many of these gaps will be remedied.
3.13 PPRs were much briefer and more succinct than social work records. Almost all the PPRs had up to date information on attainment, attendance and behaviour. Most gave no indication of the child's legal status or whether the child had a social worker. Where a social worker was indicated it was often not the current one. PPRs were more likely to record the carers' names and current details. Copies of the statutory notifications under Regulation 7 of The Looked after Children (Scotland) Regulations 1996 were found in PPRs in only one authority. These provided information about changes of legal status and address, and were a very helpful source of information. Some PPRs contained copious records of the children's behaviour, almost all of it negative. In good practice, teachers should seek to identify and record examples of positive as well as negative behaviour. Notes of contacts and meetings with social workers and carers were conspicuous by their absence except where, occasionally, the school received minutes of reviews of the care plan from the social work department. The basic details of the child's legal status and of social work and carer contacts should be recorded on PPRs. These points should be taken into account in any future redesign of the PPR.
Confidentiality
3.14 Confidential information provided by social workers was usually handled well by schools. Most schools differentiated between the kind of information they routinely collected about all children and the more detailed and personal information held on those looked after. The latter was usually shared with teaching staff on a "need to know" basis. Generally, this action was appropriate in that the information concerned only current issues which might have had an impact on the child's behaviour and well-being in school, rather than details of their past history.
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Becky (12) had always attended the same primary school. This necessitated a long taxi journey from her foster carers when she became looked after. Becky is self-conscious about her looked after status and was very upset when her teacher mentioned to her class that she was in foster care. She told her social worker about this incident and he raised it with the headteacher, who apologised to Becky. The headteacher has regular discussions with Becky. During one of these, after Becky had been exhibiting some unsettled behaviour, Becky confided that her mother, with whom she had regular contact, had been imprisoned a few days previously. Becky’s social worker and carers had not shared this information with school staff. The headteacher subsequently discussed her report, prepared for a review of the care plan, with Becky and also asked her if it was acceptable for her to attend the meeting. Becky decided she did not want her headteacher at the review, in spite of their good relationship, because she was still anxious about the previous breach of confidence. |
3.15 Three breaches of confidentiality by teachers were found which were distressing for the children concerned. Two had been taken up with the school by the social workers and /or carer. The third had been dealt with by the young person and her friends who, in her words, had "put the teacher straight". Some social work staff were concerned that information shared with school staff might breach confidentiality for the child. However, a number of examples were found where teachers’ knowledge and understanding of factors leading to disruptive, confrontational or withdrawn behaviour had allowed additional support and positive strategies to be put in place. Other situations were found where it would have been helpful for teachers to have been informed about events outwith school which had led to a deterioration in the child's behaviour. Education departments and social work services should ensure that they have effective arrangements for sharing and using confidential information, and these should be implemented in schools and social work teams.
Main recommendations 1 and 2
Local authorities should carry out a full, multi-disciplinary assessment involving education and social work personnel, and others as appropriate around the time a child becomes looked after. This assessment should provide a baseline for future educational progress. Points for action should be identified in the care plan and placement agreement. (3.2-3.5)
Local authorities should implement quality assurance procedures to ensure that statutory requirements are met effectively. Local authorities should ensure that all looked after children have care plans and placement agreements as specified in the legislation. (3.6-3.8, 9.18)