Agenda, decisions and minutes

The agenda and reports associated with this minute can be located at the following link:-

https://committees.aberdeencity.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=504&MId=5849&Ver=4

Please note that if any changes are made to this minute at the point of approval, these will be outlined in the subsequent minute and this document will not be retrospectively altered.

The Convener advised that this was the last meeting of the Education and Children’s Services Committee subject to Council’s approval of a new committee structure in March 2018.

He also advised that a pupil from St Joseph’s RC School had sustained an injury from a section of rendering material which became detached from a boundary wall in the playground at the School and confirmed that the matter was under investigation. The Committee wished the pupil a speedy recovery.

The Convener advised that he had accepted the following item onto the agenda as a matter of urgency in terms of Section 50(B)(4)(b) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973:-

            Notice of Motion by Councillor Cameron

The Committee resolved:-

to agree with the Convener that the matter be considered as a matter of urgency and as the next item of business.

The Committee had before it the following notice of motion by Councillor Cameron:-

“That the Committee

1. notes concern that a recent feature to the mobile phone app, snapchat, allows users to search for and view posts uploaded from schools;
2. further notes that a number of primary and secondary schools in the city are listed using this feature and that the posts available include pictures of young children, some appearing with what appears to be contact details;
3. believes that this poses a risk to children
   instruct the Chief Executive to write to the app developers, snap inc, outlining this Council's concerns and requesting all schools within the city to be removed from searchable locations within the app; and
4. backs the campaign to have all schools removed from searchable locations on snapchat and that snapchat introduce urgent safeguards to protect children from the recently added features to the snapchat app.”

The Committee resolved:

(i)            to adopt the terms of the motion;

(ii)          to instruct the Head of Education and Inclusion to report to the appropriate Committee on any future apps with features which they believe could pose a risk to children to ensure Committee awareness and that appropriate action was considered; and

(iii)         to instruct the Chief Executive to provide a copy of the Committee’s decision to COSLA and invite COSLA to support the campaign.

No declarations of interest were intimated.

The Committee had before it the minute of its meeting of 16 November 2017, for approval.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the minute as a correct record, subject to adding Councillor Duncan to the sederunt and replacing Councillor Greig as voting for the motion with Councillor Duncan at article 11.          

The Committee had before it a statement of pending and outstanding committee business which had been prepared by the Head of Legal and Democratic Services.

The Committee resolved:

    (i)        to delete items 2 (Future Plans For Pupil Support Services and Cordyce School), 3 (Allocation of Work in Children’s Social Work), and 7(ii) (Subsidised Transport and Safe Walking Routes to Lochside Academy) subject to the decisions taken later on the agenda;

  (ii)        in relation to item 1 (Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014), to request the Head of Children’s Services to send a reminder letter to the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills regarding the provision of funding for the implementation of delivery of the new statutory duties imposed by the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014;  and

 (iii)        to otherwise note the updates provided.

The Committee had before it a tracker of future committee business.

The Committee resolved:

to note the information contained in the committee report tracker.</AI5>

With reference to article 8 of the minute of the meeting of the Education and Children’s Services Committee of 16 November 2017, the Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which provided a summary of the Education and Children’s Services (E&CS) Directorate performance improvement measures and outcome data from 1July up to and including 30September 2017.

The report recommended –

that the Committee note the content of the report.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the recommendation.

With reference to article 7 of the minute of the meeting of the Education and Children’s Services Committee of 14 September 2017, the Committee had before it a report by the Head of Finance which advised Members of the full year forecast position of the Education and Children’s Services Directorate for the financial year 2017/18.

The report recommended –

that the Committee note the projected revenue and capital position for Education and Children’s Services as detailed in Appendix 1.

The Committee resolved:

(i)            to approve the recommendation;

(ii)          to instruct the Head of Policy, Performance and Resources to advise the Committee, by way of email, of initial and current expenditure and forecast figures for Brimmond School; and

(iii)         to instruct the Head of Policy, Performance and Resources to advise the Committee, by way of email, of when the increase in the approved budget for Stoneywood School was approved.

The Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which presented a copy of the new Parental Involvement Strategy for approval.

The report recommended –

that the Committee

(a)          note the content of the Strategy and instruct the Head of Education and Inclusion Services to reflect within the Strategy that it covered all pupils;

(b)          endorse the actions for improving parental engagement contained in the Strategy; and

(c)          instruct the Director of Education and Children’s Services to develop an action plan to deliver the outcomes of the Strategy, and to report annually, by way of a service update, on progress with this plan.

The Committee resolved:

(i)            to approve the recommendations (b) and (c); and

(ii)          to approve the content of the Strategy and to instruct the Head of Education and Inclusion Services to reflect within the Strategy that it covered all pupils.

The Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which sought approval of a new Aberdeen City Play Policy and Strategy to be launched in 2018 as part of the Year of Young People celebrations in the city.

The report recommended –

that the Committee

(a)          note the contents of the report and the achievements since 2013;

(b)          approve the new Aberdeen City Play Policy and Strategy 2018; and

(c)          instruct officers to work with Aberdeen Play Forum and key stakeholders to launch the Aberdeen Play Policy and Strategy at an event in Spring 2018 as part of the Year of Young People celebrations in the city.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee noted that this item had been withdrawn from the agenda.

With reference to article 12 of the minute of the meeting of the Education and Children’s Services Committee of 14 September 2017, the Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which reported on the outcome of a recent statutory consultation on the proposal to permanently close Cordyce School.

The report recommended –

that the Committee

(a)          agree to implement the proposal to permanently close Cordyce School in Aberdeen, with effect from 1 April 2018;

(b)          instruct the Head of Policy, Performance and Resources to notify Scottish Ministers of the Council’s intention to implement the closure proposal, in  accordance with the requirements of the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 as amended; and

(c)          subject to any call-in by Scottish Ministers, agree that the Cordyce school site should be declared surplus to Education and Children’s Services requirements, and to instruct the Head of Policy, Performance and Resources to make arrangements to transfer the site to the Head of Land and Property Assets.

.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which provided details of a number of Education and Children’s Services sites which were considered as surplus to requirements, and made recommendations for removing these from the service property portfolio.

The report recommended –

that the Committee declare the following sites as surplus to Education and Children’s Services requirements, and instruct the Head of Policy, Performance and Resources to make the necessary arrangements for them to be removed from the Education and Children’s Services property portfolio, and for responsibility for the sites to be transferred the Head of Land and Property Assets:

·         the former Hazlewood School building;

·         the former Bucksburn School and Nursery building;

·         the existing Stoneywood School building (to take effect following the

·         opening of the replacement Stoneywood School building scheduled to open in August 2018); and:

·         the existing Kincorth Academy building (to take effect following the opening of the new Lochside Academy building, scheduled to open in August 2018).

The Committee resolved:

to approve the recommendations.

MATTER OF URGENCY

The Convener intimated that he had directed in terms of Section 50(B)(4)(b) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, that the following item be considered as a matter of urgency to enable members to consider the matter and for the arrangements to be put in place prior to the school opening in August 2018.

With reference to article 10 of the minute of the meeting of the Education and Children’s Services Committee of 16 November 2017, the Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which provided an update on discussions regarding the planned hours of operation for free bus travel to Lochside Academy, for pupils living in Torry and Kincorth.

The report recommended –

that the Committee note the outcome of discussions and that the Head of Policy, Performance and Resources would proceed with plans for the agreed free transport arrangements for the applicable pupils for Lochside Academy to operate between the hours of 07:00 and 18:00, Monday to Friday during school term time, subject to the appropriate budget provision being confirmed through the annual budget setting process.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the recommendation.

The Committee noted that this was the last meeting of the Education and Children’s Services Committee in its current format subject to Council’s approval of the proposed new committee structure. The Committee paid tribute to all external members of the Committee, past and present and thanked them for the lively and robust debates, as well as the informed decision-making which had been undertaken. 

At this juncture, the external members of the Committee departed.

The Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which advised of the draft Carers Strategy (‘A Life Alongside Caring’ - attached as Appendix One), which covered both adult and young carers, in response to requirements within the Carers (Scotland) Act 2016.

The report recommended –

that the Committee

(a)          note the current version of the draft Carers Strategy; and

(b)          instruct the Head of Children’s Services to submit the final version, following consultation, for approval at the appropriate subsequent Committee.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 21 of the minute of the meeting of the Education and Children’s Services Committee of 1 June 2017, the Committee had before it a report by the acting Director of Education and Children’s Services which provided an update on the implementation of Reclaiming Social Work.

The report recommended –

that the Committee

(a)          note the progress made in implementation of the Reclaiming Social Work model; and

(b)          note the identified changes to the initial Reclaiming Social Work model as detailed at section 3.12 and 3.13 of the report to enable the Service to deliver full implementation of the model.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the recommendations.

- COUNCILLOR JOHN WHEELER, Convener