QoL 2006 - Social Exclusion

Optimistic signs of tackling exclusion

The number of young people committing crimes continues to fall along with teenage pregnancies. The Youth Justice Services expands its preventative work with children at risk of offending, whilst children in care attainment levels remain above the UK average.

Indicator SE1 - Crime re-offending (Recidivism rates Hertfordshire youth 10-17)

Recidivism rates are reviewed annually by sampling a quarter of the young offenders from the previous year and comparing this with their current offending. 2004 rates shown below comprise 666 young people of whom 216 (32%) re-offended, a figure higher than desired but compares well both nationally and regionally. 2005/6 saw a continuing rise of new entrants into the Criminal Justice system. 343 young people had a first court appearance - a rise of 8%.

The increase is more positive than one might initially conclude because the overall level of youth crime did not increase and more arrests are a reflection of greater police effectiveness in detecting crime.

Type of Penalty	2003 Cohort % to offend after 12 months	2004 Cohort % to offend after 12 months
Pre-Court and Reprimands	19	23
First Tier Penalties - Referral Orders	36	38
Community Penalties	63	58
Custodial Penalties	53 (19 young people)	80 (8 young people)

Source: Hertfordshire county 2005 Youth Justice Service Council
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The Youth Justice Service has been developing initiatives to reduce youth crime by offering a service to young people aged 8-13 at risk of offending. Following local consultation, support from the Youth Justice Board led to a decision to extend the Youth Inclusion & Support Panelling system. This includes 14-16 year-olds whose behaviour has led to an Acceptable Behaviour Contract. The work with these young people focuses on the impact of their behaviour on others, family issues and access to education.

Youth Justice Service & Children, Schools and Families win MJ Award and leads national practice on disturbance handling

Hertfordshire's new methods of handling residential disturbances earned its Youth Justice Service and Children, Schools and Families (CSF)¹ Residential Services for Looked After Children the MJ (Municipal Journal magazine) Looked After Children Achievement of the Year Award in 2005.

The Award was presented to the Council in recognition of its efforts in reducing the number of police call-outs to children's homes using a successful new approach to handling disturbances between residents or residents and staff. The ability to resolve conflict without the calling the police, which fell by 50%, was achieved by adapting restorative approaches.

The Award was independently evaluated by Hertfordshire University and the Council's new approach is now being disseminated nationally to 155 other Youth Offending Teams. For more information see www.realjustice.org.

Indicator SE2 - Educational attainment of children in care and care leavers

The educational attainment of Looked After Children is regarded as a key indicator of effectiveness in integrated children's services. The drive to improve standards of attainment is underpinned by statutory duties in the Children Act 2004 to promote educational achievement of Children In Care as corporate parent. A range of support measures were identified in 'A Better Education for Children in Care' that complements the 'Every Child Matters' strategy. Higher expectations were also outlined in the White Paper, 'Higher Standards - Better Schools for All', published in October 2005. The Green Paper, 'Care Matters - transforming the lives of children and young people in care', was published in October 2006 and set out proposals for wide-ranging reform to narrow the gap in outcomes between children in care and all children.

Statutory guidance to support local authorities implementing The Children's Act was issued in December 2005 and is supplemented by 'Supporting Looked After Learners' published in March 2006 that assists school governors in their responsibilities towards Looked After Children. The Ofsted Inspections Framework makes Children In Care a priority within the Vulnerable Children group. School Improvement Partners hold schools responsible for supporting Children In Care and improving their educational outcomes. The Education and Inspections Bill, subject to parliamentary approval, will confirm that Children In Care will be prioritised for admission to the most appropriate school for them even if the school is fully subscribed. The intention is to make ambitious reforms by providing a suite of statutory guidance to support local authorities in fulfilling their duties to promote education of these children, through their relationship with schools and in improving quality of care placements.

Whilst the county's performance reflects a national gap in achievement between all children and those in care, Hertfordshire's strategy has resulted in an increase of young people sitting and achieving at least one GCSE or equivalent and participating in and reaching the national average in Standard Attainment Tests (SATS).

Statistically, the group of Children In Care at the end of each Key Stage is small and fluctuates. The percentage of children with Statements of Special Educational Need (SEN) has a disproportionate impact and makes comparison with all Hertfordshire Children difficult. Furthermore, government targets for Children In Care include children with severe learning difficulties for whom the National Curriculum does not apply, whereas published data from schools discount these children because of their special educational need.

Improvements were sustained above the national average in the target for care leavers to achieve a minimum of 1 A* to G at GCSE, rising from 57% to 60% this year. Those achieving 5 A* to C passes also rose from 6.8% to 10.9%. Performance in relation to education, training and employment of Care Leavers is still very good.

Further work continues to raise the achievement of the county's Children In Care through the department and in partnership with schools. The dedicated Education Support Service for Looked after Children has developed a range of services to meet statutory requirements resulting in the improved performance reported. Sustaining these improvements requires a collaborative and strategic approach across CSF. To this effect mechanisms have been put in place to ensure that those with special requirements are accommodated within the SEN and Inclusion Strategy, the Code of Practice on Admissions, Learner Support Strategies and Hertfordshire's Strategy for School Improvement.

Percentage of care leavers engaged in education, training or employment

The Education Support Service (ESS) for Children in Care and care leavers supports post-sixteen year olds with a high quality service allowing them to participate in education, training or employment. The service supports 90 young people attending Further Education colleges for academic and vocational courses. It also it creates apprenticeships and work placements for young people via the Teenagers 2 Work scheme. Core services include:-

career guidance and support to find employment
arranging apprenticeships through local employers
preparation for independence courses staged at key times in the year
access to a number of notable construction companies who have prioritised care leavers in developing careers in the building profession
training for professionals who work with Care Leavers on the employment unit, Connexions, careers guidance and Business to Education

Percentage of care leavers engaged in education, training or employment on their 19th birthday (PAF A4 indicator)

	2002/2003	2003/ 2004	2004/ 2005	2005/ 2006
Hertfordshire	66%	70%	72%	75%
England	49%	56%	59%	Not published

In 2005-6 Hertfordshire performance in the national indicators was very good with 75% of 19 year-old care leavers being in education, training or employment, the fourth consecutive year it has risen.

Number of Hertfordshire care leavers taking up university places since 2001

Source: Corporate Parenting, Hertfordshire County Council, 2006
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Current performance in relation to the Public Service Agreement (PSA)²

The government PSA floor target, set in the 2004 Spending Review and underpinned by 3 national performance indicators, also applied to 2005/06. During the period, the county exceeded its 60% target despite an improvement by all children in Hertfordshire at Key Stage 2. As a result the gap between All children and Children In Care narrowed.

Performance Indicator - Children aged 11, looked after for at least 12 months, who obtain level 4 in Key Stage 2

	2003/04	2004/05	2005/06
Percentage of children in care achieving level 4 in Key Stage 2 English & Maths	56%	57%	63%

Whilst the 15% floor target of 8 young people, or 9%, achieving 5 A* to C GCSE passes was not met, more young people took GCSEs and achieved 5 good passes than is accounted for in this indicator. All these outcomes will improve the overall life chances of the individuals concerned.

Performance Indicator - 15% percent of young people, looked after for at least 12 months and in year 11, who achieve five or more GCSEs graded A*-C or equivalent

	2003/04	2004/05	2005/06
Percentage that achieved 5 A*-C GCSE grades	15%	11%	9%

The number of young people not engaged in GCSE study has steadily reduced. Young people studying alternative qualifications not directly equivalent to GCSE that may be vocational are not included here.

Performance Indicator - No more than 10% of young people, looked after for at least 12 months, who reach school leaving age without having sat a GCSE equivalent exam (Proportion of disengagement at Year 11 from 2002 to 2006).

	2003/04	2004/05	2005/06
Percentage that achieved 5 A*-C GCSE grades	33%	32%	30%

Strategy for raising the educational attainment of Children in Care

The responsibility for raising the level of attainment of Children In Care is shared between CSF and schools and is supported by the ESS for Children in Care and care leavers. In 2005 the policy was revised to take account of new statutory duties. It includes a model schools policy, policies on educational support in Residential Care and Foster Care as well as procedures on SEN and Admissions. The policies will be amended in early 2007 to take account of consultation on the government Green Paper 'Care Matters'. A senior officer Policy Management Group, chaired by the Deputy Director, (Chief Education Officer) has been established to; oversee policy implementation, monitor performance against targets, identify and resolve difficulties in relation to policy and practice and to ensure that the statutory duty is embedded into strategies. Such strategies include the Looked after Children Strategy, the SEN and Inclusion Strategy, the Behaviour Support Strategy, the Joint Disability Strategy and School Improvement Strategy.

The Corporate Parenting Officer is a member of the County Schools Effectiveness Board. They work closely with Standards and School Effectiveness to ensure that the attainment of children in care is promoted in learning strategies and by School Improvement Partners. The new Ofsted inspection framework places greater emphasis on schools' ability to raise the attainment of Looked After Children and School Improvement Partners are key to ensure that schools are prepared to meet this challenge.

ESS, working in partnership with CSF, is responsible for providing targeted support to children in care to increase attainment and participation. The learning programme, which is visibly having a positive effect, provides additional support to individuals and groups of children. The programme will continue using data and feedback from young people to target resources in the most effective way.

Indicator SE3 - Access to transport

Access to transport is a major contributor to social exclusion as the ability to obtain key services like healthcare, employment and education rests upon the ability to travel to these services. Hertfordshire's Accessibility Strategy 2006/07 to 2010/11, a subsidiary of the Local Transport Plan was published in March 2006. In its preparation, research, mapping exercises and public consultation revealed that transport access to hospitals needed to be made a priority. As a result, this is now being monitored using the Local Transport Plan (LTP2) indicator: 'Percentage of people who find it difficult to travel to a local hospital'.

The County Council has a statutory duty to provide school transport for disadvantaged children. Access to further education in Hertfordshire varies across the county, for example; Three Rivers District has no Further Education colleges and residents in rural parts of East and North Herts find access to many services difficult without a car. The County Council is investigating a solution to address this through action plans, such as the Community Development agency's scheme where young people can borrow scooters to help them access work and education.

The Council is also actively working with the NHS and Primary Care Trusts, amongst others, to devise solutions for socially excluded residents, e.g. The Health Shuttle. As each action plan is implemented further indicators will be developed to monitor the success of the delivery of the Accessibility Strategy.

Indicator SE4 - Teenage pregnancy

The County is now more than halfway through its 10 year Teenage Pregnancy Strategy. Developed in line with government requirements, it focuses on the prevention of teenage pregnancy and improving the support for teenage parents. It sets the following targets per 1000 females aged 15-17:

To reduce the county's 1998 under 18 teenage conception rate from 32.0 by 45% by 2010 with an interim 15% reduction target by 2004
To raise teenage parents' participation in training education and employment by 60% by 2010 to reduce their risk of long-term social exclusion

Provisional district results for the period 2002-2004, issued by the Office for National Statistics and Teenage Pregnancy Unit, are shown in the following graph. The conception rate for the county during this period, based on the 1998 baseline data of 32.0, fell to 27.4. This 14.5% reduction has led to the county being credited with Amber/Green status on the traffic light grading system that the Department for Education and Skills (DfES)³ uses to allow the public to compare authorities across the nation.

Hertfordshire under 18s number of conceptions 1998-2004

Source: Office for National Statistics and Teenage Pregnancy Unit October 2006. Note: 2002-2004 figures are provisional
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Indicator SE5 - Poverty: proportion of children under 16 living in low-income households

In last year's Quality of Life Report the results for this indicator were based on the 2004 Index of Multiple Deprivation. At the time of print Communities and Local Government⁴ (CLG) was undertaking a review of the Index and has issued the dates shown in the table below when progress is to be expected. It is unclear at this stage whether the review will include an update of the supplementary Index 'Income Deprivation Affecting Children'.

As such there was no new data to update the 2005 figures, however, these and previous year's figures can be viewed at our new website on the Social Exclusion pages by selecting the appropriate year.

CLG to publish a 'Blueprint Document' outlining the Government's proposals to update the Index	Early 2007
Public Consultation document scheduled	January - March 2007
Final updated Index published	Late 2007