05/12/2016

:00:00. > :00:00.families need a lot of assistance with helping with translation and

:00:00. > :00:00.learning being this language and helping with their families. Of

:00:00. > :00:10.course I will keep the support under review. Order. Will the member

:00:11. > :00:39.wishing to take her seat please come to the table.

:00:40. > :00:46.I swear by Almighty God that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance

:00:47. > :00:47.to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, her heirs and successors according to

:00:48. > :01:09.law, so help me God. -- Sarah Olney, member for Richmond.

:01:10. > :01:55.Sarah, many congratulations. Order. Urging question, Caroline

:01:56. > :01:57.Lucas. Mr Speaker, could the Minister make a statement on

:01:58. > :02:05.Southern Rail services? Thank you Mr Speaker. Performance on

:02:06. > :02:10.the southern network has been affected by a combination of factors

:02:11. > :02:12.over the previous months. These have included trade union action,

:02:13. > :02:22.infrastructure reliability and operator issues. The unions have

:02:23. > :02:28.struck industry production in the run-up to Christmas. Let me be

:02:29. > :02:32.clear, this strike action is politically motivated. It has

:02:33. > :02:44.affected mass passengers were far too long. Union leaders have even

:02:45. > :02:48.described this as carrying on Fidel's work. This will be of no

:02:49. > :02:55.comfort to passengers, who just want to get to work. For the director of

:02:56. > :03:00.railway safety in the office for rail and road. Responding to the

:03:01. > :03:10.safety concern from the unions, Ian Prosser says, DOO is safe. The RNC

:03:11. > :03:17.and Aslef should not be... Once again I can assure the hard-working

:03:18. > :03:22.staff on GTR franchise that no trained staff are losing pay and no

:03:23. > :03:27.one is losing their job. Passengers want and deserve improvements, which

:03:28. > :03:30.is why in September the Secretary of State appointed Chris Gibb, a

:03:31. > :03:33.leading railway professional, to work with the operator and Network

:03:34. > :03:38.Rail to identify areas where performance on the network can be

:03:39. > :03:43.improved quickly. Some of these interventions are under way and

:03:44. > :03:46.would be making a significant difference by now, were it not for

:03:47. > :03:52.the fact that owing to continued industrial action by RMT and now

:03:53. > :03:58.planned action by Aslef, Southern Rail Services are to be subject to

:03:59. > :04:04.further delays and alterations now and over the coming weeks. In

:04:05. > :04:08.recognition, the Secretary of State announced on the 2nd of September a

:04:09. > :04:13.refund package that will compensate season-ticket holders with a package

:04:14. > :04:20.equivalent to one free month in act knowledge of exceptional issues this

:04:21. > :04:27.year. They also announced that GTR would be the first franchise to

:04:28. > :04:31.introduce... Starting an 11th of December. But compensation alone is

:04:32. > :04:35.not enough, we have to restore a timely, reliable and predictable

:04:36. > :04:40.train service. That is why the work of Mr Gibb is focusing on reducing

:04:41. > :04:45.the Network Rail faults, it is why we have new safety on trains that

:04:46. > :04:52.can cope with the number of people wanting to use them, it is why I've

:04:53. > :04:55.continued to ensure that the train operating company is doing

:04:56. > :04:59.everything in its power to run improved services. But we also need

:05:00. > :05:02.union leaders to stop their needless, unreasonable,

:05:03. > :05:09.disproportionate and politically motivated strikes. Caroline Lucas.

:05:10. > :05:13.Thank you, Mr Speaker. I thank the Minister for that reply. I put this

:05:14. > :05:17.question today with cross-party support for members right across the

:05:18. > :05:21.house because on Friday we heard that Southern Rail Services will be

:05:22. > :05:25.Mr Gandhi disrupted every day from tomorrow until further notice. That

:05:26. > :05:31.grim warning of imminent service collapse comes on top of more than

:05:32. > :05:36.two years of rail chaos, long before any strikes happened. Back in May

:05:37. > :05:41.2015 the then rail minister said that our ministers were flashing red

:05:42. > :05:45.in her department. 18 months on, my constituents are regularly in tears

:05:46. > :05:47.of anger and frustration, jobs are being lost, relationships being

:05:48. > :05:53.broken up, the economy seriously damaged. This situation is

:05:54. > :05:56.intolerable and the Government can't just simply wash its hands of

:05:57. > :06:02.involvement. So will the Minister roll up its sleeves -- his sleeves

:06:03. > :06:06.and get stuck in to resolve the prices acrobatic space crisis. Will

:06:07. > :06:10.he convene a meeting with the unions and with GTR to make this -- work

:06:11. > :06:14.this out and restore some reliability to this vital public

:06:15. > :06:19.service, and in so doing, show that he is not prepared to allow this

:06:20. > :06:22.crucial piece of infrastructure to simply collapse? To end this

:06:23. > :06:28.stalemate, will his department take charge of this contract in the open,

:06:29. > :06:30.strip GTR of the franchise, bring it back in-house and that at least

:06:31. > :06:36.would increase the transparency around what is going on here. When

:06:37. > :06:40.four example with a concrete timetable, GTR reporting its

:06:41. > :06:48.performance be revealed? Will published date of the published

:06:49. > :06:53.weekly and where? It is tied to make it accountable. Will he answer the

:06:54. > :06:59.outstanding questions and today provide urgent clarity about whether

:07:00. > :07:06.GTR is in default? The transport committee called for a decision on

:07:07. > :07:11.GTR in early 2016 but it is now December, why hasn't he answered on

:07:12. > :07:14.time? I don't think the Minister has any idea of the pain that passengers

:07:15. > :07:19.and ministers in Brighton and beyond are suffering, because if he did he

:07:20. > :07:23.would be doing more about it. We have a catastrophic stalemate. What

:07:24. > :07:26.exactly is the minister going to do about this? My constituents in

:07:27. > :07:32.Brighton want to hear that he is going to get involved. Anything else

:07:33. > :07:36.is not enough. Minister Maynard. I'm grateful for her urgent question.

:07:37. > :07:41.But the best thing she can do under half of her constituents is to go

:07:42. > :07:47.and speak to her close friends in the RMT and tell them to call off

:07:48. > :07:51.their disproportionate and unreasonable industrial action. That

:07:52. > :07:58.is the best contribution she can make. Not answering the question...

:07:59. > :08:05.Mr Speaker, thank you very much for calling me in with this important,

:08:06. > :08:09.urgent question because this is not just about the Brighton mainline but

:08:10. > :08:17.communities in my own area. Students trying to get to school from

:08:18. > :08:20.Edenbridge to Tonbridge and others have been going to misery. The

:08:21. > :08:24.nationalised Network Rail has failed us again and again. Can the Minister

:08:25. > :08:30.please get on with sorting them out too? Minister. My honourable friend

:08:31. > :08:35.is entirely right to point out the impact this is having on his

:08:36. > :08:38.constituents in Kent. I travelled through London Bridge and saw some

:08:39. > :08:42.of the delays that were occurring. He's quite right. But the only

:08:43. > :08:46.long-term solution for this overburdened part of the network is

:08:47. > :08:51.for both Network Rail and the train operating companies to allow the

:08:52. > :08:57.incentives to work together to fix the underlying problems that plagued

:08:58. > :09:01.this network. Andy McDonald. Thank you Mr Speaker. This house is still

:09:02. > :09:04.having to address the abysmal service provided by Southern Rail

:09:05. > :09:08.after a year and a half of substandard service is testament to

:09:09. > :09:12.both Southern's incompetence and the extent to which this Government is

:09:13. > :09:17.committed to privatise rail even when franchises have become so

:09:18. > :09:21.deeply dysfunctional that they are unable to provide a decent public

:09:22. > :09:26.service. Mr Speaker, GTR should be stripped of their franchise long ago

:09:27. > :09:31.for failing to plan properly to take on the franchise as they themselves

:09:32. > :09:52.have admitted and providing what is by far the country's worst rail

:09:53. > :10:00.service. Instead the government have defended the southern to the hilt

:10:01. > :10:08.excusing or their failings of being the result of unavoidable industrial

:10:09. > :10:11.dispute allowing the cancellation of hundreds of services and repeatedly

:10:12. > :10:19.throwing tax because Manny had the problem. The honourable gentleman

:10:20. > :10:24.will sell us about Mr Gibb but why not about Mr Robinson who says he

:10:25. > :10:28.wants to staff the RMT back to work and he wants those people out of his

:10:29. > :10:35.well away industry. On Friday it was announced that Southern

:10:36. > :10:42.season-ticket holders would eligible for compensation eligible to a

:10:43. > :10:47.month's travel. Yet more money spent on the service. But they announced,

:10:48. > :10:53.session will apply to around 84,000 passengers and yet Southerners

:10:54. > :10:58.responsible for 6,020,000 passenger journeys per year. While any amount

:10:59. > :11:01.of conversation is welcome Will the Minister take this opportunity to

:11:02. > :11:06.acknowledge that the measures announced on Friday will not come

:11:07. > :11:12.close to compensating the majority of passengers who have suffered

:11:13. > :11:16.Southern's abysmal service for the past year and a half and considering

:11:17. > :11:21.the fair I is scheduled for the start of the a few commuters

:11:22. > :11:26.receiving compensation those were wiped out by inflation busting

:11:27. > :11:33.fares. Sadly Mr Speaker a decent rail service... I know how to deal

:11:34. > :11:37.with these managers. Members are taking too long. The minister was

:11:38. > :11:42.just in time but am afraid the honourable gentleman has exceeded

:11:43. > :11:45.his son. We have to establish a disconnected means two minutes or

:11:46. > :11:52.under, not two and a half minutes or three minutes. We have to stick to

:11:53. > :11:57.these procedures. I am surprised he is so opposed to the idea of

:11:58. > :12:03.compensating southern passengers but he is right about one thing. This is

:12:04. > :12:08.entirely irresolvable dispute. As he rightly pointed out. It is

:12:09. > :12:13.resolvable because the RMT can recognise this as a safe mode of

:12:14. > :12:22.operation, call out the strikes and we can get on with improving the

:12:23. > :12:27.network. The Minister said no staff would lose the job but cannot tell

:12:28. > :12:30.the Minister that is not the case for some of my constituents who have

:12:31. > :12:35.been sacked because they have been made. Has the balance of rights as

:12:36. > :12:39.possibilities in our society not gone somewhat astray that in order

:12:40. > :12:48.to improve their terms and conditions were actually costing

:12:49. > :12:50.other citizens their jobs. There is a grossly disproportionate nature of

:12:51. > :12:56.this industrial action. He is right to point out that commuters up and

:12:57. > :12:58.down the GTR network are experiencing a poorer

:12:59. > :13:10.quality-of-life because of this unwarranted industrial action. , go

:13:11. > :13:15.order, order. The shadow Secretary of State should take some subtle

:13:16. > :13:19.soothing medicament, he will be aware I suggested to his north-east

:13:20. > :13:22.colleagues sometime ago it might be advisable to take up yoga because it

:13:23. > :13:33.will have a therapeutic effect. Or even yoghurt. The overall situation

:13:34. > :13:38.for passengers is intolerable and ever since and eat your heart

:13:39. > :13:44.receiving ?1 billion a year in fees and the apartment is exposed to ?30

:13:45. > :13:51.million of lost revenue. What can the departments do to try to resolve

:13:52. > :13:54.this situation? Some months ago the right Honourable Lady will Beer

:13:55. > :13:57.where that we asked Chris Gibb to take a look into the operational by

:13:58. > :14:02.the network, the infrastructure and the train operating company. We look

:14:03. > :14:09.forward to receiving his report by the end of year which will guide us

:14:10. > :14:19.and how to make rapid noticeable identifiable improvements. The RMT

:14:20. > :14:25.members who are adding to the destruction of all our constituents

:14:26. > :14:30.are also the employees. Can we please be told how much they earn,

:14:31. > :14:35.how many of them have signed up to the new operating arrangements" what

:14:36. > :14:38.the issue is that is stopping them from reaching an agreement and

:14:39. > :14:41.allowing other workers to work reliably and students and teachers

:14:42. > :14:46.can get to work and old people visit their friends? My right honourable

:14:47. > :14:51.friend is right to point out why this is such a grossly

:14:52. > :14:57.disproportionate action from the RMT. Over 220 of the 223 staff

:14:58. > :15:01.involved have signed up to the new contracts to carry out the role of

:15:02. > :15:07.on-board supervisor. They are striking against a role they have

:15:08. > :15:15.all agreed to take up. That is in my view both unreasonable and

:15:16. > :15:18.disproportionate. Part of the problem is that every single promise

:15:19. > :15:26.made from that dispatch box has not improved the service on single iota

:15:27. > :15:29.in the last 18 months. Today there was a non-strike day but it was a

:15:30. > :15:33.complete shambles between Brighton and London. Will the Minister just

:15:34. > :15:40.say he will do whatever it takes to improve this service? I entirely

:15:41. > :15:45.recognise that the service today has been disappointing due to a broken

:15:46. > :15:48.rail between East Croydon and Gatwick but that is happening far

:15:49. > :15:56.too often I see rightly points out. I expect both GTR and Network Rail

:15:57. > :16:01.to address these underlying performance issues. They can only do

:16:02. > :16:07.so if they are also faced with an unwarranted, unjustifiable

:16:08. > :16:11.industrial action. My constituents in Basingstoke who commute regularly

:16:12. > :16:19.look at the situation on Southern with horror. What assurances can the

:16:20. > :16:23.Minister give that a similar such action could not spread to other

:16:24. > :16:29.areas particularly as we are currently renegotiating the

:16:30. > :16:37.contract. Recognise the honourable Lady's concerned that I would say to

:16:38. > :16:40.her that we can all train operating services across country to ensure

:16:41. > :16:49.they do have an account to operate a reliable service and they will do

:16:50. > :16:53.that with whoever emerges. I have the analysis of the feedback from

:16:54. > :16:56.the 1000 constituents who have been in touch with me about the

:16:57. > :17:00.performance of Southern rail and it is a catalogue of misery. The

:17:01. > :17:05.failure of Southern rail is affecting my constituents's work,

:17:06. > :17:08.family love, health and well-being. When will the Minister confirm real

:17:09. > :17:13.devolution for London so that transport for London that has high

:17:14. > :17:20.levels of customer satisfaction can run these services and where will my

:17:21. > :17:26.constituents's Southern Major -- misery on. Hope she will join with

:17:27. > :17:29.me in urging all sides in this dispute to return to the negotiation

:17:30. > :17:37.table and reach an agreement to put the needs of the passengers first,

:17:38. > :17:40.not the interests of the unions. , I apologise for my interjection

:17:41. > :17:47.earlier. Mr Speaker, while girlfriend was absolutely right to

:17:48. > :17:54.say that the price for the RMT's self-indulgent politically motivated

:17:55. > :17:59.strike action is being felt on jobs for young people turn to get to

:18:00. > :18:03.work. This is the undertow, its day has wait gone and bad strike must

:18:04. > :18:07.end. But will my right honourable friend find himself in a position to

:18:08. > :18:11.be able to confirm that the train operating company 's will now be

:18:12. > :18:15.able to take greater control of the works of Network Rail in the future

:18:16. > :18:19.so that we can solve some of the structural problems? I thank the

:18:20. > :18:23.honourable gentleman. Camille very gently telling that I now realise

:18:24. > :18:26.why 20s go the honourable gentleman was affectionately described to me

:18:27. > :18:36.by the very near constituency neighbour of his as "Peppery". ,

:18:37. > :18:38.Crow I shall perhaps observe that the secretary of state will be

:18:39. > :18:43.making a speech on this issue tomorrow evening. He made there for

:18:44. > :18:49.wish to pay close attention to the following day 's papers to learn

:18:50. > :18:58.more as to what might be announced. I know it sits -- said some to blame

:18:59. > :19:01.problems on the union but my constituents have been putting up

:19:02. > :19:04.with a disgraceful service for the best part of two years. My

:19:05. > :19:12.honourable friend asked the question about TEFL which has better

:19:13. > :19:18.satisfaction, we want this company, GTR, stripped of the franchise. Will

:19:19. > :19:21.the Minister confirm, is it still the intention of government to

:19:22. > :19:28.facilitate this and that we say to him, we do not want to wait until

:19:29. > :19:30.2021, get on and do it now. He is certainly right to identify the

:19:31. > :19:35.problems that are occurring on the network but the answer to this

:19:36. > :19:39.problems can only be solved if we are not facing industrial action on

:19:40. > :19:49.the network day in, day out which makes it impossible for those who

:19:50. > :19:59.wish to deal with both Network Rail and GTR and other companies. Can the

:20:00. > :20:02.man Minister confirm that the problems are caused by the film that

:20:03. > :20:08.has not been well run or by unacceptable union practices which

:20:09. > :20:11.are rendered all the more this at Christmas time? I thank my right

:20:12. > :20:15.honourable friend, it is an important point. It is noticeable

:20:16. > :20:23.that the RMT adjusted its strike days because of the public outrage.

:20:24. > :20:26.I would urge them to go one step further and call off the strike

:20:27. > :20:32.altogether and get back around the negotiating table. 'S coincidently I

:20:33. > :20:38.delivered a petition to number ten this morning calling for Southern to

:20:39. > :20:41.be sacked. Will the Minister of knowledge it is not just the

:20:42. > :20:53.unacceptable and pointless union action that is causing chaos on the

:20:54. > :20:56.network but also repeated necrophilia, a shortage of drivers,

:20:57. > :21:02.and when will the Minister step in and take control of the failing

:21:03. > :21:07.company hand-pass was possible to take to transport for London. We

:21:08. > :21:12.called for this as far back as 1999. And ensure passengers are provided

:21:13. > :21:15.with much more generous compensation. His analysis is

:21:16. > :21:20.correct but what I do not think the fully appreciate is that the need to

:21:21. > :21:27.focus on Network Rail as the source of many delays means we have to have

:21:28. > :21:32.full, rapid and ready access to the track day in and day out. We cannot

:21:33. > :21:41.do that against a backdrop of continual industrial action. I have

:21:42. > :21:45.long campaigned for compensation, can I thank the Minister for the

:21:46. > :21:50.step toward it today. On the Posh online we have a huge number of

:21:51. > :21:54.trains being cancelled or delayed. As a result of failures to the

:21:55. > :21:58.cameras on board, that seem to work very well as well. Camille Yu Cen to

:21:59. > :22:01.get GTR to get a grip on this. Why that there is a technical fault or

:22:02. > :22:11.some other issue that is interfering. My right honourable

:22:12. > :22:18.friend is owed assiduous credit and I hope he will welcome last Friday's

:22:19. > :22:24.announcement. On the matter regarding trends to Horsham I

:22:25. > :22:29.understand the faults on this particular trains are running at

:22:30. > :22:34.almost double what is usually to be expected. GTR are looking into the

:22:35. > :22:41.matter further. I will write to him with the outcome of that

:22:42. > :22:48.investigation. Can I tell them of stuff started committing from Forest

:22:49. > :22:57.Hill into London Bridge in 1963 and in all that time subsequently, the

:22:58. > :23:05.service has never been as unreliable and as chaotic as it is today. I do

:23:06. > :23:07.not use them a gradual, I use the overground service but unfortunately

:23:08. > :23:12.large part of my constituency and just about every other constituency

:23:13. > :23:23.concerned, do not have that option. Many of my constituents blame

:23:24. > :23:28.Southern, some unions and some Network Rail. We have heard about

:23:29. > :23:31.track failure is causing chaos. When will he and the government do

:23:32. > :23:34.something to reassure my constituents and those of everybody

:23:35. > :23:37.in this chamber that the government is actually trying to do the best

:23:38. > :23:40.they can for commuters rather than leaving them to the fate of the most

:23:41. > :23:45.incompetent organisation in the entire UK rail industry?

:23:46. > :23:51.The honourable gentleman has given new meaning to the description

:23:52. > :23:53.delayed journey. Members will be aware Chris Doak is an extreme

:23:54. > :24:13.acrobatic -- is an extremely aware... I look

:24:14. > :24:17.forward to seamy improvement we are all anxious to see.

:24:18. > :24:24.Given that tomorrow two of my towns, Seaford and New will see their rail

:24:25. > :24:30.service ceased to exist and instead have bus replacement services, from

:24:31. > :24:35.next week for the stations in my constituency will see no rail

:24:36. > :24:38.service at all for several days, the Government response is just not good

:24:39. > :24:44.enough. The Government need to intervene and get this sorted. The

:24:45. > :24:50.honourable lady has never been anything less than assiduous in

:24:51. > :24:54.campaigning on the half of Lewis, Seaford and Newhaven and their rail

:24:55. > :24:59.services. But I would make the point to heard that the devolution in

:25:00. > :25:02.service to her constituency is because of an announced threat of

:25:03. > :25:07.strike action, against a something they've already been doing for many,

:25:08. > :25:12.many months. 30% of our commuter network is driver controlled

:25:13. > :25:20.operation. Aslef have been operating this system for many months on the

:25:21. > :25:23.new... But they are now striking on precisely what they have been doing.

:25:24. > :25:28.That also is disproportionate and unreasonable. Mr Speaker, commuters

:25:29. > :25:33.in Croydon and elsewhere have suffered enough and they certainly

:25:34. > :25:40.shouldn't be expected to pay any more for the services they use for

:25:41. > :25:45.rail chaos. Will the minister now show that he recognises the extent

:25:46. > :25:55.of the failure and rule out any fair rises -- any fare rises next year?

:25:56. > :26:01.We have always said we will cap rail fair in creases on RPI plus zero.

:26:02. > :26:05.But the impact on southern customers, we announced a

:26:06. > :26:08.compensation package last Friday that amounted to one month's free

:26:09. > :26:19.travel for annual season ticket holders. Mr Speaker, our

:26:20. > :26:23.constituents in Sussex are at their wits end and we're at our wits end,

:26:24. > :26:27.notwithstanding the chaos being caused by these completely

:26:28. > :26:30.unjustified strikes, last week's announcement on compensation was a

:26:31. > :26:34.good start but a start and taking away with the other hand worthy

:26:35. > :26:43.price rises that went with it. When we have a proper transparent penalty

:26:44. > :26:47.system for GTR commuters when they are delayed without them having to

:26:48. > :26:52.go through a very bureaucratic process of claiming it? It might add

:26:53. > :26:56.some urgency to GTR to actually sort this out. I recognise the honourable

:26:57. > :27:00.gentleman's concern to make sure that automatic compensation for

:27:01. > :27:03.delays is broadened out as fast as it possibly can be. We need to

:27:04. > :27:09.ensure that it is a system that works and works well, and we need to

:27:10. > :27:13.make sure that the positives are -- the passengers were on the trains

:27:14. > :27:18.that they say they were on and were delayed. We need a technological

:27:19. > :27:20.solution and I'm keen to improve it, and GTR will be the first we get to

:27:21. > :27:29.try this out on. Chris felt. Thank you Mr Speaker. Residents in

:27:30. > :27:32.Croydon have been suffering from the terrible service for many months

:27:33. > :27:39.now. Does the Minister agree this is partly due to track and

:27:40. > :27:45.infrastructure failings, partly due to GTR's incompetence and partly due

:27:46. > :27:50.to the intransigence of the RNC. If the RMT cannot be prevailed upon to

:27:51. > :27:55.call off this needless strike, will the Minister consider legislating to

:27:56. > :27:58.ban this kind of strike action on critical public infrastructure? He

:27:59. > :28:02.said he might identify the fact that this is an investment, not just in

:28:03. > :28:08.the ?20 million we have already put in but the support, the money will

:28:09. > :28:12.have to go in to ensure that one of the most overburdened parts of our

:28:13. > :28:15.network is able to properly meet the needs of those who rely upon it to

:28:16. > :28:22.get to work, to school and all the other areas that life depends upon

:28:23. > :28:29.in the south-east. Thank you Mr Speaker. I too thank the Minister

:28:30. > :28:34.for the start in terms of compensation and as all those who

:28:35. > :28:40.suffer across the network every day, with this intolerable situation and

:28:41. > :28:42.all those using the bridge across to Southampton Airport, often

:28:43. > :28:45.travelling to Gatwick Airport from Swanwick. Will the Minister confirm

:28:46. > :28:50.that he is looking at the broad ranging harm which is caused by this

:28:51. > :28:58.disproportionate political strike affecting regional airports as well

:28:59. > :29:00.as local businesses? I always recognise the importance of

:29:01. > :29:05.Southampton Airport Parkway in the overall network but it is for South

:29:06. > :29:08.West trains and indeed the southern network to meet individual

:29:09. > :29:12.colleagues with individual concerns such as that. I'm more than happy to

:29:13. > :29:18.discuss Southampton Airport's needs with her further. Thank you. I have

:29:19. > :29:23.the misfortune of having the misery line runs through my constituency

:29:24. > :29:26.and I welcome the Government's step for compensation. It's now time for

:29:27. > :29:31.the unions to show similar boldness and call off the strikes. However,

:29:32. > :29:35.the timetable is not worth the paper it's written on. What more can the

:29:36. > :29:39.Minister do to get GTR management to get a grip and stop running a

:29:40. > :29:45.service that doesn't require compensation from the Government

:29:46. > :29:52.because it is so appalling? I'm grateful to her, she has been a

:29:53. > :29:56.staunch advocate... We suffer from an inadequate railway line. What I

:29:57. > :30:01.would say to her is the most important thing we can do at this

:30:02. > :30:06.stage is for the unions to call off industrial action and for GTR and

:30:07. > :30:09.Network Rail to focus on what really matters, ensuring we have a reliable

:30:10. > :30:20.and timely and punctual railway network. We want to get rid of this

:30:21. > :30:24.horrendous performance exacerbated by the unions, my residence in

:30:25. > :30:26.Sutton. So that we can get back to the mere poor performance and

:30:27. > :30:33.tackling those underlying issues like rail come -- rail stock and

:30:34. > :30:42.more drivers. What about the passengers that are paying by oyster

:30:43. > :30:45.as pay as you go, what can they expect in return? My honourable

:30:46. > :30:49.friend is quite right to point out that particularly in the inner parts

:30:50. > :30:55.of London in those suburban areas, people are equally reliant on

:30:56. > :30:59.Southern Rail. There will also be season-ticket reduction commission

:31:00. > :31:12.they have annually or quarterly tickets and compensation, and that

:31:13. > :31:16.to me so is the function of wherever they live on the southern network.

:31:17. > :31:20.The Minister refers to a letter I received from the director rail

:31:21. > :31:25.safety, specifying that this form of technology is not only safe but has

:31:26. > :31:30.been tested by southern as safe. Given that the unions continue to

:31:31. > :31:32.use safety for this dispute, would the Minister consider using

:31:33. > :31:37.legislation stopping unions from striking on the grounds of safety,

:31:38. > :31:42.where the regulating the industry has been that as safe? Well, my

:31:43. > :31:46.honourable friend has done the country a great service in his time

:31:47. > :31:54.on the transport Select Committee, trying to nail the myth that DTO is

:31:55. > :32:00.in some way and an safe way of driving trains. The director of rail

:32:01. > :32:04.safety in the office for road and rail called it abundantly clear and

:32:05. > :32:08.was examined closely in the Select Committee meeting and he could not

:32:09. > :32:12.have been clearer. It is now for Aslef and the RMT to pay heed to his

:32:13. > :32:19.words, call off these unreasonable and disproportionate strikes. The

:32:20. > :32:23.state-owned Network Rail is clearly not fit for purpose. The private

:32:24. > :32:27.sector train operating companies have weak and ineffectual management

:32:28. > :32:31.and the rail unions are organising politically motivated strikes. If

:32:32. > :32:34.this were happening in local Government, the Government would

:32:35. > :32:39.have sent in its own commissioners to sort out the organisation. Why

:32:40. > :32:42.doesn't it do so in this case? My honourable friend I think is quite

:32:43. > :32:49.right to point out the importance of getting track and train operators to

:32:50. > :32:52.have incentives and work together to ensure they deliver a better service

:32:53. > :33:01.on the part passengers the Secretary of State has made -- made no secret

:33:02. > :33:06.of the fact that he views that working to bring better results on

:33:07. > :33:12.the network and we look forward to reporting that in due course and

:33:13. > :33:14.improving the service that all passengers, whatever political party

:33:15. > :33:18.they support, whatever their views on how the railways should be

:33:19. > :33:21.structured, they want to see a timely, reliable and punctual rail

:33:22. > :33:28.service but what is in the way of that is the R.N. To and -- the RMT

:33:29. > :33:32.and Aslef with their disproportionate and unreasonable

:33:33. > :33:39.industrial action. Order. The clerk will now proceed to read the orders

:33:40. > :33:43.of the day. Children and social work bill second reading. I call the

:33:44. > :33:46.Minister of State from the Department for Education, Minister

:33:47. > :33:49.of State Mr Nicola Scott. Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. -- Mr

:33:50. > :33:57.Nicholas did. I'm delighted, Mr Speaker, to be

:33:58. > :34:01.able to open this debate in the absence of the Secretary of State,

:34:02. > :34:08.who is in Shanghai at the education Summit. I know she regrets not being

:34:09. > :34:11.here and she sends her apologies. As the Secretary of State made clear

:34:12. > :34:14.when she spoke at the national children and adults services

:34:15. > :34:19.conference a few weeks ago, nothing is more important than making sure

:34:20. > :34:23.that children get the best start in life, that they feel safe, are well

:34:24. > :34:29.looked after and are able to fulfil their dreams. Nowhere is that more

:34:30. > :34:33.important than for those children who don't have the benefit of a

:34:34. > :34:37.loving family to help them on their way and support them as they grow

:34:38. > :34:42.up, or who face other significant challenges which make it harder for

:34:43. > :34:46.them to flourish and thrive. Children's social care professionals

:34:47. > :34:50.perform some of society's most vital, most important work and we

:34:51. > :34:54.trust them with nothing less than keeping our children safe and making

:34:55. > :35:00.the life changing decisions about what is best for their futures.

:35:01. > :35:03.These are highly challenging, highly complex tasks, performed by deeply

:35:04. > :35:08.dedicated and committed individuals. But as we'll know, the system within

:35:09. > :35:16.which these individuals work is far from perfect, meaning the help and

:35:17. > :35:19.support being offered to honourable children in many parts of the

:35:20. > :35:23.country is a long way from being consistently excellent. Evidence

:35:24. > :35:27.shows that most local authorities struggle in some way to provide

:35:28. > :35:32.consistently effective cause social work practice and that is why this

:35:33. > :35:36.Government is determined to bring about the widest reaching reforms to

:35:37. > :35:44.children's social care and social work for a generation. The views I

:35:45. > :35:50.Professor Eileen Munro and others have given us a deep understanding

:35:51. > :35:53.of the challenges faced by children's social care. They have

:35:54. > :35:57.described a system in which initial social worker training is not

:35:58. > :36:03.consistently preparing students for the challenges of the job and those

:36:04. > :36:05.already doing it too often lack the time, specialist skill and

:36:06. > :36:12.supervision needed to achieve real change for children and families. A

:36:13. > :36:15.system that focuses too much on management and is driven by

:36:16. > :36:18.prescribed approaches rather than excellent practice, a system where

:36:19. > :36:21.services have not always been designed around vulnerable children

:36:22. > :36:27.and innovation hasn't been given enough space to thrive. So over the

:36:28. > :36:31.last six years, the Government has taken important steps towards

:36:32. > :36:35.addressing these challenges. For example, we have raised standards in

:36:36. > :36:40.children's homes and enabled young people in foster care to remain with

:36:41. > :36:44.their carer up to the age of 21. We've invested ?100 million through

:36:45. > :36:47.our innovation programme to allow radical new approaches to children's

:36:48. > :36:52.social care to be developed and tested and in April, we announced a

:36:53. > :36:56.?200 million extension to the programme to take this further

:36:57. > :36:59.still. We've taken a variety of steps to enhance the status, the

:37:00. > :37:04.skills and capacity of the those shall work profession, both

:37:05. > :37:09.children's and adults, including appointing chief social workers,

:37:10. > :37:13.publishing definitive statements of the knowledge and skills required by

:37:14. > :37:18.adult and children's social workers and investing over ?750 million

:37:19. > :37:22.since 2010 in both traditional and fast tracked routes into the

:37:23. > :37:26.profession. And we are starting to see things change. If the honourable

:37:27. > :37:29.member will forgive me, I would like to just explain of the tenants of

:37:30. > :37:35.the bill and then I will come back and take some intervention. We are

:37:36. > :37:39.starting to see things change. We have this year seen the first

:37:40. > :37:44.outstanding judgments under the most recent and most challenging Ofsted

:37:45. > :37:48.framework. Local authorities are testing innovative ways of

:37:49. > :37:51.supporting families through the children's social care innovation

:37:52. > :37:55.programme. Examples of excellent leadership across the country are

:37:56. > :37:58.being celebrated by Ofsted and by others. But we are under no illusion

:37:59. > :38:03.that there is still much more to be done and that is why in July this

:38:04. > :38:07.year, the Department for Education published a clear and ambitious

:38:08. > :38:10.vision and plan for the changes that need to be made to drive sustainable

:38:11. > :38:16.improvement across the whole country. This is our plan for

:38:17. > :38:19.putting children first, which sets out fundamental reforms across each

:38:20. > :38:27.of the three pillars on which the those shall care systems bands.

:38:28. > :38:30.People and leadership, practising systems and Government and

:38:31. > :38:33.accountability. The children in social work bill is a crucial part

:38:34. > :38:41.of delivering reforms across those three pillars. Part one of the bill

:38:42. > :38:46.concerns children who are in care or supported by the state. Clause one

:38:47. > :38:48.sets out for the first time a set of corporate parenting principles

:38:49. > :38:54.designed to establish consistently high standards in the support of

:38:55. > :38:59.looked after children and care leaders and drive a culture of

:39:00. > :39:02.excellent corporate parenting, principles are intended to help a

:39:03. > :39:05.local authority think and act in the interests of children in their care,

:39:06. > :39:12.in the same way any good parent would. This isn't about putting new

:39:13. > :39:15.duties on local authorities, it's about changing practice. The aim is

:39:16. > :39:18.to ensure that all parts of every tier of local Governor have the

:39:19. > :39:23.needs and circumstances of looked after children in care need is in

:39:24. > :39:27.their minds in their planning and decisions, and this responsibility

:39:28. > :39:30.goes beyond just children's social care, reaching across the whole of

:39:31. > :39:35.the local authority. Clause two will ensure that the corporate parenting

:39:36. > :39:44.you Dos extends into adulthood and make sure that all care need is our

:39:45. > :39:50.-- care leaders are sure about the support and how to access it. They

:39:51. > :39:56.will have knowledge about how to access it from the local authority.

:39:57. > :40:03.Clause three will give all care leavers access to support from a

:40:04. > :40:06.personal adviser at any point after the age of 25, and we amended the

:40:07. > :40:12.bill in another place to make sure that the service offered is offered

:40:13. > :40:13.at least annually, so that care leavers can take advantage of it

:40:14. > :40:38.whenever they need to. The bill recognises that children

:40:39. > :40:41.who are adopted or leave care under another often have ongoing

:40:42. > :40:45.difficulties resulting from their local life experiences. Clause is

:40:46. > :40:51.4-7 will give them access to the same support which looked after

:40:52. > :41:02.children received from school heads at local authority level. Following

:41:03. > :41:07.an undertaking given, we are bringing forward amendments which

:41:08. > :41:11.will extend these provisions to children adopted from overseas.

:41:12. > :41:17.Clauses eight and nine extend the factors that local authorities and

:41:18. > :41:21.courts must take into account when deciding the most appropriate place

:41:22. > :41:27.for a child. They do place more emphasis on stability and what would

:41:28. > :41:29.be in a child's best long-term interests, taking account of the

:41:30. > :41:34.impact of any harm that the child may have suffered.

:41:35. > :41:41.dualists I was trying to tell the minister after speaking in a

:41:42. > :41:48.delegated Legislation committee at 4:30pm. I wanted to ask a specific

:41:49. > :41:53.point. It relates to the lack of safeguarding checks for 16 and

:41:54. > :41:57.17-year-olds in private fostering arrangements. I had a situation

:41:58. > :42:01.where a young person in my constituency went to a private

:42:02. > :42:04.fostering arrangement within that age group and their parents were not

:42:05. > :42:07.able to get the assurances they would have had in a public setting

:42:08. > :42:10.and that's not addressed in the Bill and I wonder if the minister would

:42:11. > :42:16.look at that if I place amendment down? Of course. By now my

:42:17. > :42:21.honourable friend is very keen to engage in committee on the details

:42:22. > :42:22.and a particular case I know he will be very interested and will want to

:42:23. > :42:38.debate the issue. We have situation where children in

:42:39. > :42:47.care have been abused and has led to the investigation. We have to make

:42:48. > :42:50.the situation better. ? Safeguarding local safeguarding arrangements set

:42:51. > :42:57.out in the Bill will provide a strong statutory framework that puts

:42:58. > :43:02.responsibility on the police. And on the local authority to ensure there

:43:03. > :43:06.is a robust safeguarding system in place. With greater local

:43:07. > :43:15.flexibility. Arrangements are as effective as possible. Improved

:43:16. > :43:20.national arrangements for analysing these cases which I come onto,

:43:21. > :43:25.including child sexual abuse. Learning from those cases in a more

:43:26. > :43:29.systematic way with a higher standard set for social workers as

:43:30. > :43:32.well that is set out in that bill and that will enable Oxfordshire and

:43:33. > :43:39.other counties across the country to keep children safe than is currently

:43:40. > :43:44.the case. Mr Speaker, if I may, chapter two part one focuses largely

:43:45. > :43:48.on arrangements for children's safeguarding and protection and

:43:49. > :43:53.earlier this year Alan would the former director of children's

:43:54. > :43:56.services in Hackney and president of the body carried out a review for

:43:57. > :44:01.the government on the role and functions for safeguarding local

:44:02. > :44:06.children's boards and he found that local arrangements where Apache,

:44:07. > :44:09.fewer than half of them were judged by Ofsted to be good or better and

:44:10. > :44:14.reported there was a clear consensus in favour of reform. Strong

:44:15. > :44:19.partnership working from serious case reviews is key to keeping

:44:20. > :44:24.children safe. Causes 12-15 will establish a new child safeguarding

:44:25. > :44:28.practice review panel to review serious child safeguarding cases,

:44:29. > :44:31.which converts are of national importance. The purpose of the panel

:44:32. > :44:36.will be to improve the way be learned from cases where a child has

:44:37. > :44:42.died or been seriously harmed, where abuse or neglect of that child was

:44:43. > :44:46.known or suspected. Closes 16-30 will introduce a stronger statutory

:44:47. > :44:51.framework for child safeguarding and protection of the local level. The

:44:52. > :44:54.focus will shift away from wide-ranging local partnerships and

:44:55. > :44:57.place a duty on the three key agencies involved in safeguarding

:44:58. > :45:02.children, local authorities, police and health service to work together

:45:03. > :45:04.and with any relevant agencies to safeguard and promote the welfare of

:45:05. > :45:13.children. We're not introducing change for the sake of change.

:45:14. > :45:17.Existing... The Minister will be aware that the bill before us now is

:45:18. > :45:23.not the original bill thanks to the good work of the House of lords and

:45:24. > :45:29.removing clauses 29-33. The Secretary of State described them in

:45:30. > :45:32.the recent children and adults conference is about how we can put

:45:33. > :45:40.you in the best position to protect the children properly. The trouble

:45:41. > :45:42.is that the EU, 150 organisations and 90% of all social workers said

:45:43. > :45:46.they didn't want it, they were opposed to it, so will he now

:45:47. > :45:51.confirm that you will not try to re-introduced those clauses in the

:45:52. > :45:57.bill in this house? I listened very carefully to my honourable friend

:45:58. > :46:08.but he will be aware has been well supported, the power to innovate.

:46:09. > :46:12.The LGA supported, the EDC -esque, Catch-22 supported and the power is

:46:13. > :46:15.not to do with taking rights away from children, not to do with saving

:46:16. > :46:21.money, it's giving councils the opportunity to develop new ways of

:46:22. > :46:26.working which they believe will improve outcomes for children. If he

:46:27. > :46:31.says is not about taking away rights from children, one of the scenarios

:46:32. > :46:34.would be the abolition of independent reviewing officers who

:46:35. > :46:39.can be the only voice standing up for vulnerable looked after children

:46:40. > :46:44.in local authorities. If they go under these proposals how was that

:46:45. > :46:50.not taking away the rights of vulnerable children.? It is not

:46:51. > :46:53.about abolishing any strategy. He should wait to see what amendments

:46:54. > :46:57.will be tabled during the passage of this bill and I'm sure that my

:46:58. > :47:00.honourable friend will want to talk to the children's minister in more

:47:01. > :47:04.detail about his concerns and I know she will take my honourable friend's

:47:05. > :47:14.concerns very seriously, particularly given my honourable

:47:15. > :47:19.friend's background and experience. In this chapter which covers other

:47:20. > :47:22.provisions for children where we are talking about the rights of the

:47:23. > :47:26.child, I wondered whether the Minister would just consider amongst

:47:27. > :47:30.members the possibility of amending the law so that a child has the

:47:31. > :47:37.right to have both parents on its marriage registration certificate. I

:47:38. > :47:39.know this is something that has been under discussion and something my

:47:40. > :47:43.honourable friend will listen to very carefully if tabled by my right

:47:44. > :47:50.honourable friend. We're not introducing change for change sake.

:47:51. > :47:53.Existing arrangements, if they are working there will be nothing to

:47:54. > :47:58.prevent them continuing in a similar vein within the new framework set

:47:59. > :48:02.out in the bill and the local safeguarding partners will have a

:48:03. > :48:05.clear responsibility for the arrangement and will have the

:48:06. > :48:10.flexibility to change and improve them if they are not working. I

:48:11. > :48:18.should briefly mention two other provisions in chapter two, chapter

:48:19. > :48:24.11, clause 11 is largely technical and allows the government to use its

:48:25. > :48:27.powers to intervene in combined authorities whose services are

:48:28. > :48:31.failing vulnerable children and the same way the government can do with

:48:32. > :48:37.individual authorities. Clause 31 was an amendment to the Bill which

:48:38. > :48:40.will enable the Secretary of State for employment to extend

:48:41. > :48:45.whistle-blowing protection to people applying for jobs in children's

:48:46. > :48:50.social care as well as to existing employees part two of the bill sets

:48:51. > :48:54.the legal framework for the establishment of the sport regulator

:48:55. > :48:59.for all social workers in England. We know high-quality social work can

:49:00. > :49:03.transform lives and that social workers play a critical role in our

:49:04. > :49:07.society. Every day social workers deal with complex and fraught

:49:08. > :49:12.situations that require a great deal of depth of skill, of knowledge,

:49:13. > :49:17.understanding and empathy but when social workers are not able to

:49:18. > :49:21.fulfil the role competently and the contents -- the consequences can be

:49:22. > :49:24.great, so in order to protect the public social workers had to meet

:49:25. > :49:28.high standards of acceptable practice and confidence which are

:49:29. > :49:32.overseen by a regulator. The need for an improved system of regulation

:49:33. > :49:36.for the social work profession was highlighted in recent independent

:49:37. > :49:40.reviews by Sir Martin Neary and Professor David Drysdale. Our

:49:41. > :49:45.ambition through the establishment of a new bespoke regulator for

:49:46. > :49:48.social work is to continue to improve the practice of social work

:49:49. > :49:54.and raise the status of the profession. For too long the bar on

:49:55. > :49:57.standards has been too low, some graduates are leaving courses and

:49:58. > :50:01.being registered on social workers without the knowledge and skills

:50:02. > :50:05.required to do the job. That cannot be right, the new regulator will

:50:06. > :50:10.ensure following consultation with a profession that minimum standards

:50:11. > :50:15.are set at the right level. The new regulator will be a separate legal

:50:16. > :50:18.entity operating independently of ministers in its day-to-day

:50:19. > :50:22.operations. Government has always been clear that it has no intention

:50:23. > :50:26.of making decisions about the performance of individual social

:50:27. > :50:28.workers as with other independent health and social care regulators,

:50:29. > :50:35.the professional standards authority will oversee the operations of

:50:36. > :50:39.social work in England, the PSA has welcomed the revised clauses in the

:50:40. > :50:42.bill. I should add that we are planning to table further amendments

:50:43. > :50:48.regarding the national assessment and accreditation system, this will

:50:49. > :50:53.introduce and nationally recognised post-qualification specialism in

:50:54. > :50:58.child and family social work which will reinforce the focus on quality

:50:59. > :51:01.of practice two other crucial managers are not in the bill but

:51:02. > :51:05.which amendments will be tabled for a very shortly. Amendments to ensure

:51:06. > :51:08.that looked after children from England and Wales can legally be

:51:09. > :51:16.accommodated in secure children's homes in Scotland. Recent case law

:51:17. > :51:20.has cast some doubt on prison arrangements. The power to innovate,

:51:21. > :51:25.the power is a direct response to the issues raised by the Professor

:51:26. > :51:30.in her independent review of child protection, she says that trusting

:51:31. > :51:33.professional to use their judgment rather than be forced to follow

:51:34. > :51:37.unnecessary legal rules will help ensure children get the help they

:51:38. > :51:41.need when they needed. She also says that testing innovation a controlled

:51:42. > :51:46.way to establish the consequences of the change before any national

:51:47. > :51:49.roll-out is a sensible and proportionate way forward. The

:51:50. > :51:52.purpose of the power is to allow individual local authorities to test

:51:53. > :51:57.new ways of working by changing or supplying specific legislative

:51:58. > :52:01.positions within a controlled environment with a view to achieving

:52:02. > :52:08.better outcomes for children. The other place was unhappy about the

:52:09. > :52:11.clauses were included in the bill at introduction and we appreciate this

:52:12. > :52:16.is a new way of working in government and understand high some

:52:17. > :52:19.noble Lords were wary but the provisions to important just to let

:52:20. > :52:24.them drop and should emphasise this is a grassroots power, empowering

:52:25. > :52:31.local authorities to test new and better ways of working in the best

:52:32. > :52:37.interests of children. I would like to just... Just coming to the

:52:38. > :52:40.concluding elements of my comments. Local government overwhelmingly

:52:41. > :52:42.supports these measures and an national association and individual

:52:43. > :52:46.authorities have made it clear that they do not want us to lose this

:52:47. > :52:51.opportunity to allow them to test new ways of working. We have

:52:52. > :52:55.therefore reviewed and substantially revised the clauses to make sure

:52:56. > :52:57.that they avoid the issues raised in the other place and there are

:52:58. > :53:03.several notable new features we have removed the provision which allowed

:53:04. > :53:09.the body carrying local authority functions under an intervention

:53:10. > :53:12.arrangement from applying to use the power. Only local authorities can

:53:13. > :53:17.apply to use the power and if they don't wish to them that is the end

:53:18. > :53:22.of the matter. The power was never intended to be used to alter or

:53:23. > :53:27.remove children's fundamental rights or entitlements will stop its sole

:53:28. > :53:30.purpose is to allow local authorities to trial better and more

:53:31. > :53:34.practical alternatives to the sometimes very specific and overly

:53:35. > :53:38.prescriptive requirements set out in legislation in order to provide that

:53:39. > :53:42.outcomes for children. The new amendments would put this beyond

:53:43. > :53:48.doubt and also we'll set out further provision for the process

:53:49. > :53:51.surrounding power to ensure it's based on sound consultation,

:53:52. > :53:54.transparency and robust safeguards, all applications to use the power

:53:55. > :54:00.would be subject to local consultation, scrutiny by an

:54:01. > :54:02.independent panel and Parliamentary approval and progress will be

:54:03. > :54:07.monitored and these changes will be in addition to amendments the

:54:08. > :54:08.government tabled in the other place about the scrutiny process that

:54:09. > :54:17.accompanies the power. I won't give way to the honourable

:54:18. > :54:21.gentleman because he wasn't here at the start of my speech when I set

:54:22. > :54:27.out a lot of the principles around this bill. The moments are about the

:54:28. > :54:31.scrutiny process that accompanies the power and ruling out using the

:54:32. > :54:36.clause for profit. The Government is committed to working with a sector

:54:37. > :54:41.the changes that are the result of significant consultation and we

:54:42. > :54:44.believe the clauses are the safest possible way to test new approaches.

:54:45. > :54:49.I know that my honourable friend is very keen to meet and discuss with

:54:50. > :54:55.any colleagues who have concerns to discuss these provisions further. Mr

:54:56. > :54:57.Deputy Speaker, this is a bill for the welfare and prospects of

:54:58. > :55:02.vulnerable children and young people. All its measures are

:55:03. > :55:06.designed to improve the services that so many of these young people

:55:07. > :55:14.rely on and I commend this bill to the house. The question is, should

:55:15. > :55:19.the bill now be read a second time? Angela Rippon. Thank you

:55:20. > :55:28.-- let me start by saying that we welcome any attempt to improve the

:55:29. > :55:32.lives of children in care and I'm sure that is shared by all sides of

:55:33. > :55:36.the house. The challenges facing those children are significant, as

:55:37. > :55:39.is the effort needed to tackle them. The National Audit Office recently

:55:40. > :55:47.said that nationally the quality of help and protection for children is

:55:48. > :55:50.unsatisfactory and inconsistent, suggesting systematic rather than

:55:51. > :55:53.just local failure. The Government needs to take action that will

:55:54. > :55:58.address that failure within the bill rather than make it worse. I hope

:55:59. > :56:02.the Secretary of State is listening to this very important debate, if

:56:03. > :56:08.not able to attend the chamber today. A new report written for the

:56:09. > :56:10.Department for Education published only last Friday considered the

:56:11. > :56:17.options of outsourcing and developing markets in children's

:56:18. > :56:22.social services. Mr Deputy Speaker, this is privatisation by another

:56:23. > :56:27.name, and quite simply it would not just be the wrong solution but no

:56:28. > :56:33.solution at all. Following the excellent work of my noble friend 's

:56:34. > :56:37.in the other place, the clauses that would allow local authorities to

:56:38. > :56:41.delegate from their existing legal obligations are now no longer laid

:56:42. > :56:46.out in the bill before us today. But given the seriousness of such

:56:47. > :56:50.proposals and the timing of this report, I must ask the Secretary of

:56:51. > :56:55.State's department to think again and guaranteed to this house that

:56:56. > :57:01.the Government will not seek to use this bill as a vehicle to privatise

:57:02. > :57:03.children's social services. I hope the Minister can give us that

:57:04. > :57:08.assurance later because there is a good deal to welcome within this

:57:09. > :57:12.bill, from the principles of corporate parenting to the local

:57:13. > :57:17.offer for care leavers, there are steps towards helping young people

:57:18. > :57:23.in care leaving that we welcome, but I would not like to divide the house

:57:24. > :57:28.at later stages, and we at this stage seek to make progress

:57:29. > :57:31.collectively. This issue, Mr Deputy Speaker, is of vital importance to

:57:32. > :57:39.the collective good of our nations. The services with great work done on

:57:40. > :57:41.the ground by many public sector workers should be applauded, as they

:57:42. > :57:48.really do change lives every single day. I must declare an interest as

:57:49. > :57:54.my niece is one such work. Our aim collectively within this bill should

:57:55. > :57:57.be to enhance and enable this important work and privatisation and

:57:58. > :58:00.fragmentation is not the answer. Mr Deputy Speaker, our overall concern

:58:01. > :58:08.is less with what is in the bill and more with what is not. In short, it

:58:09. > :58:11.lacks the ambition to have a meaningful impact on the lives of

:58:12. > :58:16.vulnerable young people that is needed and we must seek to improve

:58:17. > :58:21.child mental health services if we are to make significant progress.

:58:22. > :58:26.For instance, Mr Deputy Speaker, the bill focuses on adoption. This is

:58:27. > :58:29.hardly a surprise, after all the Government have taken a number of

:58:30. > :58:34.steps to make it easier to adopt in the past several years, such as the

:58:35. > :58:41.education and adopting act, which received Royal assent earlier this

:58:42. > :58:44.year. We welcome measures to support adoption, but surely the Minister is

:58:45. > :58:49.aware that only one in every 20 children in care goes on to be

:58:50. > :58:54.adopted. So can he claim to the house why this bill, much like the

:58:55. > :58:58.last one, focused exclusively on adoption and does not contain

:58:59. > :59:03.provision on all other forms of care? Would it not have been an

:59:04. > :59:07.opportunity to come forward with a comprehensive strategy for children

:59:08. > :59:12.in all forms of care? Perhaps the Minister can indicate whether we

:59:13. > :59:17.might anticipate further legislation, or if he considers that

:59:18. > :59:21.no changes are needed? Similarly, we welcome the principles of corporate

:59:22. > :59:27.parenting, but there are questions as to why the bill does not go

:59:28. > :59:30.further. After all, I'm sure the Secretary of State agrees that

:59:31. > :59:33.children in care will often have complex needs, requiring a joined up

:59:34. > :59:38.approach across public services in order to get the best possible

:59:39. > :59:43.outcomes. Perhaps the Mr can explain why there is no provision on the

:59:44. > :59:46.face of the bill to facilitate ways for public services such as health

:59:47. > :59:52.and education to play a key role in ensuring good corporate parenting.

:59:53. > :59:56.These public services and others play a key role in ensuring the best

:59:57. > :59:59.outcomes for children in care, yet there is no apparent involvement for

:00:00. > :00:04.them in the corporate parent principles. Mr Deputy Speaker, the

:00:05. > :00:09.principle of the local offer is welcomed and we supported it when it

:00:10. > :00:11.was introduced for children with special educational needs and

:00:12. > :00:16.disabilities in the children and families act, since then we have

:00:17. > :00:21.seen the failings in practice with the quality of local offers varying

:00:22. > :00:25.wildly between local authorities and no minimum guarantees of quality, no

:00:26. > :00:31.statutory guidance and no certainty that the local offer would be

:00:32. > :00:35.available to all those who need it. When there are no minimum guarantees

:00:36. > :00:42.of quality, we know which areas will lose out. Overwhelmingly it will be

:00:43. > :00:46.those areas that are already facing disadvantage that will not be

:00:47. > :00:51.getting the support that they need. There are already unacceptable

:00:52. > :00:56.variations in spending on children's Gervis is between regions. In one

:00:57. > :01:03.local authority, ?4970 is spent on Children In Need and in another it

:01:04. > :01:07.is only 340. The Department for Education's own figures show that

:01:08. > :01:14.these spending inequalities fall along our all-too-familiar

:01:15. > :01:16.geographical divides. I'm very grateful to my honourable friend and

:01:17. > :01:21.I just wanted to point out that in my conversations with Hull City

:01:22. > :01:23.Council children's services department, they talked to me about

:01:24. > :01:28.the resource inequalities that they face, the very disadvantaged

:01:29. > :01:32.community that they are serving, and they are certainly not asking for

:01:33. > :01:35.powers to innovate, they are asking for proper resources to provide the

:01:36. > :01:41.services that young people need in the city. I thank my honourable

:01:42. > :01:43.friend for the point that she made and it's a significant point,

:01:44. > :01:47.because local authorities like for example mine in the north-west have

:01:48. > :01:51.faced over 50% of cuts since austerity and they are sometimes

:01:52. > :01:55.trying to deal with the most complex needs in their communities as well.

:01:56. > :01:58.So I would ask the Government to look at that again. In the

:01:59. > :02:01.south-east, spending tends to be much higher than average, but

:02:02. > :02:06.following the spending throughout local authorities it is clear that

:02:07. > :02:09.as we move into the north-west, spending is far lower. Once again,

:02:10. > :02:12.levels of spending and public services have I did fall along the

:02:13. > :02:21.North-South divide with the North losing out. In his final report as

:02:22. > :02:26.Chief inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw has singled out the North-South

:02:27. > :02:30.divide is one of the great challenges facing our education

:02:31. > :02:33.system and our country, and only this morning that children's

:02:34. > :02:36.commissioner said that the problem was simply that parents in the North

:02:37. > :02:42.were not as ambitious as those in the South. As a parent from the

:02:43. > :02:45.North I'm sure the Minister will agree that comments such as these

:02:46. > :02:52.are neither acceptable nor are they helpful. Perhaps in an effort to

:02:53. > :02:56.ensure that all regions of our country, North and South, benefit

:02:57. > :03:01.from the local offer, the Minister will seek to ensure that there are

:03:02. > :03:05.clear local standards and -- clear locals -- national standards that

:03:06. > :03:15.all local authorities will have to meet. There are clear guidelines on

:03:16. > :03:19.how to make it accessible to how all those who need it. Can the Minister

:03:20. > :03:23.tell us why these have not been addressed before today and will the

:03:24. > :03:26.Government bring forward amendments during its passage? Mr Deputy

:03:27. > :03:30.Speaker, moving on to part two of the bill which establishes a new

:03:31. > :03:36.regulator, social work England, once again I must pay tribute to the

:03:37. > :03:40.excellent work done by the parties for their work in this area.

:03:41. > :03:44.Following their scrutiny, plans to place regulatory control with the

:03:45. > :03:48.Secretary of State were defeated. I'm sure the minister here today

:03:49. > :03:50.would acknowledge the norm that regulators are operationally

:03:51. > :03:54.independent from local Government and in this case served in the

:03:55. > :03:57.interests of children. So will he guarantee today that independence

:03:58. > :04:03.will be respected by the bill as it is ultimately agreed? While we

:04:04. > :04:06.welcome a new regulatory body, assuming it is affected and

:04:07. > :04:10.independent, there are a number of questions that remain about how it

:04:11. > :04:14.will function and what we will be seeking answers to. After all, the

:04:15. > :04:18.Government seems to want social work England to have a representative

:04:19. > :04:21.improvement and regulatory roles within the profession, yet they have

:04:22. > :04:25.not told us how this will be achieved. We have no detail on the

:04:26. > :04:30.remit of the work of the new regulator, and as it stands we will

:04:31. > :04:34.only find out in a series of regulations to be made by the

:04:35. > :04:37.Secretary of State. So can the Minister tell the house exactly what

:04:38. > :04:43.the remit role and powers of the new regulator will be? And why is it

:04:44. > :04:47.appropriate for these to be decided in secondary legislation, away from

:04:48. > :04:51.the scrutiny of the full house? After all, Mr Deputy Speaker, we

:04:52. > :04:56.have been down this path before and it was only four years ago that the

:04:57. > :04:58.general social care Council was closed. Can the Minister tell the

:04:59. > :05:03.house what will be done differently this time to ensure that we won't

:05:04. > :05:08.look back in a year or two and simply see another regulator that

:05:09. > :05:12.has been closed down? In conclusion, Mr Deputy Speaker, what is in the

:05:13. > :05:16.bill we broadly welcomed. Though we hope the Minister will have answer

:05:17. > :05:24.some of the many questions that remain. Once already in the other

:05:25. > :05:28.place the Government lands for the outsourcing and privatisation of our

:05:29. > :05:31.children's services dressed up as innovation were defeated. Nobody in

:05:32. > :05:34.the profession believes that privatisation is the answer to the

:05:35. > :05:37.immense challenges they are currently facing, nor can it

:05:38. > :05:44.alleviate the growing demand for children's services. I will give

:05:45. > :05:46.way. I'm so grateful to my honourable friend who is doing a

:05:47. > :05:50.very good job of putting the case that exists in the country, but is

:05:51. > :05:56.she concerned that the Minister really hasn't said very much at all

:05:57. > :06:00.about what innovation he expects that would require a local authority

:06:01. > :06:07.effectively to wash their hands of their statutory duty in relation to

:06:08. > :06:11.our young people and children? I absolutely thank the honourable

:06:12. > :06:16.member for his intervention and he is absolutely right in what he says

:06:17. > :06:20.in that actually most people who work in the profession believe that

:06:21. > :06:24.privatisation is absolutely the wrong answer and will not help with

:06:25. > :06:32.any form of innovation that they currently want. In fact the main

:06:33. > :06:38.thing that would help actually is investment in our community local

:06:39. > :06:41.services by local cover. So I call on the Minister to confirm today

:06:42. > :06:45.that the Minister will not seek to bring back these clauses in the

:06:46. > :06:49.bill. I'm sure he knows as well as members on this side of the house

:06:50. > :06:52.and all sides of the house do that these plans do not offer a real

:06:53. > :06:57.solution, and if he fails to take that solution on board, members on

:06:58. > :06:58.this side of the house would be far less conciliatory when we debate

:06:59. > :07:07.this bill again. Thank you very much, Mr Deputy

:07:08. > :07:12.Speaker. I think this bill actually is a very good bill. It has been

:07:13. > :07:14.amended obviously in the House of Lords and we have to consider the

:07:15. > :07:18.impact occasions of that in due course. But the central points of

:07:19. > :07:23.the bill are actually well founded and I'm particularly impressed with

:07:24. > :07:27.the theme of reflecting the work of the Munro report and improving the

:07:28. > :07:32.capacity of social workers to use their own judgment rather than

:07:33. > :07:36.simply rely on box ticking. I think that is a theme of this bill, which

:07:37. > :07:41.is appropriate and that is why I think that the regulatory structure

:07:42. > :07:45.that is going to be introduced would actually help, because it does seem

:07:46. > :07:51.to me that it is true that sort of regulatory system that the ability

:07:52. > :07:59.of making judgments would actually be made more easily. What I would

:08:00. > :08:03.say is that it is important for social workers to have a clear eye

:08:04. > :08:09.on what the professional regulation is all about. It should be of course

:08:10. > :08:14.operating at arm's-length and I think that its stressed in the bill

:08:15. > :08:17.and that is extremely useful. A register of social workers makes a

:08:18. > :08:20.lot of sense, because I think one of the things that we must do is

:08:21. > :08:28.enhance the sense of professionalism and within our social work. That is

:08:29. > :08:31.where I would have some difference with the Government in that I think

:08:32. > :08:36.that ultimately we should have a professional body for social

:08:37. > :08:40.workers. The Education Select Committee made that very clear in a

:08:41. > :08:45.recent report. We think that there is a strong case for such a body and

:08:46. > :08:52.I think there is an appetite for a body beyond just this chamber. So I

:08:53. > :08:56.would urge the Government to have a very open mind about the development

:08:57. > :09:00.of a professional body. And I would suggest that it continues to send

:09:01. > :09:08.out signals that that is what it would like to see. I'll so think

:09:09. > :09:13.that having an independent review proceedings in five years' time

:09:14. > :09:19.makes a huge amount of sense. That is a realistic timescale and I think

:09:20. > :09:25.it is appropriate that that is set out in the bill. There is one area

:09:26. > :09:31.where I think this bill really does need to have some additions or at

:09:32. > :09:38.least have some recognitions, so speak. That is in the provision of

:09:39. > :09:45.SRE. It seems to me that with over 70,000 children effectively children

:09:46. > :09:51.of the state and so many more children subject to sexual abuse and

:09:52. > :09:58.the historic sexual abuse that has gone on, our failure to address this

:09:59. > :10:02.issue of SRE front and centre is becoming increasingly obvious. So I

:10:03. > :10:09.do think that the Government really does have to go full on into a

:10:10. > :10:14.consultation process to give assurance that there is going to be

:10:15. > :10:19.something done about this most important matter. So I ask the

:10:20. > :10:23.Minister to confirm to this house that we are going to have a

:10:24. > :10:29.realistic and meaningful consultation on the introduction for

:10:30. > :10:33.statutory SRE. Yes I will give way. Thank the honourable gentleman for

:10:34. > :10:37.giving way. I'm delighted for him to raise this within this bill. Can I

:10:38. > :10:42.ask that he will back amendments by put forward by some on this side of

:10:43. > :10:44.the house to make SRE part of the safeguarding proposals for all

:10:45. > :10:48.children in this country, making sure we keep every young person

:10:49. > :10:51.saved in this country. That depends on what the amendments are and

:10:52. > :10:56.whether or not the Government actually makes it very clear that it

:10:57. > :10:59.is going to have a full-scale consultation. But I note what the

:11:00. > :11:06.honourable member has said and I'm sure that the Government has also

:11:07. > :11:09.noted what I have just said, we do need a full, meaningful and Cumbrae

:11:10. > :11:16.hence its consultation on this important matter. That's actually

:11:17. > :11:23.why five chairs of select committees sent a letter to the Secretary of

:11:24. > :11:28.State, I organised that last letter, it was from the business, energy and

:11:29. > :11:34.industrial strategy, you might well ask what exactly has that now got to

:11:35. > :11:41.do with SRE but I can make the argument if you wish me to. Women

:11:42. > :11:48.and equality is, health and home affairs. All of these committees are

:11:49. > :11:53.effectively said precisely the same thing, we need to CSR reintroduced

:11:54. > :12:01.statutorily in our schools. So that is that point I think very well

:12:02. > :12:06.made. By the five select committees. The last point I really want to make

:12:07. > :12:10.is this issue about giving latitude to local Government. A Select

:12:11. > :12:15.Committee did some work on children in care, particularly those with

:12:16. > :12:20.mental health difficulties. One of the things that was strikingly

:12:21. > :12:26.obvious when we went traffic was that by cooperating with other

:12:27. > :12:28.agencies, I having coterminous structures and by having strong

:12:29. > :12:35.leadership, Trafford was delivering some outstanding results. And I

:12:36. > :12:40.think that it is worth noting that the ability of that council to

:12:41. > :12:44.effectively benefit from strategic leadership at the top end,

:12:45. > :12:54.operational leadership within the structures themselves and a

:12:55. > :12:57.coterminous nature, not only are their own organisations and related

:12:58. > :13:02.agencies but also with the police force, was extraordinary beneficial

:13:03. > :13:08.or working practices and the way in which decisions were made and

:13:09. > :13:13.responses given to issues connected to children in care and children at

:13:14. > :13:19.risk. So I think the Government is right to move down towards giving

:13:20. > :13:27.local Government more latitude in the way that it formulates its

:13:28. > :13:32.structures to deliver outcomes. In short, I think this bill has a lot

:13:33. > :13:36.to be said for it. I think it is critical that we acknowledge that

:13:37. > :13:41.some form of professional body would be good for social workers and

:13:42. > :13:45.social work generally. I think that the absence of SRE is a pity, I

:13:46. > :13:48.think it's important that the Government gives that firm

:13:49. > :13:51.commitment which I have asked for, and I think generally speaking the

:13:52. > :13:58.Government is on the right direction in connection with local Government.

:13:59. > :14:07.Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I am aware that very few clauses in this

:14:08. > :14:10.bill affect Scotland that as a member of the Education Select

:14:11. > :14:15.Committee, I may have some points of interest and I may be able to help

:14:16. > :14:20.this bill become even better. When a child or young person can't live at

:14:21. > :14:23.home, we all owe them to make the process of finding a new stable

:14:24. > :14:29.family as efficient and straightforward as possible. There

:14:30. > :14:39.are some clauses, close one for example in this ill, that I note

:14:40. > :14:43.create seven core parenting principles that local authorities

:14:44. > :14:48.must have regard of and I would question the Minister as to why

:14:49. > :14:51.these aren't mandatory. The joint committee on human rights have said

:14:52. > :14:56.they considered the arguments and the effort for and against

:14:57. > :15:01.introducing a statutory duty of public authorities in England

:15:02. > :15:03.requiring them to have regard to the rights of the children in the United

:15:04. > :15:11.Nations Convention under the rights of the child, and the exercise

:15:12. > :15:15.equivalent to the duties already introduced in England and Wales. If

:15:16. > :15:18.England and Wales can introduce this duty, I find it difficult to

:15:19. > :15:24.understand why it isn't going to be mandatory in England. The joint

:15:25. > :15:27.committee also said they welcome parliament presenting this bill and

:15:28. > :15:32.actually making sure that there is such a duty. It really is important

:15:33. > :15:39.that children are at the focus and the heart of any bill that is

:15:40. > :15:45.introduced in this Parliament. We really need to look at how children

:15:46. > :15:51.are affected by the legislation, not just by the Department for education

:15:52. > :15:56.but across the board. In Scotland the First Minister has said that

:15:57. > :16:01.people have experienced the care system and that will be the driving

:16:02. > :16:04.force in a review of how Scotland treats its looked after children,

:16:05. > :16:12.and this is actually this mandatory duty in action. We also in Scotland

:16:13. > :16:17.really want to move forward and listen to young people. In fact, we

:16:18. > :16:22.are looking at extending what is happening in Scotland to people who

:16:23. > :16:27.have been in care and are going through the process of becoming

:16:28. > :16:31.adults who stand on their home. It's good to see that this bill is

:16:32. > :16:36.actually looking at what happens to children after they leave care. Can

:16:37. > :16:42.I ask the Minister to look at what we do in Scotland? Because we are

:16:43. > :16:47.moving forward at a far better placed than we are here in England

:16:48. > :16:49.and Wales. A former children's minister in Scotland said children

:16:50. > :16:57.don't need a system that just stops things happening to them. While we

:16:58. > :17:02.have safeguards, wheels and need a system that makes things happen to

:17:03. > :17:06.them. A system that supports them to become the people they can be,

:17:07. > :17:10.fostering a sense of belonging. I'm sure the Minister would agree with

:17:11. > :17:15.that, that this should be a guiding principle into any legislation that

:17:16. > :17:18.we bring forward. Can I ask the minister what steps the Government

:17:19. > :17:23.are going to take to respond to the UN committee on the rights of the

:17:24. > :17:27.child's recommendations early this year and can they give a timeline on

:17:28. > :17:30.when they plan to publish their official response. Can I also ask

:17:31. > :17:35.what further steps the Government is going to take to ensure the policy

:17:36. > :17:43.developed across Whitehall has children's rights at the heart of

:17:44. > :17:47.it? One part of the bill, section 31, affects Scotland and that is to

:17:48. > :17:51.do with whistle-blowing. The Scottish Government act knowledges

:17:52. > :17:56.and respect the need for whistle-blowing and it believes that

:17:57. > :17:58.the procedure should be in place across the public and private

:17:59. > :18:03.sectors to support staff in raising any concerns to ensure people can

:18:04. > :18:08.work in a safe and secure environment. In Scotland, in the

:18:09. > :18:11.NHS, the Scottish Government believes it is very important that

:18:12. > :18:15.workers feel they can raise any concerns they may have about patient

:18:16. > :18:19.safety and malpractice, because it helps to improve the health service

:18:20. > :18:25.and we believe this practice should not only take place in the health

:18:26. > :18:29.service but across all professions, especially in the social work

:18:30. > :18:33.sector, given how important the protection of children is. We

:18:34. > :18:38.actually welcome this part and we are really keen that the Government

:18:39. > :18:44.are seeing this through. In Scotland, social work is regulated

:18:45. > :18:50.and again, I would commend asking the Minister to look at the Scottish

:18:51. > :18:53.system, indeed when the Education Select Committee spoke to social

:18:54. > :18:56.workers and social worker representatives as part of an

:18:57. > :19:01.inquiry by the chair the honourable member for Stroud, one of the first

:19:02. > :19:06.thing is said to us was, look at the Scottish system. I would absolutely

:19:07. > :19:15.encouragement esters to do that. In Scotland, we have the social work,

:19:16. > :19:19.the social services Council, which regulates it and to which all social

:19:20. > :19:23.workers have to belong. I'm very pleased England is going to be

:19:24. > :19:27.moving forward in this regard. I share the honourable member for

:19:28. > :19:32.Ashton-under-Lyne's apprehensions about creeping privatisation in the

:19:33. > :19:39.care sector, especially where it relates to children. It is

:19:40. > :19:43.absolutely imperative that we all looked after children, especially

:19:44. > :19:48.those who are not with their own families and their own parents, in

:19:49. > :19:54.fact we all have a right to protect and look after children. It is an

:19:55. > :20:00.imperative on all of us and it is a duties shared amongst all of us in

:20:01. > :20:05.society not just professionals, again, by whistle-blowing, it is

:20:06. > :20:09.important. While this bill is important for what is going to

:20:10. > :20:14.happen in England, it is taken in the context of child poverty which

:20:15. > :20:22.is actually, according to the interview -- Institute for financial

:20:23. > :20:28.studies are, Institute for financial services, to say that child poverty

:20:29. > :20:33.in the UK is projected to rise by 8% by 2020. This actually makes it even

:20:34. > :20:38.more important that we get it right, as many more children may be drawn

:20:39. > :20:44.into the care system as a result of the austerity programme that is

:20:45. > :20:50.still ongoing in this country and across the UK. Can I please then

:20:51. > :20:54.asked the Minister to look at Scotland, to look at what we're

:20:55. > :21:02.doing there. We're not perfect, we're not doing everything right,

:21:03. > :21:06.but we have at the heart of our system children, their experiences

:21:07. > :21:19.and we are listening to them. I please ask the Minister to look at

:21:20. > :21:25.Scotland and Wales doing very good childcare work across-the-board.

:21:26. > :21:35.Thank you Mr Speaker. Can I first declare an interest... Can I also

:21:36. > :21:39.welcome the bill, in most part and that Italy as it stands without

:21:40. > :21:47.certain parts which I alluded to earlier. -- and particularly as it

:21:48. > :21:50.stands. We spend far too little time in this house highlighting some of

:21:51. > :21:59.the excellent practices in highly adverse conditions that we expect

:22:00. > :22:03.our social workers to do. I have always referred to social workers as

:22:04. > :22:08.our fourth emergency service, and I'm very proud... One moment...

:22:09. > :22:14.Alongside the lady opposite to be a patron of the social worker of the

:22:15. > :22:17.year award and I attended the dinner a few weeks ago where there were

:22:18. > :22:21.some fantastic examples of dedication and hard work, skill and

:22:22. > :22:25.expertise on display, none of which alas made it into the mainstream

:22:26. > :22:29.media, which is so often the case. I will give way. I think the

:22:30. > :22:35.honourable member for giving way. Will he agree with me that the

:22:36. > :22:40.challenges facing social workers are particularly intense, not just with

:22:41. > :22:49.the immense reductions in funding but also the fast changing

:22:50. > :22:57.Government initiative changing itis that seems to attract itself to the

:22:58. > :23:01.social work area? They are certainly under pressure, but that initiative

:23:02. > :23:07.itis has too some point gone into reverse not least through the

:23:08. > :23:10.shrinking together of the social work practice which when this

:23:11. > :23:16.Government came into office amounted to more than 750 pages. The social

:23:17. > :23:19.workers were spending all of their time checking what it said in the

:23:20. > :23:22.rule book, looking over their shoulders, ticking the box, rather

:23:23. > :23:29.than being allowed to get on with the business of being social

:23:30. > :23:33.workers, eyeballing the families and children they were there to protect

:23:34. > :23:38.and work with. That was certainly very important and again with the

:23:39. > :23:42.support of Professor Munro, a very important initiative which tries to

:23:43. > :23:44.take away a lock of the administrative burdens on social

:23:45. > :23:50.workers, notwithstanding the other pressures and workers that there

:23:51. > :23:54.are. I'm also very proud, Mr Deputy Speaker, for the work that my party

:23:55. > :23:57.did in this area, starting with the commissioning is on social worker

:23:58. > :24:01.which I chaired back in 2007, which I'm delighted my honourable friend

:24:02. > :24:04.the member for Portsmouth South who played such an important role in

:24:05. > :24:08.that commission produced a document which is as relevant today as it was

:24:09. > :24:13.then, called no more blame game, the future for children's social

:24:14. > :24:16.workers. The problem is that all too often children are still the subject

:24:17. > :24:21.of the blame game particularly in the tabloid press, where it would

:24:22. > :24:27.appear that it's social workers who abuse, who murder young and

:24:28. > :24:31.vulnerable children, but of course it's not. They are there to try and

:24:32. > :24:35.protect those vulnerable children and it is parents and carers and

:24:36. > :24:38.others who commit those foul acts and yet you wouldn't believe it if

:24:39. > :24:42.you read some of the reports and the way of the disdainful way that too

:24:43. > :24:55.many people still look at our social workers.

:24:56. > :25:00.In 2010 the manifesto commitment child protection back to the front

:25:01. > :25:06.line. I'm very pleased and proud that the first review initiated by

:25:07. > :25:11.the Department for Education after the election was not to do with

:25:12. > :25:21.schools or education matters, the Munro review into child protection.

:25:22. > :25:32.I was slightly surprised that the Minister was so conclusively playing

:25:33. > :25:35.an aide Professor Monroe because I appointed Professor Monroe on the

:25:36. > :25:43.problem is that a lot of his 15 recommendations very pertinent this

:25:44. > :25:45.is to be implemented but they don't involve taking away those basic

:25:46. > :26:12.duties. That does not include the rehashing

:26:13. > :26:15.Azzam al-Ahmed why I the comments on the Minister for schools. It's a

:26:16. > :26:17.shame because after the good work done by the Lord's we wear promised

:26:18. > :26:40.a period of reflection. I would caution him to extend that

:26:41. > :26:44.reflection before they hurry into repeating which was clearly a

:26:45. > :26:48.mistake and the majority of the House of Lords and the great

:26:49. > :26:51.majority of important organisations involved in child protection were

:26:52. > :26:58.not in favour and made their feelings very clear. Let's be clear,

:26:59. > :27:04.a lot of good things around child protection have happened under this

:27:05. > :27:12.government, the reform of fostering and adoption regulations has helped

:27:13. > :27:15.to fostering, Fosters and adopters and help children being fostered and

:27:16. > :27:20.more children going on to be adopted as well. More to be done but a lot

:27:21. > :27:24.of progress has been made in the last six years. We have now are much

:27:25. > :27:30.more appropriate and rigorous inspection system from Ofsted. We

:27:31. > :27:34.have the Munro review which has given rise to a lot of innovation in

:27:35. > :27:40.the way we go about child protection. We have the child sexual

:27:41. > :27:45.exploitation action plan which was published back in November 20 11th,

:27:46. > :27:52.well before Savill came on the scene so publicly and made such a headline

:27:53. > :27:58.issue and we have never seen the light of that. We had staying put

:27:59. > :28:01.although I feel it is underfunded in its effectiveness in certain local

:28:02. > :28:08.authorities with the extension of the right to a personal adviser to

:28:09. > :28:12.the age of 25 and are due to local authorities to stay in touch, good

:28:13. > :28:16.things being innovated in this bill, is staying close until the age of

:28:17. > :28:22.21, these are all things which offer support vulnerable children in the

:28:23. > :28:27.care system at the most fragile time in their lives whereas before at the

:28:28. > :28:31.age of 18 or even 16 they faced a cliff edge coming out of care into

:28:32. > :28:36.the big wide world without the help and support and the safety net that

:28:37. > :28:39.so many of these children and young people need. The honourable member

:28:40. > :28:44.is been extremely generous in giving away a second time and would he

:28:45. > :28:52.agree with me that much of this could be quite academic if funding

:28:53. > :28:55.doesn't accompany these very exciting new developments? Funding

:28:56. > :29:02.is of course part of the element but of course we can do a lot better

:29:03. > :29:06.with existing funds although the report showed funding of honourable

:29:07. > :29:09.children had actually gone up as well but certainly what was not

:29:10. > :29:14.working properly is when social workers were spending through the

:29:15. > :29:18.ICS system another very bureaucratic system up to 80% of their time in

:29:19. > :29:22.front of a computer filling in forms to do with child protection rather

:29:23. > :29:26.than getting out there, dealing with those children face-to-face, that

:29:27. > :29:30.was a huge waste of resources but more importantly a huge waste of

:29:31. > :29:33.opportunity to deal more effectively and early on with those children who

:29:34. > :29:40.really did need to have the support and often intervention and social

:29:41. > :29:45.workers in particular. Despite all of these innovations we still need

:29:46. > :29:48.to do an awful lot better for vulnerable children and children in

:29:49. > :29:56.the care system and for our care leavers. It is a fact that 40%,

:29:57. > :30:05.almost half of our care leavers aged 19-21 are classed as leaks. 40% of

:30:06. > :30:11.them are in custody, two thirds of children in the care system have

:30:12. > :30:15.special educational needs, half of them with the diagnosable mental

:30:16. > :30:28.disorder, the outcomes for educational achievement achieving a-

:30:29. > :30:34.see is still in its teams compared with the peer population now of over

:30:35. > :30:38.60% achieving those sorts of grades. I welcome the bill, particularly

:30:39. > :30:44.some of the corporate principles and it would be interesting to see how

:30:45. > :30:47.they work in practice which apply to physical and mental health, which is

:30:48. > :30:51.so important. Although this government again has done a lot to

:30:52. > :30:55.raise the profile of mental health particularly among children and

:30:56. > :31:00.young people has injected a ?1.4 billion into that area, the problem

:31:01. > :31:04.is that not nearly enough of it and then that is not enough in itself is

:31:05. > :31:08.getting through to the front line to help both children and young people

:31:09. > :31:14.who so desperately needed when they need it. And where they needed as

:31:15. > :31:23.well. These are challenging times. The report from the National Audit

:31:24. > :31:29.Office. The report on children in need of protection flagged up some

:31:30. > :31:35.worrying observations. Too often the way we look after vulnerable

:31:36. > :31:41.children is postcode lottery. We are still so poor at sharing best

:31:42. > :31:46.practice in this country. Yet a child in need, a child in care, a

:31:47. > :31:51.child in desperate need of protection should be dealt with no

:31:52. > :31:54.differently whether they are in Durham, Worthing or in Exeter or

:31:55. > :32:02.anywhere else throughout the United Kingdom for that matter. Still,

:32:03. > :32:08.since the surge that we saw particularly since the horrific case

:32:09. > :32:13.of baby Peter, still the numbers of children coming into the care system

:32:14. > :32:18.is rising. Now in excess of 70,000 children in the care system in

:32:19. > :32:24.England, the highest since 1985. We were in a very different environment

:32:25. > :32:32.that children tended to come into. I don't know whether we need to take

:32:33. > :32:37.more children into care. We need to take the right children into care at

:32:38. > :32:40.the right time. Give them the right support and services if they cannot

:32:41. > :32:46.be supported living with their families or other kinship carers.

:32:47. > :32:51.One of the things I'm proud of, the initiative the government took over

:32:52. > :33:03.promoting adoption which had fallen into neglect after the good work

:33:04. > :33:09.done in the adoption Bill. Still there is a very big grey space

:33:10. > :33:26.following the Mundy judgment. That should not have happened.

:33:27. > :33:36.Through too many hoops to which took too long to get adopted. A local

:33:37. > :33:40.authority level in adoption but we needed to bring onside

:33:41. > :33:46.contemporaneously and in sympathy those in the legal profession. They

:33:47. > :34:00.felt put the pawn that they were how to run cases in the courts.

:34:01. > :34:07.We have seen a reversal in adoption numbers and we hope to see a reverse

:34:08. > :34:11.back and adoption offers a best chance of a second childhood and a

:34:12. > :34:25.second possibility of being brought up in a safe fun loving family.

:34:26. > :34:32.Does he share the concern that many adoptions are taking place with the

:34:33. > :34:35.younger children where it's far more difficult to place order children

:34:36. > :34:43.and we have to do more to promote the benefits of adoption at a later

:34:44. > :34:47.age. It's always been the case, shiny squeaky new babies are much

:34:48. > :34:52.more attractive to people who want to adopt than problematic teenagers

:34:53. > :34:58.who have been through all the trials and tribulations of broken families

:34:59. > :35:00.perhaps abuse, neglect, mental health problems and behavioural

:35:01. > :35:04.disorders and have been pushed from pillar to post in the care system

:35:05. > :35:13.and those are the children we have more slowdown. Bringing in adoption

:35:14. > :35:17.scorecards is not just about approving the numbers but

:35:18. > :35:21.concentrating on those harder to adopt children, older children,

:35:22. > :35:25.large sibling groups, children from black, minority, ethnic communities

:35:26. > :35:29.who were too often at the back of the queue when it came to adopting

:35:30. > :35:31.and I'm glad to see in recent years disproportionately those children

:35:32. > :35:36.have found themselves more likely to get adopted than they were, still

:35:37. > :35:40.not enough and still a lot to be done but that was absolutely the

:35:41. > :35:46.right focus to bring in over the last few years. Another thing I'm

:35:47. > :35:51.concerned about has we now seem despite all the good work that the

:35:52. > :35:57.government did on paralleling the system in Holland for health

:35:58. > :35:59.visitors have now lost 722 health visitors and we seen a 13% decrease

:36:00. > :36:32.in school nurses. Too often their positions are taken

:36:33. > :36:33.by temporary social workers and social workers particularly when

:36:34. > :36:37.dealing with child protection is an area where you need to forge

:36:38. > :36:42.relationships empathetic relationships with those vulnerable

:36:43. > :36:46.children and families that we are to look after and we are being pushed

:36:47. > :36:51.from pillar to post, from one social worker to another so different and

:36:52. > :36:55.dependent reviewing Officer for whoever it may be, it only

:36:56. > :37:00.accentuates the instability and the vulnerability of those children. And

:37:01. > :37:06.I do worry at times, when still even in this place we are too quick to

:37:07. > :37:13.point the finger of blame at the social workers because a child has

:37:14. > :37:23.been brutally assaulted or into many cases killed the hands of carers and

:37:24. > :37:26.maybe parents and close relatives. There are social workers who are not

:37:27. > :37:29.doing their job properly, social workers who are not up to the job

:37:30. > :37:33.and frankly should not be in social work and they should be removed from

:37:34. > :37:39.it. They are a small minority and they should not make the rest of her

:37:40. > :37:51.excellent hard work in dedicated social worker feel constantly that

:37:52. > :37:58.they are the ones to blame. They are not in the vast majority of cases

:37:59. > :38:06.part of the problem. At the heart of the original bill, eviscerated

:38:07. > :38:09.clauses 29-33 which are about to make a reappearance it would now

:38:10. > :38:15.seem unfortunately. At the heart of the original bill, the radical new

:38:16. > :38:24.proposals to test new ways of working under the guise of promoting

:38:25. > :38:29.innovation. As I said earlier, I'm afraid those clauses were not

:38:30. > :38:34.remotely welcome by the vast majority of people who are involved

:38:35. > :38:41.in the whole field of child protection. They were opposed by the

:38:42. > :38:44.British Association of social workers, the ceilidh was

:38:45. > :38:51.Association, the children's rights Alliance, the government's appointed

:38:52. > :38:56.adoption provider, the fostering network, the NSPCC, action for

:38:57. > :39:03.children and in various pulls something like 90% of working social

:39:04. > :39:10.workers did not support them either. It was hardly surprising as well

:39:11. > :39:14.when they came out of the blue. No consultation on absolutely

:39:15. > :39:22.fundamental changes to the way we apply duties of care to vulnerable

:39:23. > :39:29.children in this country. I pay tribute to the House of Lords and in

:39:30. > :39:36.particular to the noble Lord. For putting forward the amendments that

:39:37. > :39:41.saw those clauses taken out of the bill. Lord Ramsbottom referred to

:39:42. > :39:45.clause 29, nothing less than the usurpation of the proper

:39:46. > :39:51.Parliamentary process and he asked how the courts are expected to

:39:52. > :40:09.respond when local authority areas are disadvantaged by the arbitrarily

:40:10. > :40:14.nature of applying the law. We cannot have competition between

:40:15. > :40:18.different ways of looking at vulnerable children. Some of which

:40:19. > :40:24.will not work and some of which might. Every child needs the

:40:25. > :40:29.protection of the law as set out by Parliament, not subject to a

:40:30. > :40:39.postcode lottery as is convenient for certain local authorities. Lord

:40:40. > :40:43.Lowell in the other place as it's perfectly possible to test different

:40:44. > :40:49.ways of working within existing legislative framework and it makes

:40:50. > :40:54.no sense to get rid of the duty. The squeeze on funding which other

:40:55. > :40:58.members have mentioned and is inevitable at the moment although

:40:59. > :41:04.it's not desirable has meant that in too many, because of that disastrous

:41:05. > :41:13.way the last government run the economy to the ground. In too many

:41:14. > :41:18.cases local authorities are only providing what is their duty and

:41:19. > :41:22.additional services are no longer on the agenda at all. Taking away that

:41:23. > :41:28.duty means some of these fundamental things could not happen in the

:41:29. > :41:30.future. Clause 29 as it was would have allowed local authorities to

:41:31. > :41:36.request exemptions from the statutory duties in social care,

:41:37. > :41:40.every act of Parliament and every subordinate piece of legislation

:41:41. > :41:45.concerned with children's social care from 1933 onwards would have

:41:46. > :41:49.potentially affected. The proposed mechanism for exemption orders was

:41:50. > :41:55.to be statutory instruments which would have added over enormous bias

:41:56. > :41:58.to the Secretary of State and the Department for Education itself and

:41:59. > :42:02.I'm afraid the Minister for schools is wrong, the DfEE acknowledge that

:42:03. > :42:10.this part of the bill directly concerns children's fundamental

:42:11. > :42:14.rights. How can vulnerable children challenge the lack of services? I

:42:15. > :42:18.give the example, one of the many examples in the House of lords of

:42:19. > :42:22.independent reviewing officers, I'm a big fan of them and it is a bit of

:42:23. > :42:25.the postcode lottery but the role is to stand up to be the voice and to

:42:26. > :42:29.be the advocate of children who are not getting the services to which

:42:30. > :42:34.they are entitled, which they need from local authorities. If they are

:42:35. > :42:43.not available because an exemption has been applied for and granted.

:42:44. > :42:51.Where is that child to go? Not just them, there are key legal

:42:52. > :42:55.protections which exist in the form of. Protections for disabled

:42:56. > :43:01.children placed away from home, leaving care entitlements and

:43:02. > :43:05.complaints procedures. All of these could be granted an exemption and

:43:06. > :43:10.could disappear from fundamental rights which we apply to protect

:43:11. > :43:14.vulnerable children now. This would be the first time in the history of

:43:15. > :43:17.children's welfare that legislation made for all vulnerable children and

:43:18. > :43:22.young people could be this applied in a particular area, this is a very

:43:23. > :43:26.rare proposal that should at least have warranted a Green paper and a

:43:27. > :43:33.white paper and proper consultation but there was absolutely none. Not

:43:34. > :43:40.surprising that the NSPCC and action for children describe this as the

:43:41. > :43:42.place that the government is making sense considerable risks despite

:43:43. > :43:46.numerous conversations the evidence for the need for this power remains

:43:47. > :43:51.unconvincing and does not justify the potential risks for suspending

:43:52. > :43:55.primary Revol - legislation. If the causes are reintroduced it will pave

:43:56. > :44:03.the way for significant and dangerous changes to children in

:44:04. > :44:05.social care which would jeopardise hard-fought children's rights

:44:06. > :44:08.spanning decades. How would the pilots for these actually be

:44:09. > :44:14.monitored? Who and how would we monitor whether children were still

:44:15. > :44:20.safe and what actual results it was happening for those children. It's

:44:21. > :44:25.no surprise that only one in ten practising social workers surveyed

:44:26. > :44:34.by Unison actually thought this was a good idea. That is why I have

:44:35. > :44:40.severe reservations if this bill is going to see the return of those

:44:41. > :44:44.clauses. If we can return to the Munro review, what it did was to

:44:45. > :44:49.take away a lot of the bureaucracy from social workers. It gave

:44:50. > :44:54.flexibilities on the timings, on how children needed to receive

:44:55. > :44:59.assessments and how they could prioritise. Basically it gave

:45:00. > :45:04.greater powers and confidence back to social workers to be able to use

:45:05. > :45:08.their professional judgments to do the best thing they thought was in

:45:09. > :45:13.the interests of vulnerable children, sometimes they would get

:45:14. > :45:15.it wrong. What I want to do and what the Munro review was all about is

:45:16. > :45:21.giving social workers the confidence to make a mistake, hopefully not

:45:22. > :45:25.often but to do it for the very best of reasons, not simply because

:45:26. > :45:29.that's what it says on page 117 of the rule book and you needed to tick

:45:30. > :45:31.the boxes, that's not what social workers Oliver, it's not a science,

:45:32. > :45:37.it's a con placated and challenging job. If you're going to give

:45:38. > :45:42.professionals those flexibilities, if you're going to allow them to act

:45:43. > :45:47.in different and innovative ways because they think that's the best

:45:48. > :45:51.way of looking after vulnerable children, you don't and you don't

:45:52. > :45:55.need to take away the statutory duties of the local authorities who

:45:56. > :46:00.are a little copper parents for those children so the new ways

:46:01. > :46:03.actually don't have to abide by the basic fundamental duties that you're

:46:04. > :46:08.doing the right thing and looking after those vulnerable children.

:46:09. > :46:12.Finally, can I look at a few of the specific clauses within the bill and

:46:13. > :46:18.ask the Minister some questions which I hope you'll be able to

:46:19. > :46:21.referred to in his summing up. Clause one which is about corporate

:46:22. > :46:28.parenting principles which I welcome but it's not clear exactly what the

:46:29. > :46:34.amount to in practice. Are they in addition to section 23 commitments

:46:35. > :46:38.of the children's act of 1989 or are they actually replacing them? I've

:46:39. > :46:42.used examples where I welcome promoting the physical and mental

:46:43. > :46:46.health, promoting high aspirations, securing the best outcomes for those

:46:47. > :46:55.children and young people, nobody possibly could vote against such

:46:56. > :46:58.things. Where a former relevant child to whom this section applies

:46:59. > :47:02.is not receiving advice and support, the local authority much must offer

:47:03. > :47:08.advice and support at least once every 12 months. Once every 12

:47:09. > :47:14.months is not going to go far for a vulnerable child who needs intensive

:47:15. > :47:18.help. Section eight talks about personal advisers. Too many children

:47:19. > :47:23.in care that I met and children leaving care have never heard of

:47:24. > :47:30.personal advisers let alone the with their own personal adviser actually

:47:31. > :47:33.is. In" Might we are giving this extraordinary power to local

:47:34. > :47:37.authority and I quote, a local authority in England may do anything

:47:38. > :47:44.else that they consider appropriate with the view to promoting education

:47:45. > :47:49.of relevant children educated in their area. Why do we require that

:47:50. > :47:54.thing in legislation, it strikes me that a bit too much of this is a bit

:47:55. > :47:59.too mushy and a bit to fill of cotton wool. Too many vague

:48:00. > :48:02.assumptions that actually practice particularly with funding pressures,

:48:03. > :48:10.particular were duties taken away won't actually lead to a raw beans

:48:11. > :48:12.in practice. On the subject of what should be on the bill in terms of

:48:13. > :48:17.duties, does my honourable friend share my concern that the primary

:48:18. > :48:23.focus is the duty of care to children and also the issue of women

:48:24. > :48:27.and mothers who will end up having other children who end up in care

:48:28. > :48:30.and other children and the number of successive children and is a need

:48:31. > :48:36.for the local authority to have a responsibility for those vulnerable

:48:37. > :48:39.children who may have been victims of a chorus of relationship. The

:48:40. > :48:43.sooner that there is some intervention and some focus of care

:48:44. > :48:47.the better to avoid subsequent issues and subsequent children and

:48:48. > :48:51.costs and concerns for all. My honourable friend is right in his

:48:52. > :48:55.great expertise and we cannot look at vulnerable children in isolation

:48:56. > :48:59.and we need to look at the family problems and the family holistically

:49:00. > :49:02.and Freddie come from and there were some really good examples and I do

:49:03. > :49:09.hope that the Minister is going to stick to his word and provide the

:49:10. > :49:14.funding for things such as the family drug and alcohol Court set up

:49:15. > :49:21.by the excellent Nick Crichton, a fantastic family district judge.

:49:22. > :49:27.Whereby a mother often the single mother, at risk of losing a child to

:49:28. > :49:31.the care system, often because lots of substance abuse, maybe an abusive

:49:32. > :49:35.partner, is given a very clear choice of an intensive package that

:49:36. > :49:39.will help that mum, maybe both parents back onto the straight and

:49:40. > :49:42.narrow so they are able to bring up their own child and it's a tough and

:49:43. > :49:46.challenging exercise as well. If they're able to do that then that'll

:49:47. > :49:50.family is put back together and the child stays which is the best

:49:51. > :49:54.outcome but if not then that child will head for care. I have seen and

:49:55. > :50:00.sat in court and might honourable friend who will speak shortly sat in

:50:01. > :50:04.court as well seeing mums who had six, seven, eight children taken

:50:05. > :50:09.into the care system and you have to tackle the root of a problem. Why is

:50:10. > :50:18.it? Poor parenting herself that she doesn't know how to be a parent,

:50:19. > :50:23.what do we and troubled families to become a fit parent. If not then

:50:24. > :50:30.that child must go to a safe family elsewhere who can give a child a

:50:31. > :50:35.second chance of a beneficial and happy upbringing. A few other quick

:50:36. > :50:39.points I can make, unaware that there are not too many speakers for

:50:40. > :50:42.the debate so it's an opportunity to collaborate on some of these

:50:43. > :50:45.important point is a little longer than one is normally allowed to buy

:50:46. > :50:51.the chair but I know how generous you are in these matters of great

:50:52. > :50:57.interest to you. In clause five it's about designation of a member of

:50:58. > :50:59.staff at school having responsibility for education and

:51:00. > :51:06.achievement of children in the care system. This is a good initiative

:51:07. > :51:10.but it already exists for children with caring responsibilities for

:51:11. > :51:14.young carers and that doesn't work in practice. This is a good idea but

:51:15. > :51:19.it has to have some teeth to it and mean something that those children

:51:20. > :51:22.in the care system have special attention from the designated

:51:23. > :51:27.teacher who understands the particular needs of children in the

:51:28. > :51:31.care system, often subjected bullying, mental health problems and

:51:32. > :51:36.anything else but it's not just got to be a cause and bill in paper,

:51:37. > :51:42.it's got to be working in practice. On the child safeguarding practice

:51:43. > :51:45.review panels, I think there are some good points here. I have some

:51:46. > :51:50.concerns about the independence of the panel, but certainly when we

:51:51. > :51:56.gave a commitment for the 2010 election that we would publish

:51:57. > :52:00.serious case reviews, opposed by the party opposite, I have to say, but

:52:01. > :52:06.now has become the norm, one of my concerns was also about the calibre

:52:07. > :52:12.of the people producing those reports and the quality of some of

:52:13. > :52:15.them. Effectively they were not properly monitored, only monitored

:52:16. > :52:18.on a local basis and I actually put forward the idea some time ago that

:52:19. > :52:23.there should be a national body that can oversee the quality, a national

:52:24. > :52:28.register of those authors of serious case reviews with continuous

:52:29. > :52:30.professional development requirements, so he did have to have

:52:31. > :52:35.some training and update their training because before now anybody

:52:36. > :52:39.effectively could apply to be the author of a serious case review and

:52:40. > :52:48.we need to regulate that important area rather better. In subsection

:52:49. > :52:52.for its as the panel must publish the report unless it is

:52:53. > :52:55.inappropriate to do so. Having secured that with the important

:52:56. > :53:00.principle of transparency in a series case reviews were published

:53:01. > :53:02.and only seen by a few people locally and officials in the

:53:03. > :53:07.Department for Education if we are lucky, it was really important that

:53:08. > :53:12.those serious case reviews, other than in those circumstances where it

:53:13. > :53:15.could be detrimental to surviving children or families involved, and

:53:16. > :53:18.there are some exceptional circumstances that should be the

:53:19. > :53:23.case, those serious case reviews should be published, the lessons

:53:24. > :53:27.learned to see the how they can be applied elsewhere and this new

:53:28. > :53:32.review panel is an exercise in doing so and disseminating best practice

:53:33. > :53:37.rather better. I very much support that and I'd like more details on

:53:38. > :53:42.how that is going to work. Then the section around safeguarding partners

:53:43. > :53:48.which appeared to be replacing the local safeguarding children is board

:53:49. > :53:54.which are really important feature of bringing together local agencies

:53:55. > :53:57.to make sure we have got workable solutions, partnerships in place,

:53:58. > :54:02.particularly to deal with child sexual exploitation at the moment.

:54:03. > :54:11.So we need to be convinced how these are different to local safeguarding

:54:12. > :54:14.boards, how they will be funded in particular, and the section hearing

:54:15. > :54:19.clause 19 around funding says that the safeguarding partners for the

:54:20. > :54:24.local authority area in England may make payments towards expenditure of

:54:25. > :54:29.these, by contributing to a fund or making payments directly and

:54:30. > :54:34.relevant agencies, may make payments, the problem with them at

:54:35. > :54:38.the moment Mr Deputy Speaker, is that not all the partners are

:54:39. > :54:43.pulling their weight and into many cases, they are not turning up the

:54:44. > :54:47.table are not to fund the work and too often it falls to the local

:54:48. > :54:51.authorities, the default partner to pick up too much of the tabs over

:54:52. > :54:55.going to put these on a statutory basis, can we make sure that the

:54:56. > :54:58.funding contribution and the participation, the active

:54:59. > :55:03.participation for the relevant partners is absolutely essential and

:55:04. > :55:08.laid out very clearly and unequivocally. I'm also concerned,

:55:09. > :55:12.it says the safeguarding partners, in England may agree that the areas

:55:13. > :55:17.are to be treated as a single area. How big can they be? It is important

:55:18. > :55:22.that we have local safeguarding children's boards that are able to

:55:23. > :55:26.come up with local safeguarding plans, local plans for child sexual

:55:27. > :55:29.exploitation, relevant to Rotherham with the particular problems in

:55:30. > :55:35.Rotherham or whatever. If we are going to be looking after huge great

:55:36. > :55:41.areas they will surely have their affects dilutive dinky hotspots.

:55:42. > :55:44.When it talks about also having cross-border constabulary,

:55:45. > :55:48.cooperation as well. These are very large areas and I'm concerned about

:55:49. > :55:57.the size of the areas that these new boards could become. I think finally

:55:58. > :56:04.Mr Deputy Speaker, on the parts about the new social work England

:56:05. > :56:08.body. I think we need to improve the regulation of social workers, I'm

:56:09. > :56:13.not sure if this is the right way to do it, I would like to see more

:56:14. > :56:16.details about it. It is a shame about the demise of the College of

:56:17. > :56:19.social work that would have performed a lot of this function if

:56:20. > :56:24.it had been allowed to continue and to thrive, a lot of effort went into

:56:25. > :56:29.setting that up in the first place. But I'm also concerned about the

:56:30. > :56:34.independence of social work England. In mind standing it remains an

:56:35. > :56:37.executive agency of the Department for Education, so we need to have

:56:38. > :56:42.some clarity over that. I'm delighted I get a response top

:56:43. > :56:47.yellow I'm grateful to my honourable friend, I can assure him. That the

:56:48. > :56:50.new body will not be an executive agency, it will be a

:56:51. > :56:56.non-departmentally body, so it will be at arm 's length and I think that

:56:57. > :56:58.is right. I am grateful and gratefully reassured and either

:56:59. > :57:02.forward to supporting that amendment rather than some other amendment

:57:03. > :57:07.that I'm not so sure about. In clause 31, one of the overarching

:57:08. > :57:12.objectives, of the social work England organisation, is to promote

:57:13. > :57:19.and maintain public confidence in social workers in England. Quite

:57:20. > :57:22.right. But dad is also the job of the chief social worker, and one

:57:23. > :57:31.disappointment to me I had to say Mr Deputy Speaker, is that when we set

:57:32. > :57:36.up the appointment of a chief social worker, originally it was to be one

:57:37. > :57:40.chief social worker covering elderly and children but Benny was split

:57:41. > :57:46.into a child social worker and an adult care social worker. The point

:57:47. > :57:51.of a chief social worker, was to be a high-profile face, of social work.

:57:52. > :57:56.For the public in particular, to be a reassuring face of child

:57:57. > :58:01.protection to the public in times of high-profile tragedies and disasters

:58:02. > :58:06.involving safeguarding issues. And so when the current chief social

:58:07. > :58:10.worker for children said recently that "I don't pretend I am a voice

:58:11. > :58:13.for the profession, I'm a civil servant, I see my role is offering

:58:14. > :58:18.advice to ministers based on what others tell me about the system". I

:58:19. > :58:23.think there is more to that role. I think somebody needs not to just be

:58:24. > :58:28.a civil servant, certainly somebody working closely alongside ministers

:58:29. > :58:34.and civil servants, but equally somebody working alongside, on the

:58:35. > :58:37.street, out in action, with social workers and social working

:58:38. > :58:42.consultants and practitioners at the sharp end. I just think that we need

:58:43. > :58:46.to revisit the balance, that we have currently got with that position. So

:58:47. > :58:52.Mr Deputy Speaker I do apologise for going on at length, this is a

:58:53. > :58:57.subject, on which I spent most of my career in government involved in

:58:58. > :59:00.child safety and I'm very proud, with the progress that has been made

:59:01. > :59:06.but I'm very worried that we still have a long way to go, but it will

:59:07. > :59:10.help in that journey, but certain parts of it won't, so I do hope that

:59:11. > :59:15.when scrutinising this building committee and at report stage, the

:59:16. > :59:18.government reflects a little before it rushes back some things which

:59:19. > :59:26.clearly are not in the best interest of honourable children. Doctor

:59:27. > :59:30.Stella Creasy. Thank you Mr Deputy Speaker, it is a true pleasure to

:59:31. > :59:36.follow the member with his detail than the size and some may say the

:59:37. > :59:39.exhaustive analysis, of the bill before us today. And I think I can

:59:40. > :59:43.speak for all of us on the side of the file when I say we share many of

:59:44. > :59:48.the concerns that he has put out to get legislation on how we protect

:59:49. > :59:53.young people in our country right. Can I also associate myself with the

:59:54. > :59:55.excellent instruction, which the member for Ashton-under-Lyme Dave,

:59:56. > :00:00.about this bill. While recognising that there are many parts of this

:00:01. > :00:03.bill that are welcome and could take us forward, in that concern across

:00:04. > :00:07.the house to give the best safeguarding for all children in

:00:08. > :00:11.this country. Because I see this bill about how do we best support

:00:12. > :00:16.our children in an imperfect world. A world that all of us are painfully

:00:17. > :00:19.aware of through casework and work within the communities. I think that

:00:20. > :00:24.is why all of us share perhaps the concern that the honourable member

:00:25. > :00:28.for sure has set out about hardship working and in particular working

:00:29. > :00:32.with those professionals. I think many of us have dealt with cases

:00:33. > :00:34.where we are not aware of professionals, but we are being

:00:35. > :00:38.guided by social workers with years of experience in complex and

:00:39. > :00:42.delicate matters which has been a vital assistance to all of us. A

:00:43. > :00:46.recognition to not involve them in this conversation may take us

:00:47. > :00:49.backwards rather than forwards as a country. I think that is why some

:00:50. > :00:53.vessels have real concerns about what will replace the local

:00:54. > :00:57.safeguarding boards and how we make sure that the multi-partnership work

:00:58. > :01:00.that has work in some parts of the country is not lost in the process

:01:01. > :01:05.of recognising where change is needed. In a wish not to indulge

:01:06. > :01:08.perhaps in one of the customs office house where the same thing said

:01:09. > :01:12.several times, let me try and the Minister some ideas about things

:01:13. > :01:16.that I think missing from this bill and I hope we will find cross-party

:01:17. > :01:21.consensus to add into it. Because I think one of the things, of concern

:01:22. > :01:24.of avoiding any suggestion of privatisation of such a delicate and

:01:25. > :01:29.important services to make sure that we talk about safeguarding, we

:01:30. > :01:32.involve, the conserving or prevention of safeguarding and in

:01:33. > :01:37.particular, the idea that we can act earlier in the system to make sure

:01:38. > :01:40.that children are protected. I'm particularly drawn to clause 16

:01:41. > :01:45.which talks about the safeguarding and promotion of welfare of all

:01:46. > :01:51.children in this country. And the role that local authorities might

:01:52. > :01:55.play in that and it is that in mind, talked about insuring a robust

:01:56. > :01:59.safeguarding system to be in place that I wish to let the Minister know

:02:00. > :02:02.that I will be tabling amendments to this bill to bring in what I

:02:03. > :02:04.consider to be one of the most crucial parts of safeguarding that

:02:05. > :02:09.we have yet to get right in this country. In particular, the idea of

:02:10. > :02:13.sex and relationships education for all young people in this country. We

:02:14. > :02:16.cannot say that we safeguard our children in this country when we

:02:17. > :02:21.make sure that they are taught about composting but not consent in their

:02:22. > :02:27.lives. Many of us may have stories of R.N. Sex and relationships

:02:28. > :02:31.education, I might fear that I was forever scarred about falling asleep

:02:32. > :02:35.in the classroom to be broken by somebody waving a female condom on

:02:36. > :02:39.my face. However, the truth is that it is no laughing matter in this

:02:40. > :02:42.country and I think many of us are acutely aware of the many pressures

:02:43. > :02:47.on our young people that we need to be able to address. And crucially,

:02:48. > :02:51.to be able to address in a positive and inclusive manner. I think all

:02:52. > :02:57.parents will tell you that they are concerned about the world today. In

:02:58. > :03:03.a former lifetime I was a youth worker agrees to say that all of us

:03:04. > :03:06.been 15-year-olds, I am indeed incredibly grateful that Facebook

:03:07. > :03:10.was not around when I was at school for a start. A third of young girls

:03:11. > :03:14.in this country report being sexually harassed in school, three

:03:15. > :03:17.quarters of girls in a girl guiding survey said they were anxious about

:03:18. > :03:23.sexual harassment in their age group. And 5500 sexual offences

:03:24. > :03:29.recorded in UK schools over the last three years alone. 600 rates. This

:03:30. > :03:34.is not to make parents fearful, but it is to ask what we can do to make

:03:35. > :03:37.sure that every young person in this country as the tools and the

:03:38. > :03:42.confidence to lead the lives that we would all wish for. To be able to

:03:43. > :03:47.know when no means no and yes Means yes. That is why it is important

:03:48. > :03:50.that we do not let it become the Internet that educate our young

:03:51. > :03:55.people. That we do not let it become the playground that tells them what

:03:56. > :03:58.passes for acceptable sexual conduct at that we actually give every young

:03:59. > :04:03.person the kind of training that you would want for our own children.

:04:04. > :04:07.This is not a critique of parents. Indeed many parents worked very hard

:04:08. > :04:11.to make sure that their children have good ideas about sex and

:04:12. > :04:15.relationship education. It is about recognising that parents can only be

:04:16. > :04:21.50% of the answer. It is about children that are the children will

:04:22. > :04:23.meet. So giving every child sex and relationship education should be

:04:24. > :04:26.part of safeguarding because it is make you sure that every young

:04:27. > :04:29.person who ever they come into contact with has the skills and the

:04:30. > :04:34.tools to leave the light that they would wish. That they would be able

:04:35. > :04:38.to deal with the modern world as it is, not perhaps as some would wish

:04:39. > :04:42.it were. Now I know that we will find support for this proposal

:04:43. > :04:46.across the house. I'm very mindful of the support from the select

:04:47. > :04:51.committee chairman, and I was very taken by the report that committee

:04:52. > :04:55.came out with. But is not just the women's equality committee, it is

:04:56. > :05:02.home affairs and education and the health committee, it is business and

:05:03. > :05:07.energy strategy committee, to make sure that everyone is given good

:05:08. > :05:11.access to sexual education. I think she is referring to the previous

:05:12. > :05:14.chair of the home affairs select committee, that was signed and it

:05:15. > :05:18.wasn't on behalf of the select committee and I said I would not be

:05:19. > :05:21.but supporting it, I certainly support the move for education to

:05:22. > :05:26.achieve that and not least we need to look, this bill is about building

:05:27. > :05:30.resilience and trying to support families and mini to do that in lots

:05:31. > :05:35.of ways, not only through I think the path of what she's alluding to,

:05:36. > :05:39.but please make sure that she recognises there is significant

:05:40. > :05:43.opposition to her proposal. I thank the member for stating that, I hope

:05:44. > :05:47.we can through the discussion through this change his mind. We

:05:48. > :05:51.have had this debate for some time and I tell him plainly that young

:05:52. > :05:56.people for Britain, are crying out for this kind of education. Time

:05:57. > :06:01.after time, they say that ignorance is not bliss, confidence is what we

:06:02. > :06:05.want, and it is not about replacing parents, it is about supporting

:06:06. > :06:09.them. It is about making sure that wherever our young people are, they

:06:10. > :06:14.have the right kind of young people around them. It is too important now

:06:15. > :06:17.not to listen to our young people, to be done in an age appropriate

:06:18. > :06:22.fashion within their schools. The time is now to get this right and I

:06:23. > :06:26.think it is recognition that the select committee chairs across this

:06:27. > :06:32.house, and while he may not have shared the support of this letter I

:06:33. > :06:37.believe that many will. It is right that we allay those fears because

:06:38. > :06:43.the consequence of not doing so, is to leave those young people at risk.

:06:44. > :06:46.It is a risk I didn't think we can accept. It is why I agree with the

:06:47. > :06:50.Secretary of State when she said she was minded to see this happen, she

:06:51. > :06:55.wanted to look at all options to do this. That is why believe the time

:06:56. > :06:58.is now to do this within this bill because I recognise there was

:06:59. > :07:03.discussion of doing this in the forthcoming education thing which is

:07:04. > :07:09.now stalling for whatever reason. It is too important to delay this

:07:10. > :07:12.matter. And that means using the legislative opportunity before us,

:07:13. > :07:17.to recognise that in order to safeguard every young person, they

:07:18. > :07:23.need to talk about consent, not just about the biology of sex but how to

:07:24. > :07:26.have positive relationships, equal relationships, safe relationships,

:07:27. > :07:30.and the honest truth is that is not happening for too many of our young

:07:31. > :07:33.people and we are seeing the consequences as a result. What I

:07:34. > :07:37.will be asking the government to do is to make sure that this is part of

:07:38. > :07:41.safeguarding at a local level and make sure that schools are given the

:07:42. > :07:47.guidance to be able to do this work for every young person and to make

:07:48. > :07:50.sure that they are doing it in a way that is age-appropriate and

:07:51. > :07:55.inclusive, and works with communities and above all, not

:07:56. > :07:58.simply to consult but to set a timetable because for two young I

:07:59. > :08:01.young people had been asking us to get this right and for too long

:08:02. > :08:07.their poise has not been heard in this debate. Now I hope, that the

:08:08. > :08:12.honourable member. Two is no longer in his place will be will see cross

:08:13. > :08:17.court seek support. I know members on my side including a front bench

:08:18. > :08:22.will be supporting it. I'll be happy to be sitting down to make it work

:08:23. > :08:27.but I don't think any of us can be happy, that there is genuine

:08:28. > :08:30.agreement that this needs to happen. Because we are failing our young

:08:31. > :08:36.people if we keep taking this issue into the long grass. Now, there is

:08:37. > :08:41.one other area as well I hope I can convince the minister that there

:08:42. > :08:48.will be cross-party support it. Perhaps the member for Enfield

:08:49. > :08:52.Southgate, to do with these amendments around child refugees. We

:08:53. > :08:57.were on the same side and it came to supporting those young people in

:08:58. > :09:01.Calais and let me start by acknowledging, safeguarding child

:09:02. > :09:04.refugees and about recognising the importance of extending safeguarding

:09:05. > :09:07.proposals to our young people, the statement that he made however, is I

:09:08. > :09:11.believed undermined by the guidance that will set up by the Home Office

:09:12. > :09:17.at the same time that he set out that statement, which caused the

:09:18. > :09:20.noble Lord dubs, pitcher Mendis champion, to withdraw his amendment

:09:21. > :09:24.to this very bad about this very matter. That amendment was withdrawn

:09:25. > :09:27.on the basis that there was it will across the house to make sure that

:09:28. > :09:31.we safeguard child refugees including during the process of

:09:32. > :09:36.transferring them overseas to the UK. I will happily give way. Could I

:09:37. > :09:40.thank the honourable friend for giving way and can I congratulate

:09:41. > :09:44.her on her outstanding work in regard to unaccompanied asylum

:09:45. > :09:49.seekers who often are voiced this. Can I also ask her advice on whether

:09:50. > :09:51.she thinks there is enough being done on counselling for

:09:52. > :09:58.post-traumatic postal Matic stress for those children who are seeing

:09:59. > :10:01.things that are quite unimaginable? Has thanked the honourable friend,

:10:02. > :10:05.she raises an incredibly important point. Counting should be part of

:10:06. > :10:08.the safeguarding process, however one of the concerns that many of us

:10:09. > :10:12.have what dealing with these young people is that many of them are

:10:13. > :10:16.still in France, precisely because of the guidance that the Home Office

:10:17. > :10:20.issued. Which stated that there would be a 2-step process and

:10:21. > :10:24.specify that nationality could be one of the criteria for helping

:10:25. > :10:29.child refugees, ahead of their best interests. It cannot be in the best

:10:30. > :10:32.interest of HR to put nationality before need and I would hope that

:10:33. > :10:37.the Minister will recognise, that the detail that is in his statement,

:10:38. > :10:41.of the 1st of November is undermined by such a strategy and therefore it

:10:42. > :10:45.is right in amendments to this bill that we clarify that this country

:10:46. > :10:54.would always put the best interests of a child first. And that should

:10:55. > :10:58.intrude the trial refugees. I was with them on the amendment but where

:10:59. > :11:01.there is perhaps a link with the previous proposal is that we can

:11:02. > :11:07.agree on the outcomes, it is how we achieve those. Whether we need

:11:08. > :11:11.statute to be able to will the ends, whether there are other means to

:11:12. > :11:15.achieve it. We will have that debate about the other members, but in

:11:16. > :11:20.terms of the other scapegoating amendment, the issue now is an

:11:21. > :11:22.implementation can we even saw with the dubs amendment, it is the

:11:23. > :11:30.practical implementation, doesn't always need it, to hold to tout the

:11:31. > :11:33.good words that need to be made. I thank the member for his part

:11:34. > :11:38.because action do agree with him on much of what he is saying a

:11:39. > :11:40.difference of having to prescribe and recognising locally led

:11:41. > :11:44.solutions but however I disagree with him fundamentally, for

:11:45. > :11:48.precisely the same reason that he's putting out. The outcomes that are

:11:49. > :11:53.being achieved are not what has been desired by the will of this place.

:11:54. > :11:56.So the outcome on sex and relationship education is not being

:11:57. > :11:59.achieved at a local level because there is in this clarity about what

:12:00. > :12:02.schools should be teaching and therefore too many young people are

:12:03. > :12:05.not getting the appropriate support that they need sick even with the

:12:06. > :12:09.best will in the world and parenting in the world unless we wrap those

:12:10. > :12:22.children up in cotton wool, the other people may present a risk. So

:12:23. > :12:24.to child refugees, sadly what we have seen throughout the process of

:12:25. > :12:26.the amendments, is goodwill in this place slowly ebbing away wedding the

:12:27. > :12:29.meditation has not match the outcome desired. Nowhere is that clear than

:12:30. > :12:32.trying to say that nationality is more important that need and I say

:12:33. > :12:35.to the Minister many of us were delighted by the statement that he

:12:36. > :12:41.made on the first of the member and then horrified to read the Home

:12:42. > :12:44.Office guidance that seemed to be against that spirit. I believe that

:12:45. > :12:50.we must carry five that we must always act in the best interest of

:12:51. > :12:53.the children just as Lord dubs seemed to want to in table in his

:12:54. > :12:57.original amendment. You remember well know the battle we have had, is

:12:58. > :13:01.difficult and uncomfortable as some of these debates might be. While

:13:02. > :13:06.some people might have concerned, surely all of us must want to act in

:13:07. > :13:10.the best interest. I'm sorry have to tell the Minister that the conduct

:13:11. > :13:14.of the Minister has made many of us believe that amendments are a

:13:15. > :13:17.necessary and I will be seeking against making this happen so that

:13:18. > :13:21.we can put this beyond doubt because sadly that guidance from the Home

:13:22. > :13:26.Office does put it in doubt as a result. I do not wish to echo the

:13:27. > :13:29.member from shore, not to undermine anything in terms of length. But I

:13:30. > :13:33.hope in terms of the proposals, that I can say, I'm looking forward to

:13:34. > :13:37.being part of this legislative process and the Dee Ford to

:13:38. > :13:40.scrutinising and seeking cross-party agreement on these issues because I

:13:41. > :13:43.think all of us in this house recognise that protecting Jordan is

:13:44. > :13:46.one of the most important jobs that we do. There may be disagreements

:13:47. > :13:51.about getting there but we do have to get there, you cannot avoid these

:13:52. > :13:55.issues any Morkel whether it is young people facing that uncertain

:13:56. > :14:00.world or stuck in this child centres, we owe a responsibility to

:14:01. > :14:03.all of them just as we're responsibility, through the

:14:04. > :14:08.parenting laws and I hope that they will listen and respond. I'm sure

:14:09. > :14:15.many others will. What we will not do is rest until this is resolved.

:14:16. > :14:19.Thank you Mr Deputy Speaker, it is an honour, to follow the Honourable

:14:20. > :14:30.lady had to hear broadly the support from the opposition for this bill,

:14:31. > :14:34.as my honourable friend the member, four East Worthing and Shoreham

:14:35. > :14:39.said, we just need to do better, for vulnerable children and challenge is

:14:40. > :14:44.part of that, and new ideas are part of that as well. We can't allow this

:14:45. > :14:49.bill to be a missed opportunity, we can't allow it to be a missed

:14:50. > :14:52.opportunity in terms of prevention, and in terms of knowledge that we

:14:53. > :14:59.give to children. Because they are as much part of the safeguarding

:15:00. > :15:03.process. As any other structure all law, or piece of legislation. We put

:15:04. > :15:08.through this place. The focus of this bill is very much about

:15:09. > :15:12.children who can't remain in the family home, but has been broadened,

:15:13. > :15:17.particularly by the government amendments in the other place. To

:15:18. > :15:22.consider broader issues around child welfare and in my remarks today, I

:15:23. > :15:28.would like to focus on some of those broader issues. In particular,

:15:29. > :15:32.provisions regarding, adopted children and the ongoing support for

:15:33. > :15:38.children who are adopted. The more contentious issue which some members

:15:39. > :15:43.have, talked about today, innovating, the clause that was

:15:44. > :15:48.voted down and then finally, what this bill may perhaps be able to do

:15:49. > :15:51.as I said before, to improve the welfare of children and particularly

:15:52. > :15:57.to power those children themselves. So in terms of the provisions in the

:15:58. > :15:58.bill around adoption, it considers improvements to a long-term

:15:59. > :16:07.placement of children for Adoption. I hope the Minister can

:16:08. > :16:11.use this opportunity to tell the house how this measure sits

:16:12. > :16:14.alongside some recent announcements, that the government has made

:16:15. > :16:20.regarding the adoption and support fund and in particular, I'm thinking

:16:21. > :16:24.about the interim cap on financial support put in place midway through

:16:25. > :16:30.the financial year. The adoption support fund helps to make sure that

:16:31. > :16:34.really important therapeutic support, can be funded, for adopted

:16:35. > :16:40.children. Who are sometimes coping with very difficult trauma, complex

:16:41. > :16:45.and challenging behaviour. And indeed mental health problems as

:16:46. > :16:52.well. Which can result in them being at high risk, of adoption breakdown.

:16:53. > :16:56.This fund helps already thousands of families, I believe Mr Deputy

:16:57. > :17:00.Speaker, three and a half thousand families last year and the budget is

:17:01. > :17:05.being increased by the government, to around ?23 million this year. A

:17:06. > :17:09.significant investment, I think perhaps underpinning, this

:17:10. > :17:15.Minister's very real understanding of the challenges, that parents of

:17:16. > :17:20.adopted children face through his own family experience, and deep

:17:21. > :17:24.knowledge of the subject and I would like to put on record my thanks to

:17:25. > :17:30.to the Minister for all he has done to support families with adopted

:17:31. > :17:34.children and I know my constituents, are grateful for his expertise in

:17:35. > :17:38.this area. Perhaps Mr Deputy Speaker we should be unsurprised to hear

:17:39. > :17:44.that demand for this fund has outstripped supply of finances, and

:17:45. > :17:48.the Minister, with the inevitable fiscal duties that are upon him, has

:17:49. > :17:53.been put in a position where the cap has had to be introduced to this

:17:54. > :17:56.budget in October of this year. And whilst it is absolutely

:17:57. > :18:02.understandable that, this is a normal response to keeping control

:18:03. > :18:05.on budgetary pressures, it has inevitably created uncertainties for

:18:06. > :18:13.families like my constituents, Mr and Mrs Cross, who adopted their son

:18:14. > :18:16.in August 2013, now Mr and Mrs Cross are one of those families who really

:18:17. > :18:23.are incredible, in the work that they do. They have adopted a young

:18:24. > :18:28.child, who has a spectrum disorder. And as many members across the house

:18:29. > :18:34.will know, this means that, they require significant support for

:18:35. > :18:40.their son. But they have, taken, the measures that are needed to support

:18:41. > :18:45.him, and are doing a fantastic job, the therapy he now receives has been

:18:46. > :18:51.hugely beneficial, and has led to real progress but because the cost

:18:52. > :18:55.is in excess of the new ?5,000 cap, it is at this point uncertain, as to

:18:56. > :19:02.whether the funding will be available in the near future. The

:19:03. > :19:06.next phase of treatment costs around ?10,000, and would require her local

:19:07. > :19:13.authority in Hampshire, in the year to match fund any costs over ?5,000.

:19:14. > :19:18.Now close eight in the bill calls for long-term plans for the care of

:19:19. > :19:22.a child, to be in place yet my constituents, who are making an

:19:23. > :19:27.incredible choice to care for a severely disabled child, are at this

:19:28. > :19:32.point I'm sure, -- unsure where the care can be funded. And the Minister

:19:33. > :19:36.perhaps in his response today will be able to perhaps think about this

:19:37. > :19:40.and give his reflections on the local authority, and like mine in

:19:41. > :19:46.Hampshire and how it would respond to this and perhaps he can give my

:19:47. > :19:50.constituents, some measure of reassurance, that the support for

:19:51. > :19:54.their child can be continued in the future. The second issue I wanted to

:19:55. > :19:59.talk about as well this evening, Mr Deputy Speaker, is that clearly very

:20:00. > :20:05.controversial issue around the power to innovate. And, it has been

:20:06. > :20:09.clearly a very contentious issue in the other place, and the first

:20:10. > :20:16.section, the first part of this bill passing through Parliament. It was,

:20:17. > :20:21.a clause that was removed, voted out previously. Clauses 15 to 18. This

:20:22. > :20:26.provision allowed local authorities to apply to the Secretary of State

:20:27. > :20:31.to test new ways of working to raise awareness, to raise children's

:20:32. > :20:34.outcomes and new ways of doing that. And particularly, for high

:20:35. > :20:39.performing local authorities to be involved in that work. Now I think

:20:40. > :20:45.it is important Mr Deputy Speaker of course, to pay heed, to the very

:20:46. > :20:49.strongly felt concerns that were raised, by expert voice is not just

:20:50. > :20:56.on the other place, but outwith of this place as well. And I will be

:20:57. > :21:00.interested to hear the Minister 's response to those concerns that have

:21:01. > :21:05.been echoed again today, but the Department for Education, I think is

:21:06. > :21:11.really putting into place something that we do need to look at again in

:21:12. > :21:14.these measures. And really, giving partners in practice, which my local

:21:15. > :21:19.authority in Hampshire, is one of only eight in the country, the

:21:20. > :21:23.opportunity to look at innovative ways of working. If we are to find

:21:24. > :21:29.better ways to care for the vulnerable children that we all feel

:21:30. > :21:34.so deeply about, we need to be I think open to new ideas. And I hope

:21:35. > :21:41.that it might be possible to revisit the idea of this course which was

:21:42. > :21:48.very much supported by my and local authority in Hampshire, and it is

:21:49. > :21:53.right that this tightly regulated area, is as protected as it is. But

:21:54. > :21:58.I cannot believe that it would not benefit, from looking at new ways of

:21:59. > :22:03.working and we have all seen the examples that have been given to us

:22:04. > :22:06.in the briefings for today. But what I would say, is perhaps some of the

:22:07. > :22:12.honourable members have put their finger on it today. Perhaps, it is

:22:13. > :22:16.the fact that the measures somewhat came out of the blue I think, it was

:22:17. > :22:21.my honourable friend who said that. And that, we need to I think take

:22:22. > :22:26.care that we don't throw the baby out of the bath water as we move

:22:27. > :22:29.forward. I don't think the Minister had any intention for these measures

:22:30. > :22:34.to create a competition between local authorities, but to drive

:22:35. > :22:39.improvement and I think that is something that we would all want to

:22:40. > :22:44.applaud. No one I think is suggesting, that this approach would

:22:45. > :22:49.do anything other than drive innovation. In what has been an area

:22:50. > :22:55.each has developed in somewhat of a piecemeal way the inevitable in

:22:56. > :22:57.response to the various, sometimes quite appalling situation is that

:22:58. > :23:04.the local authorities have found themselves in. My honourable friend,

:23:05. > :23:09.said, he talked about the need, for policy and law to work in practice.

:23:10. > :23:13.I had to say Mr Deputy Speaker that when I read the Hansard from the

:23:14. > :23:18.other place about the debate here, and I read the Minister in the other

:23:19. > :23:23.place's response, that is exactly what I felt, this set of clauses was

:23:24. > :23:26.trying to do. And I think the intention is for the local

:23:27. > :23:32.authorities to be able to look at how they will make the work in

:23:33. > :23:37.practice, rather than, create somewhat of a postcode lottery. When

:23:38. > :23:41.they have that insight into better ways of working, to be able to pass

:23:42. > :23:45.that out to other areas, to be able to improve the way that we care for

:23:46. > :23:50.this vulnerable group of individuals. The final issue that I

:23:51. > :23:55.would like to raise Mr Deputy Speaker, and in terms of this bill,

:23:56. > :23:59.the first reading, is what we are doing, building on what durable lady

:24:00. > :24:04.for Walthamstow has been talking about what we are doing to empower

:24:05. > :24:08.children themselves. Especially perhaps vulnerable children, who

:24:09. > :24:11.might not have the consistent involvement of their parents in

:24:12. > :24:16.their lives and frankly face really difficult situations.

:24:17. > :24:24.In they have to take decisions about their own welfare with a the import

:24:25. > :24:30.of other adults to guide them. This bill and many others put in place,

:24:31. > :24:34.laws and procedures and protocols to help protect and improve the welfare

:24:35. > :24:39.of children through a whole host of agencies but it does not actually

:24:40. > :24:43.directly address what it is we're going to do do have those children

:24:44. > :24:47.themselves to make sure that they are armed with the knowledge they

:24:48. > :24:52.need help make the right choices to be able to safeguard themselves.

:24:53. > :24:56.This is the new concept, what we've done for many years. To try and

:24:57. > :25:09.encourage children to understand the dangers around drugs and alcohol.

:25:10. > :25:15.It is hugely important as parents and carers who now we have the prime

:25:16. > :25:19.responsibility to protect our children, we know that but we also

:25:20. > :25:24.know that our children need the ability to make good choices too, we

:25:25. > :25:30.can't be there 24 - seven. Social workers can't be there 24-7 and it

:25:31. > :25:36.is absolutely important that children have the ability to be able

:25:37. > :25:40.to make these decisions themselves in an informed way. This bill

:25:41. > :25:44.provides I think the perfect opportunity for the government to

:25:45. > :25:50.positively respond to the five select committee chair who have

:25:51. > :25:55.called for that and sex and relationship education to meet

:25:56. > :26:00.compulsory for school age children and I'm one of those select

:26:01. > :26:04.committee chair as a result of the work we did around our most recent

:26:05. > :26:10.report, sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools report which I

:26:11. > :26:15.think was a very sobering experience for all of our select committee

:26:16. > :26:19.members to take it on. What I'm talking about is to help empower

:26:20. > :26:24.children to be able to make their own decisions and when you start to

:26:25. > :26:29.hear some of the evidence and the statistics are run the challenges

:26:30. > :26:35.young people face in terms of personal welfare then I think this

:26:36. > :26:40.becomes clear that the debate is overdue and needs to happen and take

:26:41. > :26:41.action now. Two thirds of girls are experiencing sexual harassment in

:26:42. > :26:59.schools a regular basis. Our third of them were where

:27:00. > :27:05.children were perpetrated against other children. Community should be

:27:06. > :27:12.able to enjoy some sort of freedom and safety and school communities

:27:13. > :27:17.are no different to any others. When we look at what happens to children

:27:18. > :27:21.after their school life, 68% of students say that they are subject

:27:22. > :27:29.to verbal, physical or sexual harassment on campuses and the

:27:30. > :27:33.problem doesn't stop there. 85% of women are experiencing unwanted

:27:34. > :27:39.sexual attention in public places. I think the honourable lady from

:27:40. > :27:42.Walthamstow is right when she says it's about prevention, it's about

:27:43. > :27:45.making sure that we can prevent these problems happening in the

:27:46. > :27:49.first place by ensuring that children have the knowledge about

:27:50. > :27:51.how to make good decisions about what consent is and what control

:27:52. > :28:01.they can have over their own personal space. There has been a

:28:02. > :28:05.great deal of debating on this bill and many amendments in the other

:28:06. > :28:10.place particularly around the importance of joint working between

:28:11. > :28:15.agencies and particularly demonstrated by the importance of

:28:16. > :28:19.local authorities, the police and CCGs working together for the

:28:20. > :28:23.welfare of children in government amendment 103 in the other place. In

:28:24. > :28:28.placing that amendment the government recognised that a

:28:29. > :28:32.multifaceted strategy in this area in terms of welfare for children is

:28:33. > :28:37.absolutely vital. But there's another set of organisations that

:28:38. > :28:40.have a crucial role to play as well with children's welfare and those

:28:41. > :28:48.are schools. If this bill is to do as it sets out to to promote welfare

:28:49. > :28:51.for it also needs to make sex and relationship education compulsory to

:28:52. > :28:53.make sure that it is doing absolutely everything it can to

:28:54. > :29:00.protect children's welfare for future. What is compulsory in

:29:01. > :29:06.secondary schools at the moment is the science of reproduction, the

:29:07. > :29:12.rest is guidance that was last updated in the turn of the

:29:13. > :29:14.millennium in 2000 which makes no reference to pornography which we

:29:15. > :29:21.know as a way that more young children are finding out about sex.

:29:22. > :29:25.We know that 40% of schools do not teach sex and relationship education

:29:26. > :29:28.very well. Perhaps all of this is why organisations like Barnard is

:29:29. > :29:38.clear that the development of an early understanding and respect for

:29:39. > :29:42.each other's bodies and went to ask for help can help build resilience

:29:43. > :29:47.and understanding of what healthy relationships looked like and also

:29:48. > :29:53.to mitigate the effects of exposure to things like pornography.

:29:54. > :29:57.Following closely in agreeing with much of what she's saying and as is

:29:58. > :30:00.the want of various children's bills it strays into all sorts of subjects

:30:01. > :30:04.concerning children that are not in the bill but on this one I support

:30:05. > :30:10.her but there she agree me that one way of getting better quality sex

:30:11. > :30:13.and relationship education which we definitely need is by bringing

:30:14. > :30:17.experts in from outside of skills particularly young youth workers and

:30:18. > :30:22.others who can empathise with young people who they will listen to, take

:30:23. > :30:26.notice of and act on their advice rather than try to rely on Mrs Megan

:30:27. > :30:31.is the geography teacher who happen to have a couple of free period on a

:30:32. > :30:34.Thursday afternoon. I thank my honourable and for that intervention

:30:35. > :30:39.and he's absolutely right, we have to have expertise when it comes to

:30:40. > :30:43.teaching the subject but what I set out is the reason I am reading this

:30:44. > :30:47.is if we are going to tackle the welfare of children and we have to

:30:48. > :30:51.make sure we are effective in what we do, it's no good leading children

:30:52. > :30:57.out of the equation, we have to tackle that head-on. We don't

:30:58. > :31:03.disagree with him that under trained teacher are not the way to put in

:31:04. > :31:06.place effective sex and relationship education. All teachers whether they

:31:07. > :31:11.are Mrs Megan 's teaching geography or anybody else. They have to have

:31:12. > :31:15.an understanding of how they can stop the violence sexual harassment

:31:16. > :31:35.and sexual violence that too many young people

:31:36. > :31:45.told us. I agree with everything she is saying. This is in the bill

:31:46. > :31:48.because close 16 not only talks about promoting the welfare of

:31:49. > :31:56.children but also requires local authorities to work with relevant

:31:57. > :32:01.agencies. That is exactly what schools do, this is entirely an

:32:02. > :32:11.order and why we need to do it now. Thank you for that intervention.

:32:12. > :32:15.Sometimes in this place we can be concerned of raising the issue of

:32:16. > :32:18.sex education and information because we feel we are taking away a

:32:19. > :32:28.primary function of parents and that is simply not the way parents see

:32:29. > :32:33.it. That would show that 90% of parents want compulsory sex and

:32:34. > :32:42.relationship. Because they understand the pressures their

:32:43. > :32:48.children are under. Teachers understand this to because they

:32:49. > :32:53.understand the importance of helping when people navigate an appropriate

:32:54. > :33:05.way the pressures of being a teenager in the Internet world.

:33:06. > :33:11.Five select committee chairs as a result of the work that those select

:33:12. > :33:17.committees have done, indeed the DfEE has told the education

:33:18. > :33:21.committee that good PS H E underpins good academic achievement, we know

:33:22. > :33:25.that children who have received sex and relationship education and PA

:33:26. > :33:30.said she broadly are less likely to engage in risky behaviours and are

:33:31. > :33:37.much more likely to seek help when things go wrong. Children need to be

:33:38. > :33:41.able to recognise grooming and predatory behaviour and as Alison

:33:42. > :33:43.Hanley of the University of Bedfordshire told the education

:33:44. > :33:49.committee, if children have no ammunition to understand no wonder

:33:50. > :33:55.they end up in dangerous situations. Educating children about this is not

:33:56. > :34:17.an optional extra, it needs to be mandatory.

:34:18. > :34:38.The government established a group for PHSE. It is an area that 90% of

:34:39. > :34:43.children of parents want action on, violence against women are calling

:34:44. > :34:50.for action on it, the NSPCC and the list goes on and Colin the Minister

:34:51. > :34:54.to put in place a timetable for action including compressors a

:34:55. > :34:59.consultation to make sure that we get this right. Nobody is calling

:35:00. > :35:03.for rushed measures. This has been something as honourable members have

:35:04. > :35:12.already said that has been ongoing for some time. To make sex and

:35:13. > :35:14.relationship education compulsory and to do it in a way that brings

:35:15. > :35:29.this whole house together. I'm very pleased to be following my

:35:30. > :35:34.honourable friend from Basingstoke this afternoon. Firstly, I would

:35:35. > :35:39.like to say that I very much welcome this debate with the time and the

:35:40. > :35:46.focus it is spending looking at the outcomes for our children to be

:35:47. > :35:50.looked after and also that of the social work profession. However I

:35:51. > :35:56.must declare an interest. My sister is a senior practising social worker

:35:57. > :35:59.and I prior to coming to the member of Parliament worked for supporting

:36:00. > :36:04.fostering service and a contact supervisor capacity. I am also still

:36:05. > :36:08.connected with this charity as I remain an independent visitor for

:36:09. > :36:13.one of our looked after children. Madam Deputy is bigger, I consider

:36:14. > :36:17.myself to be extremely lucky. I was brought up in a safe and loving

:36:18. > :36:23.environment and was given the necessary tools to go out into the

:36:24. > :36:28.big bad world and make my own way. In 2007, I got involved for the

:36:29. > :36:32.first time in the charity supporting fostering services via my sister.

:36:33. > :36:40.This was the first time I had the privilege to meet and work after

:36:41. > :36:44.children, their families, carers and social workers and see first hand

:36:45. > :36:49.the challenges that young people face and those of the social work

:36:50. > :36:53.profession. There has been an increase in children becoming looked

:36:54. > :36:57.after and some of this has been attributed to a number of

:36:58. > :37:01.unaccompanied asylum seeking children representing 6% of the

:37:02. > :37:05.looked after population. I have also seen at local level the increase of

:37:06. > :37:09.children in care. In this environment it is right that this

:37:10. > :37:13.government and society are putting the outcomes of our young people at

:37:14. > :37:18.the top of the agenda, it's also right that focus is given to

:37:19. > :37:24.decisions made about the futures of our young people. In my limited

:37:25. > :37:27.involvement over the last nine years, I have seen some fantastic

:37:28. > :37:34.outcomes for our young people but far too many disappointing ones,

:37:35. > :37:37.some due to decisions made about their futures and also down to a

:37:38. > :37:42.lack of proper understanding of the Child and the use of timely best

:37:43. > :37:48.interventions. There is one young person who has been in care for over

:37:49. > :37:52.ten years since the age of four and has had to go through unbelievable

:37:53. > :37:59.experiences which even an adult would struggle to cope with. Being

:38:00. > :38:03.split from siblings, attending therapy, a failed adoption, a time

:38:04. > :38:08.in a therapeutic centre and a number of foster placements and social

:38:09. > :38:12.workers. Luckily, this young person has found now an amazing placement

:38:13. > :38:17.and has an amazing strength of character and resilience which we

:38:18. > :38:21.could only hope to have. They will succeed but this will be in spite of

:38:22. > :38:27.intervention is not solely because of them. Nobody can disagree that if

:38:28. > :38:32.a young person is ready for adoption and there is a family which is a

:38:33. > :38:36.perfect match that adoption should always be a major consideration by

:38:37. > :38:39.social services and the courts for that child. Achieving the best

:38:40. > :38:45.future outcomes for that young person should be the absolute focus

:38:46. > :38:50.and duty of social services and the courts. Unfortunately I have seen

:38:51. > :38:54.decisions about adoption delayed, in my opinion due to too much focus

:38:55. > :39:01.being given to the challenges by the birth parents and the focus of their

:39:02. > :39:05.needs, even with report after report, recommending a decision.

:39:06. > :39:09.This is not putting the child first when judgments are allowed to be

:39:10. > :39:14.challenged for longer of time. A social worker once said to me, I

:39:15. > :39:19.don't like adoptions, they make me feel nervous. I asked why and they

:39:20. > :39:22.said the stakes are too high, and the time I didn't quite know what

:39:23. > :39:27.she meant and thought it was rather an odd thing for a social worker to

:39:28. > :39:30.say. However after being present and seeing the damage that a failed

:39:31. > :39:36.adoption can cause, I finally understood. Relationships with

:39:37. > :39:39.children are like all relationships. We as adults don't like everybody

:39:40. > :39:43.that we come into contact with and this is the same for children. We

:39:44. > :39:49.ask a lot of children and adopters when maybe after only two week

:39:50. > :39:53.introduction period we put strangers together and hope it works out OK. I

:39:54. > :39:57.know the process is far more confiscated our fundamentally we

:39:58. > :40:00.hope the good relationship is built after an initial honeymoon period

:40:01. > :40:05.and the adopters and children are given the support they need for it

:40:06. > :40:09.to be a success. I have seen children given the best chance of a

:40:10. > :40:12.great life when adoptions have worked at once an adoption order has

:40:13. > :40:19.gone through, the support from the agency stops. The stakes are high

:40:20. > :40:25.with adoption and it is therefore my believe that adoption, if possible,

:40:26. > :40:30.be regarded as the perfect solution but it will always be very much

:40:31. > :40:33.dependent on the individual child and the use of special guardianship

:40:34. > :40:40.is a long-term placements should not be undermined by a focus on

:40:41. > :40:43.adoption. I welcomed the fact that the support for care leavers are

:40:44. > :40:49.featuring heavily in this bill with the local offer and the extension of

:40:50. > :40:52.personal advisers, this is a major step forward for supporting this

:40:53. > :40:56.very vulnerable young group of people as they make the difficult

:40:57. > :41:00.transition coming out of care to going it alone. Some of our young

:41:01. > :41:06.people have been exposed to experiences and upbringing some of

:41:07. > :41:09.us would travel to comprehend also because the care system tries to

:41:10. > :41:13.wrap them in a safety blanket, a child care can be far less prepared

:41:14. > :41:18.to go it alone without having a supportive network of trusted people

:41:19. > :41:20.giving guidance and having to make decisions for themselves. Most

:41:21. > :41:25.decisions in the past would have been for them. It is a long outdated

:41:26. > :41:30.view that once you reach 18 or even into your early 20s that you don't

:41:31. > :41:34.need help. The extension of personal advisers working with our young

:41:35. > :41:37.people to make sure they are getting the right access to the right

:41:38. > :41:41.services that they need, being given the support they deserve in order

:41:42. > :41:46.for them to succeed, putting them on a pathway to achieve their full

:41:47. > :41:50.potential is great and I very much welcome this. However I would like

:41:51. > :41:54.the Minister to outline further out in practice this would work. That

:41:55. > :41:57.all personal advisers would always be social workers and how plans for

:41:58. > :42:01.young people leaving care will be monitored and evaluated so that it

:42:02. > :42:08.is not just a tick box exercise by local authorities but providing

:42:09. > :42:10.meaningful help, support and advice to our vulnerable young people and

:42:11. > :42:18.the personal advisers getting to know the young person and truly

:42:19. > :42:22.understanding their needs. The local offer would be extremely important

:42:23. > :42:25.to these young people but we know due to budget burdens of local

:42:26. > :42:28.authorities, unless there is a statutory obligation to deliver

:42:29. > :42:33.services in very much depends on the local priorities of the Council

:42:34. > :42:37.delivering that support. Investment in our most vulnerable young people

:42:38. > :42:43.at this most crucial time in their lives can only bring future awards.

:42:44. > :42:50.I would like to see a high-quality offer by local authorities for our

:42:51. > :42:54.young people. We know there is a higher proportion of formerly looked

:42:55. > :42:58.after children that are not in education, employment or training.

:42:59. > :43:01.We also know that leaving care and going it alone can present barriers

:43:02. > :43:06.to the young person to move forward in a positive way with their lives,

:43:07. > :43:09.even though they can think of this time as being an exciting time and

:43:10. > :43:14.when they're full of hope. However we do know that some of these young

:43:15. > :43:18.people will never had to manage their own finances whilst being in

:43:19. > :43:21.care and they are much more vulnerable to getting into debt and

:43:22. > :43:26.not being able to manage without that safety net which a family or

:43:27. > :43:30.care can provide. We must make sure that our young people are given all

:43:31. > :43:34.the tools to help them succeed and I do believe that the group of

:43:35. > :43:38.individuals deserve to be treated differently with regards to

:43:39. > :43:40.accommodation provision, access to funds in order for them to be able

:43:41. > :43:46.to move forward and be given the best chance to succeed. I represent

:43:47. > :43:55.a constituency which has a young offenders Institute and a training

:43:56. > :43:58.centre. All too often these institutions have been looked after

:43:59. > :44:02.and I believe this is a direct outcome of not only are they having

:44:03. > :44:06.experience growing up but because of the life support and access to

:44:07. > :44:14.services they require as they into adulthood. Finally, I would like to

:44:15. > :44:18.touch on social workers. Policeman, doctors, nurses and firemen are

:44:19. > :44:24.public servants which many sectors of our society stand up to defend.

:44:25. > :44:28.And who will hear no criticism, yet when it comes to our social workers,

:44:29. > :44:34.so often they are criticised, blamed, singled out when something

:44:35. > :44:39.goes wrong. They put out with a negative dialogue to do with their

:44:40. > :44:43.possession with stereotypes as who they are, dismissed as do-gooders

:44:44. > :44:47.but the realities is that our social workers should be held in the

:44:48. > :44:51.highest esteem as a profession who every day are making decisions and

:44:52. > :44:56.intervening to protect children and families from harm. Working with

:44:57. > :45:01.families to help them stay together and having an impact on outcomes. On

:45:02. > :45:05.a daily basis they are seeing some of the most terrible situations

:45:06. > :45:09.where children are being neglected, and used physically and mentally or

:45:10. > :45:15.working with children who have severe and complex disabilities.

:45:16. > :45:18.Social workers don't go into social work for money, they going to social

:45:19. > :45:23.worker because they want to protect children and very often it's a

:45:24. > :45:27.thankless task. I remember when my sister was working in the duty team

:45:28. > :45:30.she was struggling to sleep at night as she would be worrying what was

:45:31. > :45:34.happening with in some of the family she was working with when she went

:45:35. > :45:39.home, fearing what she would be presented with in the morning when

:45:40. > :45:43.she got back to work, this is not unusual, this is the daily life of a

:45:44. > :45:48.front line social worker, I welcomed the formulation of social work

:45:49. > :45:52.England, even though there is some concerns within the profession about

:45:53. > :45:56.this change. Social work as a profession is so important and it is

:45:57. > :46:00.right there is a regulator focused on raising standards and good

:46:01. > :46:04.practice, strengthening formal training pathways, however I must

:46:05. > :46:09.note that I have spoken to a number of social workers before this debate

:46:10. > :46:13.today and because of some of the case notes they are experiencing and

:46:14. > :46:19.a level of work that they're involved with actually some of them

:46:20. > :46:23.weren't even aware of this bill. I feel, however an element that has

:46:24. > :46:28.been missed, social workers carry out a job which is mentally,

:46:29. > :46:31.emotionally demanding. We know there is a high burn-out rate of social

:46:32. > :46:35.workers who work in front line social worker, we also know that in

:46:36. > :46:40.some parts of the country's individual caseworker loads are far

:46:41. > :46:44.too high, which in some cases leaves social workers feeling unsafe in

:46:45. > :46:49.carrying out their work. For example, a social worker who has a

:46:50. > :46:52.caseload of 20 working 40 hours a week would leave only two hours a

:46:53. > :46:58.week per case, the casework could be a mixture of children in need, cases

:46:59. > :47:01.going through court or child protection, all requiring a

:47:02. > :47:05.different amount of attention in one week. Some cases require a

:47:06. > :47:09.significant amount of time yet we are expecting social workers to know

:47:10. > :47:15.the children and the family and be able to make safe decisions. This

:47:16. > :47:21.does not leave opportunities for our professionals to have thinking space

:47:22. > :47:25.or to allow social workers to carry out the preventative work which many

:47:26. > :47:30.social workers want to be doing. By the very nature of their work, every

:47:31. > :47:35.child and family is different and they innovate every day with the

:47:36. > :47:43.current framework under sometimes very challenging circumstances. In

:47:44. > :47:47.closing, everyone in this house should be championing the outcomes

:47:48. > :47:52.of our children and society. As they become our parents, our workers and

:47:53. > :47:58.leaders of the future. It is not acceptable that in this century, the

:47:59. > :48:02.futures of some of our young people can be predicted because of their

:48:03. > :48:08.pasts and where they have come from. State intervention must work and I

:48:09. > :48:15.hope this government will continue to push for better outcomes for our

:48:16. > :48:22.vulnerable looked after children. It was my choice to be last today so

:48:23. > :48:26.I'm very pleased to be here. It was a great honour to follow the

:48:27. > :48:30.excellent speech by Mike very honourable friend and I completely

:48:31. > :48:35.agree with her on the support for adoptive parents and I haven't close

:48:36. > :48:39.relative who has adopted three children and it's really not easy so

:48:40. > :48:43.I completely agree. I'm really pleased about this bill and will

:48:44. > :48:46.come some of the things in it, including the decision-making

:48:47. > :48:52.support for looked after children. I particularly welcome the raising of

:48:53. > :48:56.the age of care leavers to 25 for local authority services. I know

:48:57. > :49:01.that young people in their 20s still need looking after having got four

:49:02. > :49:07.of my own in their 20s. There is plenty of evidence to note that the

:49:08. > :49:12.brain does not develop until 25 and the state does need to keep their

:49:13. > :49:18.parental responsibility and to young people firmly launched. In March

:49:19. > :49:28.2016 there were 70,440 looked after children in England and based on the

:49:29. > :49:32.2016 data, 26,344 K leavers aged 19-21 out of which 40% are not

:49:33. > :49:38.employed in education or training compared with 14% of all 19-21

:49:39. > :49:47.-year-olds who didn't go through the care service. As my honourable

:49:48. > :49:51.member for East Worthing and Shaw said 4% actually end up in the

:49:52. > :49:54.criminal justice system. The role of the corporate parent is to safeguard

:49:55. > :50:00.the young but there is a resource aspect in this. Portsmouth children

:50:01. > :50:03.services estimate that if you keep a young person in care out of a single

:50:04. > :50:10.involvement in the criminal justice system it says the state 100,000 in

:50:11. > :50:14.various ways, for instance avoiding the need for probation services, the

:50:15. > :50:22.cost of the criminal justice system and social services for

:50:23. > :50:33.rehabilitation. I mentioned also the reading of this bill and the second

:50:34. > :50:37.debate. That protection should follow the care leavers around the

:50:38. > :50:40.country select any other young person they are looked after by

:50:41. > :50:46.either the local authority from their original local authority. I

:50:47. > :50:51.welcomed the amendment for a national offer for care leavers.

:50:52. > :50:56.Independent living is very different in budgeting, looking for jobs and

:50:57. > :50:59.setting up home including bills and your council tax. I hope the

:51:00. > :51:04.National offer will be accepted and personal advisers clearly

:51:05. > :51:09.identified. The second front I want to speak about is the part about

:51:10. > :51:15.social workers and I completely welcome the social workers England

:51:16. > :51:20.as a non-departmental public body. Which will be independent. As the

:51:21. > :51:26.honourable member for Worthing East mentioned, I worked on a commission

:51:27. > :51:29.with him in 2007 called the no blame game commission on children's social

:51:30. > :51:35.workers and some of the recommendations were adopted, for

:51:36. > :51:39.instance the chief social worker but the general social care Council

:51:40. > :51:42.which was the regulator folded in 2012 and the new regulator, the

:51:43. > :51:46.health care and professional council looked after many other jobs and I

:51:47. > :51:51.think it's very important that the social workers are seen as unique

:51:52. > :51:56.job. Therefore we have to recognise it's a separate profession to level

:51:57. > :52:00.with other professionals such as doctors and nurses. Some of the

:52:01. > :52:02.other recommendations have already been accepted but I thought it would

:52:03. > :52:08.be good to remind a minister in hadn't read the report. For

:52:09. > :52:12.instance, the first recommendation, the generic nature of social work

:52:13. > :52:16.must be maintained and resources better targeted to enable social

:52:17. > :52:19.workers to work with family and preventative role that think that's

:52:20. > :52:24.largely happening already. I mentioned the role of the consultant

:52:25. > :52:28.social worker, also the role of the consultant social worker which I

:52:29. > :52:34.think my honourable friend for Rochester and your sister does that,

:52:35. > :52:37.a senior practitioner that had to be introduced to keep the experience

:52:38. > :52:41.social workers on the front line rather than putting them to

:52:42. > :52:43.management, so therefore needed an appropriate career and pay structure

:52:44. > :52:46.should be put into place to support them because you don't want to go

:52:47. > :52:51.into management there was no other way of going forward. Every social

:52:52. > :52:55.worker should be encouraged and have the opportunity to become a member

:52:56. > :52:59.of professional similar to the British Medical Association Royal

:53:00. > :53:03.College of novices which could advocate on their behalf, negotiate

:53:04. > :53:06.on salaries and conditions of services, very good public relations

:53:07. > :53:09.on behalf of the profession as a whole and influence future

:53:10. > :53:13.government policy. Consideration should be given for a requirement

:53:14. > :53:16.that employers and couldn't agency employers fund this membership for

:53:17. > :53:20.the first year to ensure all entrants to the profession can

:53:21. > :53:25.become members. We also recommended the chief social worker, which we

:53:26. > :53:31.got the idea from the chief social worker in New Zealand which works

:53:32. > :53:34.incredibly successfully. They would work across government departments

:53:35. > :53:36.with Unison, the British Association of social workers and other

:53:37. > :53:49.representative bodies but particularly with the

:53:50. > :53:59.Students are poorly because it is an incredibly tough profession. They

:54:00. > :54:02.need them to be provided with good news stories and cases, I don't know

:54:03. > :54:07.if anybody is watching a programme on one of the channels, that shows

:54:08. > :54:10.how hard it works. It is meant to be quite amusing but it would be nice

:54:11. > :54:16.if we could have positive stories coming out of that and the media.

:54:17. > :54:20.The next thing that we recommend it was the social work which continues

:54:21. > :54:22.to be generic to allow social workers good foundations in all

:54:23. > :54:28.aspects of the social work so they could get a good grasp of all of the

:54:29. > :54:31.different aspects of looking after children who need looking after in

:54:32. > :54:35.the care service. The content and length of degree might be reviewed

:54:36. > :54:38.to quit them with the right knowledge and skills, which I think

:54:39. > :54:43.is in the bill as well and that is beginning to happen. But we also

:54:44. > :54:49.consider it should extend for four years so that they have a year out,

:54:50. > :54:54.in practice. And get a very good grasp of what they are getting

:54:55. > :54:57.themselves into. The seventh recommendation was multi-agency

:54:58. > :55:00.training should be incorporated into the qualifying degree and should be

:55:01. > :55:05.continued to be more of a continuing professional developer and. I think

:55:06. > :55:08.in many professions, professional development is incredibly important

:55:09. > :55:11.whether it is teaching, but it is social work and they need to have

:55:12. > :55:15.their continuing professional development and support throughout

:55:16. > :55:19.their career. We also recommended that the Department of Health and

:55:20. > :55:24.the Department of children's services work with local authorities

:55:25. > :55:29.and others to insure that resources, are available. To insure that all

:55:30. > :55:32.social workers can undertake the level of post-qualifying education

:55:33. > :55:37.and training necessary for the roles and tasks that they are employed to

:55:38. > :55:40.undertake. So again that goes back to the continuing development. There

:55:41. > :55:44.should be a combination of a national recruitment campaign and

:55:45. > :55:49.local headhunting to encourage people to go into more social work.

:55:50. > :55:51.There is a lot of vacancies and people, social workers who are

:55:52. > :55:55.already in the profession are incredibly overworked but it is

:55:56. > :56:00.incredibly rewarding as a profession and we need to make sure that we get

:56:01. > :56:04.more people into that. We need a national recruitment campaign to do

:56:05. > :56:09.that. One of the ways you can do that, is by the advertising high

:56:10. > :56:12.impact advertising like for the army and police and teaching to send a

:56:13. > :56:16.clear message that the role of social work it is important to

:56:17. > :56:20.society and should be respected. One of the other recommendations which I

:56:21. > :56:23.know has come forward is the establishment of the newly qualified

:56:24. > :56:27.social worker status which is essential to report and is retained

:56:28. > :56:32.in experience social workers, who are coming out of university and

:56:33. > :56:35.straight into work, into very harrowing circumstances, without

:56:36. > :56:39.getting the support that they needed. I hope that we will be

:56:40. > :56:46.looking at apprenticeships to. I know, it would be a great thing if

:56:47. > :56:49.we could do it through social work. They need to have protected

:56:50. > :56:55.caseloads and qualifying study and training time, so that we retain the

:56:56. > :56:58.social workers that we have got already. There needs to be a

:56:59. > :57:02.flexible pay structure that corresponds with other similar

:57:03. > :57:09.professions, and recognises the difference in living costs around

:57:10. > :57:13.the country. The last thing, we have already done, I think, it has

:57:14. > :57:17.already been adopted, the numerical adoption targets which are not in

:57:18. > :57:20.the best interest of the charge should be phased out and that has

:57:21. > :57:24.already been adopted, I'm very pleased to find that and better

:57:25. > :57:28.targeted funding should go into research and development of social

:57:29. > :57:32.care. Some of these have already been accepted but it was a very good

:57:33. > :57:37.report, it is now nearly ten years old. If the Minister hasn't read it,

:57:38. > :57:41.I do insist that he does read it and anything we haven't done already,

:57:42. > :57:45.look at that and put it into practice. I hope the new regulator

:57:46. > :57:48.continues the improvements that is already happening in the social

:57:49. > :57:52.working profession. It is a tough job in the front line but a very

:57:53. > :57:55.necessary and rewarding one to hand I look forward to seeing this bill

:57:56. > :58:03.as it passes through the committee stage. Layla thank you very much

:58:04. > :58:07.Madam Deputy Speaker. As I have already said, we will be dividing

:58:08. > :58:10.the house this evening. However I'm going to take this opportunity to

:58:11. > :58:15.deliver the government some home truths. This is a bill that from its

:58:16. > :58:19.very inception has been ill thought out and hastily put together without

:58:20. > :58:24.any guidance from children or the industry that it purports to be

:58:25. > :58:28.helping and improving. In short, it is a bill about short and social

:58:29. > :58:32.work with negligible input from children and social workers. By not

:58:33. > :58:35.listening to the profession, the government has once again showing

:58:36. > :58:40.how little value it sees in using the professional experience and

:58:41. > :58:43.expertise of those who work day in and day out, often risking their own

:58:44. > :58:49.welfare to protect children and families. What social workers want

:58:50. > :58:51.is to be out in the field with vulnerable children and families,

:58:52. > :58:55.because the more time that they spend with them, the more vulnerable

:58:56. > :59:03.children are identified and supported or saved from harm. It

:59:04. > :59:06.couldn't be simpler than that. So far the government social work

:59:07. > :59:12.reform agenda has been a total failure. Rooted instructor all

:59:13. > :59:17.system change and tinkering around with individual, Labour held local

:59:18. > :59:22.authorities. Adam Deputy Speaker, the Minister twists, he will get his

:59:23. > :59:26.term I'm sure. They continues to be an accession with adoption, to the

:59:27. > :59:31.detriment of early intervention with work that can keep families together

:59:32. > :59:35.and children out of the care system. This government is completely

:59:36. > :59:38.oblivious to the severe impact of their austerity measures, the

:59:39. > :59:43.punitive welfare policies which are causing untold damage to our most

:59:44. > :59:47.vulnerable children and families. I will remind the Minister has I have

:59:48. > :59:51.many times that social work is a holistic profession. The government

:59:52. > :59:56.'s closure of sure start units and removal of early years help and

:59:57. > :59:59.family support centres, the disproportionate cuts to local

:00:00. > :00:04.authorities and the most deprived areas as measurably taken its toll.

:00:05. > :00:08.All this government seems to be doing for desperate families is

:00:09. > :00:15.turning the screw, tighter and tighter, year-on-year until they

:00:16. > :00:19.break. In fact, as the honourable members have already said, the

:00:20. > :00:24.demand for help and protection is rising. Over the last ten years

:00:25. > :00:27.there has been 124% increase in serious cases where a local

:00:28. > :00:32.authority believes that HR may be suffering or is likely to suffer

:00:33. > :00:35.significant harm. In the varied spending on social work has been

:00:36. > :00:41.found to be totally unrelated to quality. In short, all of the

:00:42. > :00:47.government initiatives and changes are not yielding positive results.

:00:48. > :00:52.This is systemic, not local failure. In other words it is the government

:00:53. > :00:56.'s full. Fourth, the NAR and the education select committee report

:00:57. > :01:01.into social work reform notices there are significant weaknesses in

:01:02. > :01:04.the government agenda. In that the reforms focus disproportionately on

:01:05. > :01:11.changing structures potentially to the detriment of the very people

:01:12. > :01:15.delivering this key public service. What the social work profession

:01:16. > :01:19.needs is continuity, stability and confidence. A government that can

:01:20. > :01:24.hold their nerve on how best to help children and their families by

:01:25. > :01:31.putting in place, and embedding and policies. Policies perhaps such as

:01:32. > :01:34.the introduction, as PSA Chi, and supported by the right Honourable

:01:35. > :01:40.member for Basingstoke. The government though are failing to get

:01:41. > :01:43.the basics right. Reducing the social worker caseloads, preventing

:01:44. > :01:48.experienced professionals from quitting the profession, training

:01:49. > :01:51.social workers in a holistic way, not fast tracking them and forcing

:01:52. > :01:56.them to specialise before they had even been trained in the basics.

:01:57. > :02:00.Amending IT and the bureaucratic process across the board, to achieve

:02:01. > :02:04.the goal of getting social workers where they want is to be. From

:02:05. > :02:10.behind their desks and seeing the families with whom they work. This

:02:11. > :02:14.bill does nothing to respond to the crisis in social work into the

:02:15. > :02:19.hundreds and thousands of children who need better services right now.

:02:20. > :02:23.Madam Deputy Speaker, I would also like to take this opportunity as

:02:24. > :02:27.others have done, to thank the labour lords and other peers whose

:02:28. > :02:30.tireless work has resulted in the bill before us today being markedly

:02:31. > :02:36.different from that which was first introduced. I would in particular

:02:37. > :02:39.like to congratulate peers on defeating the government and forcing

:02:40. > :02:43.them to remove dangerous clauses from the bill that would pave the

:02:44. > :02:49.way for the privatisation of children social care. It is

:02:50. > :02:54.scandalous that these clauses are soon to reappear in committee stage.

:02:55. > :02:58.The government's proposals would allow local authorities under the

:02:59. > :03:02.guise of innovation to opt out of protective primary legislation,

:03:03. > :03:07.decades of legislation that has led to us having one of the safest child

:03:08. > :03:11.protection systems in the world. Legislation that was hard fought for

:03:12. > :03:17.by the profession in this place, and in the other place. These proposals

:03:18. > :03:23.have caused alarm and outrage, amongst the profession and sector

:03:24. > :03:27.overall. I have yet to meet a social worker that supports the changes, we

:03:28. > :03:33.have had no real clarity from the Minister as to where the demand has

:03:34. > :03:36.come from, who is the mundane yet, what pieces primary legislation is

:03:37. > :03:40.it that local authorities and social workers are saying prohibits them

:03:41. > :03:46.from carrying out good social work. Will the Minister tell now today?

:03:47. > :03:50.This is the legislation is formed in the worst possible way, without

:03:51. > :03:55.demand and without any evidential basis for fixing the problems it

:03:56. > :04:00.purports to fix. The government have invented a solution to an invented

:04:01. > :04:05.problem, because it won't solve any of the problems in social work. What

:04:06. > :04:10.I know from my time in social work practice, is the things that social

:04:11. > :04:14.workers find prohibitive such as case recording are in secondary

:04:15. > :04:18.legislation, guidance or in the custom and practice in their

:04:19. > :04:23.particular local authority, all of which can be changed without primary

:04:24. > :04:27.legislation. The government have denied time and time again that the

:04:28. > :04:33.opt out clauses in the bill were not about privatisation. Yet late last

:04:34. > :04:38.week, two years after it was written, and inextricable delay in

:04:39. > :04:40.responding to freedom of information requests, the education Department

:04:41. > :04:47.released a report referred to by my honourable friend which sets out how

:04:48. > :04:52.children's social care can be moved out of local authority control. A

:04:53. > :04:57.report which states that independent contractors have said that they are

:04:58. > :05:00.willing to play the long game, wait for councils to hand over the

:05:01. > :05:04.majority of not all of their children social care services after

:05:05. > :05:10.they have developed their experience, in children and family

:05:11. > :05:11.social work. So there you have it Madam Deputy Speaker. Independent

:05:12. > :05:16.contractors are going to use probable children and families to

:05:17. > :05:21.experiment with once the government allows local authorities to opt out

:05:22. > :05:32.protective legislation. These are the most dangerous changes to child

:05:33. > :05:35.protection either the scene. Labour, with stakeholders have expressed

:05:36. > :05:41.outrage will fight the government every step of the way on these

:05:42. > :05:46.clauses. Gala ball children are not to be used as market experiments in

:05:47. > :05:50.each are protection strategy that requires the dispensation of the law

:05:51. > :05:55.to achieve it is counter-productive and downright dangerous. Of course

:05:56. > :06:02.Madam Deputy Speaker there are parts of the bill that we can support. The

:06:03. > :06:08.deduction of details caught staff, the extension of the person advising

:06:09. > :06:12.role, and the local offer for care leavers are all steps in the right

:06:13. > :06:17.direction. The concern from this side, is can they deliver it? The

:06:18. > :06:21.government for example in the bill has promised to promote the physical

:06:22. > :06:25.and mental health of looked after children. But under their watch,

:06:26. > :06:29.child and adolescent mental health services are in total meltdown with

:06:30. > :06:34.many looked after children waiting not just months but years for

:06:35. > :06:37.specialist help. Changes need to be properly resourced, because if not,

:06:38. > :06:44.they are warm words and nothing more. It is confirmed that these

:06:45. > :06:49.resources will be properly resourced, the bill also establishes

:06:50. > :06:54.a new social work regulator. We will be carefully considering this change

:06:55. > :06:56.and those that relate to the local safeguarding board in child

:06:57. > :07:01.safeguarding practice review panel in committee. Because reaction share

:07:02. > :07:06.some of the concerns of the Right Honourable member for East Worthing

:07:07. > :07:12.and Shoreham. We also have ongoing concerns about the independence and

:07:13. > :07:20.impact of the non-Department public body model now proposed, especially

:07:21. > :07:22.the lack of detail in the current proposals, which have government

:07:23. > :07:27.appoints direct it to the organisation. Can the Minister

:07:28. > :07:30.please explain why is it that the social work profession is treated so

:07:31. > :07:39.differently to other health and care professionals. Finally, the bill is

:07:40. > :07:42.not talking about its response to child seeking children. These

:07:43. > :07:48.children are seeking the most immense suffering and trauma, and

:07:49. > :07:53.whilst thanks to the noble Lord's hand in reminding them of this

:07:54. > :07:57.crisis, we will see a strategy in May next year but these are urgent

:07:58. > :08:01.matters and deserve further debate in this place. We fully support the

:08:02. > :08:08.amendment so eloquently and passionately outlined why my

:08:09. > :08:12.honourable friend from Walthamstow. But in essence Madam Deputy Speaker,

:08:13. > :08:18.what we have here, is a bill with some nice sounding elements, that

:08:19. > :08:21.don't appear to be fully resourced. Therefore not guaranteed, in a

:08:22. > :08:23.continual threat to open up children social care to the market, by

:08:24. > :08:32.allowing opt outs of legislation. In Fact We Will Actually Have A Bill

:08:33. > :08:38.Presented To Us In Committee That If It Became Law It Could In Theory Be

:08:39. > :08:40.Dispensed Less By Local Authorities. It Is A Completely Ridiculous

:08:41. > :08:49.Approach To Legislation And Insults To This House. Sentence Case Back --

:08:50. > :08:55.Sentence Case --. I know that getting work as a social convener is

:08:56. > :09:00.a difficult task. But trust me, this bill is not the answer. We will be

:09:01. > :09:04.seeking significant amendments in committee, in making clear that the

:09:05. > :09:09.government understands the answer to every problem is not privatisation

:09:10. > :09:14.and micromanagement, because Labour will never allow this government to

:09:15. > :09:26.use our most foldable children as experiments in Tory ideology. Can I

:09:27. > :09:30.begin by thanking honourable members for the enthusiastic engagement with

:09:31. > :09:35.the issues at the heart of this bill. I know we all share a

:09:36. > :09:40.commitment to improving the lives of our most foldable children and this

:09:41. > :09:48.has been demonstrated by the energy by which this has happened

:09:49. > :09:52.throughout this debate as the aspect of the bill are being today in much

:09:53. > :09:56.more detail as we enter into committee. My honourable friend the

:09:57. > :10:00.Minister for school standards set out in the opening of this debate,

:10:01. > :10:02.protecting our most probable children and giving them the care

:10:03. > :10:07.and support they need to thrive as one of the governments most

:10:08. > :10:11.important responsibilities. The children who need support have often

:10:12. > :10:17.faced challenges that most of us can only ever imagined. They have

:10:18. > :10:20.disabilities or have faced abuse and neglect, we have been let down by

:10:21. > :10:24.the people who are supposed to love and protect them. They may be being

:10:25. > :10:28.exploited by perpetrators preying on the vulnerability. As children's

:10:29. > :10:34.social care professionals deal with these highly complex highly

:10:35. > :10:38.demanding challenges every day. They step up and take responsibility for

:10:39. > :10:41.protecting our vulnerable children. In my time as children's minister,

:10:42. > :10:47.as a family barrister Foster sibling I have often been inspired by

:10:48. > :10:51.stories of children whose lives are transformed by social workers,

:10:52. > :10:56.Foster carers, residential care staff, doctors and others. These

:10:57. > :11:00.people epitomise the compassion and deep desire in our society to help

:11:01. > :11:05.others, without which we and our children would be so much the

:11:06. > :11:08.better. So the bill we are debating today is a critical part of creating

:11:09. > :11:12.a children's social care system that enables these people to do the very

:11:13. > :11:19.best job possible for our children. -- and our children would be so much

:11:20. > :11:23.the poorer. This takes forward important measures for putting

:11:24. > :11:26.children first. A strategy which I think represents the most

:11:27. > :11:30.fundamental reforms to the system in a generation. The bill places the

:11:31. > :11:36.interests of vulnerable children right at the heart of the social

:11:37. > :11:39.care system. It defines what good corporate parenting website, and

:11:40. > :11:42.secures the involvement of the whole council in looking out for children

:11:43. > :11:47.in or leaving its care. It requires every local area to spell out

:11:48. > :11:51.exactly what support they are offering to care leavers and extends

:11:52. > :11:58.the help of a personal adviser to all care leavers up to the age of

:11:59. > :12:01.25. It introduces improved national arrangements and strengthened

:12:02. > :12:04.arrangements for multi-agency co-operation and safeguarding. It

:12:05. > :12:08.extends educational support to children leaving care through

:12:09. > :12:12.adoption or special guardianship. It creates the conditions for good

:12:13. > :12:15.placement decisions to be made by -- for children coming into the care

:12:16. > :12:20.system by ensuring that the child's long care -- long-term needs are

:12:21. > :12:25.properly considered and introduces a new bespoke regulator for social

:12:26. > :12:29.work. Social work England. An organisation that will be empowered

:12:30. > :12:35.to raise standards and social work and raise the status of this vital

:12:36. > :12:38.profession. Madam Deputy Speaker, members have raised a whole

:12:39. > :12:42.multitude of important points in today's debate that I'll do very

:12:43. > :12:46.best to respond to events detailing the house longer than would be

:12:47. > :12:49.deemed acceptable. I am grateful for the constructive engagement of

:12:50. > :12:51.members and I do want to work together to move forward with these

:12:52. > :12:57.legislative provisions that have huge potential to improve the life

:12:58. > :13:04.chances of children that we all care so deeply about. The honourable

:13:05. > :13:08.member for Ashton-under-Lyne asked where her strategy for children in

:13:09. > :13:10.care is, we have it, it is the putting children first document and

:13:11. > :13:16.I would encourage her to refresh your memory of that all-encompassing

:13:17. > :13:19.strategy for children in care to 220 20. She asked about spending on

:13:20. > :13:23.children's services, and it is right to say that the pattern of

:13:24. > :13:29.inspection outcomes is not about how deprived area is or local geography

:13:30. > :13:31.or even the money being spent on children's social care, some of the

:13:32. > :13:35.local authorities judged inadequate by Ofstead this year when among the

:13:36. > :13:38.highest spending well high performance referred to spend their

:13:39. > :13:44.money more effectively, investing in the best services and bringing costs

:13:45. > :13:50.down and the key here is identifying where investment makes a difference

:13:51. > :13:56.in spreading knowledge and practice about what works. She also asked

:13:57. > :14:00.about the local offer and what kinds there would be for local

:14:01. > :14:04.authorities. The legislation already censored the areas local authorities

:14:05. > :14:07.should provide support under, was being health and well-being,

:14:08. > :14:11.education and training, employment, participation in society and Laois

:14:12. > :14:18.ships and we expect this to cover a wide range of services from relevant

:14:19. > :14:23.universal health and financial support that care leavers can access

:14:24. > :14:27.and benefit from. We have developed a prototype offer that we expect

:14:28. > :14:31.local authorities to consider and provide access that I provide

:14:32. > :14:34.examples of more specific support. I am happy to share this with the

:14:35. > :14:40.honourable ladies achievements which denies it in more detail. She asked

:14:41. > :14:45.about the new regulator 's independence, the bill makes clear

:14:46. > :14:50.that this will be a separate legal entity with its own staff as a

:14:51. > :14:54.non-departmental public body. The government has always been clear

:14:55. > :14:58.that it has no desire to make decisions about individual social

:14:59. > :15:04.workers. The chair of the education select committee made some central

:15:05. > :15:08.points about the foundations of the bill which he welcomed, including

:15:09. > :15:12.the regulatory changes. He raised the issue of a professional body for

:15:13. > :15:16.social work and I agree I think it is absolutely important for the

:15:17. > :15:19.profession to have a strong body to represent it to provide support and

:15:20. > :15:25.guidance as to help them develop their own practice. I have already

:15:26. > :15:29.set out at the end Cass conference a few weeks ago exactly how I want to

:15:30. > :15:33.work with the profession to make sure we come up with the right

:15:34. > :15:36.solution. We have tried a whole host of different ways of making that

:15:37. > :15:41.work and we need to know go for the connection we have something we want

:15:42. > :15:46.your -- that will endure long into the future. He alluded to one of the

:15:47. > :15:50.outstanding care leading services we have in England and the virtue of it

:15:51. > :15:55.having strong leadership and I agree with them, and I have been hugely

:15:56. > :15:59.impressed by the work that has gone on the by Mark Redhill and his team

:16:00. > :16:04.and there's a lot that the casual others as to what works. The

:16:05. > :16:10.honourable member for Motherwell and Wishaw told us to look at the work

:16:11. > :16:14.in Scotland and I am always happy to look at the Scottish prospective, I

:16:15. > :16:17.always as ever invite her to look at what we are doing in England, two,

:16:18. > :16:22.Scotland have children at the heart of the system she says. So do we and

:16:23. > :16:26.if she looks also putting children first strategy documents you will

:16:27. > :16:30.see that. And of course although Scotland may lead the way in some

:16:31. > :16:33.areas, we lead the way in others. Staying put being a good example.

:16:34. > :16:39.She asked about corporate parenting principles and why they are only to

:16:40. > :16:41.have regard, the reason for that is that the local authority is the

:16:42. > :16:45.corporate parent and is legally responsible for the catholic

:16:46. > :16:50.children in care leavers and we believe maintaining this clear

:16:51. > :16:56.accountability is right. -- legally responsible for the children and

:16:57. > :17:01.care leavers. The intention is that this will help improve the response

:17:02. > :17:06.to them carrying out the duties that they already have set out in

:17:07. > :17:11.legislation. She asked about the government's commitments to the UNC

:17:12. > :17:13.RC, the government remains fully committed to protecting children's

:17:14. > :17:18.rights and the United Nations Convention on the right of the

:17:19. > :17:21.child. We have responded to the written ministerial statement

:17:22. > :17:24.published in October and to the permanent Secretary's letter to his

:17:25. > :17:27.counterparts across government. That there was an example of how we

:17:28. > :17:32.constantly seek to not only protect children tried also to enhance them,

:17:33. > :17:36.and there is a full trial rights impact assessment that was conducted

:17:37. > :17:39.during the development of the bill and I know there is considerable

:17:40. > :17:43.debate in the Lords on this issue and that is one that we have

:17:44. > :17:47.recently reaffirmed as a commitment to the WMS to reinforce the message

:17:48. > :17:53.of the importance of the UNC RC across every development and making

:17:54. > :17:58.sure that there is a proactive role in considering children's rights in

:17:59. > :18:01.policy-making. The member for East Worthing and Shoreham, I will do my

:18:02. > :18:05.utmost to address all of the point series, but I do join him and my

:18:06. > :18:09.honourable friend the member for Portsmouth South in praising the

:18:10. > :18:13.incredible work and dedication of our social work force. Something

:18:14. > :18:18.which was reactivated by the honourable member for South Shields.

:18:19. > :18:25.Both children and adult social workers who all do a fantastic job.

:18:26. > :18:28.It is so difficult day in day out. I do agree with him that the

:18:29. > :18:31.administrative burdens on social workers sitting in front of

:18:32. > :18:36.computers and filling in forms has hampered much of the progress of

:18:37. > :18:41.social work, and I have read the report, no more blame game, on

:18:42. > :18:45.several occasions, which only he was instrumental in reducing. I would

:18:46. > :18:49.say to him that the whole purpose of the changes we're making to the

:18:50. > :18:54.serious review process is to address exactly that issue, that we get away

:18:55. > :18:58.from pointing the finger and we get into looking at where things have

:18:59. > :19:03.gone wrong and why and how we make sure it does not happen again in the

:19:04. > :19:05.future. He set out some of the highlights of the reform programme

:19:06. > :19:11.over the last six years on children's social care, anti-racist

:19:12. > :19:15.staying put as perhaps one of those -- and he raised staying put is

:19:16. > :19:20.perhaps one of those and I would like to enforce that there has been

:19:21. > :19:24.an exceptional response to that duty with 54% of 18-year-olds now

:19:25. > :19:28.choosing to stay put, 30% of 19-year-olds and 16% of 20 a lot but

:19:29. > :19:34.of course the mechanisms of that are under review to ensure that it will

:19:35. > :19:37.continue to benefit more children. He talked about some of the

:19:38. > :19:42.deficiencies in the system and one of those being sharing best practice

:19:43. > :19:47.and again I agree with him, that is exactly why we are setting up what

:19:48. > :19:51.works centre for children's social care that will build a robust

:19:52. > :19:55.evidence base and disseminate learning about what does and doesn't

:19:56. > :19:58.work in children's social care practice to really help local

:19:59. > :20:00.practitioners and commissioners employ the most effective,

:20:01. > :20:05.cost-effective front line practices to support children. Visually we

:20:06. > :20:09.will work closely with the child safeguarding practice review panel

:20:10. > :20:14.to ensure practice development identified through reviews that are

:20:15. > :20:17.widely disseminated. An adoption I share his pride in the work this

:20:18. > :20:20.government has done to improve the adoption process, but for

:20:21. > :20:26.prospective adopters and crucially for children, we have seen a rise in

:20:27. > :20:32.the number of children being adopted to over 5000 per year and we have

:20:33. > :20:38.seen them adopted more quickly. But on the back of the judgment there

:20:39. > :20:41.has been a disappointing fall in those numbers and we are seeking to

:20:42. > :20:45.do all we can to address that so we don't lose the ground that we made

:20:46. > :20:50.up in the early years of this government. He should also know as

:20:51. > :20:56.was raised by my right noble friend the member for Basingstoke, that in

:20:57. > :20:59.raising the adoption support for their been 10,000 families that have

:21:00. > :21:02.directly benefited from that fund and although we have had to

:21:03. > :21:08.reluctantly put a fair access limit in the short-term to enable more

:21:09. > :21:12.families were at all possible to benefit from that fund we want to

:21:13. > :21:17.find a sustainable solution so we continue that support in the long

:21:18. > :21:21.term and I am very happy to meet with my right honourable friend the

:21:22. > :21:25.member for Basingstoke who has a particular case that she has raised

:21:26. > :21:28.acid make-up advice of the wider issues we face in getting this

:21:29. > :21:36.right. He raised the question about corporate parenting principles, are

:21:37. > :21:39.they in addition to section 23, the answer is that the principles are in

:21:40. > :21:43.addition to existing legislation, it is not strike to put new duties on

:21:44. > :21:47.local authorities. They are already very clearly set out. What we're

:21:48. > :21:52.trying to do is engender a whole council approach to taking for

:21:53. > :21:56.children in the care and then having regard to those principles in any

:21:57. > :22:00.decision they make on their behalf. On personal advisers, although we

:22:01. > :22:02.are extending the use of personal advisers, I concur with his view

:22:03. > :22:12.that there is a whole range of quality and access for care leavers

:22:13. > :22:16.to personal -- to personal advisers that is why we get the scope of what

:22:17. > :22:18.a personal advisers is there to do in the types of people have become

:22:19. > :22:22.personal advisers together with the training they get truly matters the

:22:23. > :22:29.need for those care leavers that they have told us they desperately

:22:30. > :22:33.want. He raised drafting issues and details on the additional support

:22:34. > :22:36.for children in care, I will look carefully at that and I'm sure we

:22:37. > :22:41.can address was in committee. An serious case reviews, I could not

:22:42. > :22:45.agree more with him about the need for transparency. We worked hard and

:22:46. > :22:50.opposition on the publication, I remember substituting my honourable

:22:51. > :22:57.friend on Newsnight to talk about this very subject. We now need to

:22:58. > :23:01.make sure that the new system reflects what we know is an

:23:02. > :23:06.important element of an approach which will provide is with a shining

:23:07. > :23:12.light on the practice has fallen short. He asked about active

:23:13. > :23:16.participation in your local safeguarding arrangements, including

:23:17. > :23:19.in financial contributions. That is an important part of the new system

:23:20. > :23:26.and we set out in games in more detail about how we expect to

:23:27. > :23:29.engender such an approach. -- set out in guidance. He made a very

:23:30. > :23:34.clear pitch which I will to four where we should go next with the

:23:35. > :23:36.power to intervene but I will talk more about that at the end of my

:23:37. > :23:40.speech. The member for Enfield Southgate asks about cases where

:23:41. > :23:46.mothers have repeated pregnancies. He should know that we have spent

:23:47. > :23:49.and will spend a total of around ?11 million up to 2020 on its logic that

:23:50. > :23:54.has been extremely successful in trying to break that cycle and help

:23:55. > :23:57.mothers find a different path through the lives and reduce the

:23:58. > :24:02.number of children coming into the care system. The honourable lady for

:24:03. > :24:05.Walthamstow talked about the need to concentrate on prevention. That is

:24:06. > :24:09.something that we always need to have at the heart of any decision

:24:10. > :24:10.that we make on where money is spent, where policy should move

:24:11. > :24:21.towards. The there are the number of other

:24:22. > :24:26.honourable members who raise that issue. On child refugees she made

:24:27. > :24:29.reference to my written ministerial statement on a safeguarding strategy

:24:30. > :24:33.across government and I'm grateful for her support for it but she does

:24:34. > :24:37.query how it sits alongside the Home Office guidance. I will that

:24:38. > :24:40.carefully at what she says and I will talk to Home Office ministers

:24:41. > :24:46.but the Home Office have published that guidance setting out the

:24:47. > :24:52.legibility criteria, and they are all children aged 12 and under, all

:24:53. > :24:55.children and referred by the French authorities. Those nationalities

:24:56. > :25:01.most likely to qualify for refugee status in UK aged 15 or below and as

:25:02. > :25:06.the Dubbs amendment, children transfer should be refugees, the

:25:07. > :25:12.best interest of a child who is also established as part of the process.

:25:13. > :25:17.Although the Honourable lady would have two appreciate that we need a

:25:18. > :25:20.method, to prioritise, I am happy to discuss the matter further with her

:25:21. > :25:26.with my colleague in the Foreign Office. I thank the Minister giving

:25:27. > :25:31.way, witty knowledge that nationality is put before the child

:25:32. > :25:37.and further identifies particular nationalities, ignoring for example

:25:38. > :25:41.certain children France, like the Afghan children a third of whom have

:25:42. > :25:49.gone missing because of the gap this has caused. I appreciate, but we are

:25:50. > :25:55.worried about them in the run-up to Christmas. I'm happy to do that,

:25:56. > :25:57.like her I don't want to create conditions which are

:25:58. > :26:02.counter-productive to the shared mission that we have. And I will

:26:03. > :26:07.make sure that there is as rapid as we can possibly be, acknowledgement

:26:08. > :26:13.of the further work that needs to be done, to ensure that we are in way

:26:14. > :26:18.that doesn't create more difficulties, but brings about more

:26:19. > :26:22.positive solutions. My right honourable friend the member for

:26:23. > :26:26.Basingstoke raised the issue of the adoption case in her constituency

:26:27. > :26:32.and I will say I'm happy to discuss that further with her. We do need to

:26:33. > :26:35.move to a more sustainable approach but of course what the adoption

:26:36. > :26:40.support fund has shown is that there is a real need for that additional

:26:41. > :26:43.therapeutic support and I'm committed as the children's minister

:26:44. > :26:54.to do what we can to continue to do that into the future. The honourable

:26:55. > :26:58.member for Rochester talked with experience about touching this bill,

:26:59. > :27:05.she particularly raised the delays in the adoption process and I agree

:27:06. > :27:10.with much of what she has said. I agree that the time it takes has

:27:11. > :27:13.reduced to 18 months, a reduction of four months from its peak although

:27:14. > :27:17.there is still more work that needs to be done because every month that

:27:18. > :27:21.goes by is one that a child will never get back. As I say, more

:27:22. > :27:30.children are receiving that adoption support. And I know that she was

:27:31. > :27:34.unable in her own area that the message goes through to families who

:27:35. > :27:38.may not yet realised that the support is available. She was also

:27:39. > :27:43.clear, that the new provisions for care leavers, a major step forward,

:27:44. > :27:47.I recognise again that we need to make sure that social workers have

:27:48. > :27:54.the tools they need to make the most of those changes. My honourable

:27:55. > :27:59.friend the member for Portsmouth South, I'm grateful for measures to

:28:00. > :28:04.improve, she raised, the National offer, I can tell her that I met,

:28:05. > :28:08.with the Minister in the Department for Work and Pensions to see what

:28:09. > :28:13.further action we can take and I will be able to elude two more in

:28:14. > :28:16.detail in committee and I take a point called social worker training

:28:17. > :28:20.which is very much behind the work around the assessment accreditation

:28:21. > :28:25.process and making sure that we raise standards wherever possible.

:28:26. > :28:31.The honourable lady for South Shields, we do get on very well

:28:32. > :28:36.Madam Deputy Speaker, but I have to say I agree very little with what

:28:37. > :28:41.she had to offer this afternoon. She questions the value that we put on,

:28:42. > :28:45.of social workers. I have to say that is exactly what this bill is

:28:46. > :28:49.about and I would ask also to look more widely at the work that the

:28:50. > :28:54.government is doing, the innovation programme, where we have already

:28:55. > :28:58.spent over ?100 million Trekkie to local authorities to try and test

:28:59. > :29:05.new ways of working with another 200 million harp until 2020. That is 300

:29:06. > :29:11.million worth of value that is put directly into improving children's

:29:12. > :29:14.services. When she started her a response, I felt she was determined

:29:15. > :29:19.to try and turn this, I don't think she's wanting to, seems to be moving

:29:20. > :29:23.in the direction of a sort of ideological struggle about many of

:29:24. > :29:28.these issues. I do understand her desire to oppose and to be seen to

:29:29. > :29:33.oppose, but I hope when we get into committee we can have a constructive

:29:34. > :29:36.debate about what is in the bill and how that fits into the wider

:29:37. > :29:42.government programme because what I have no doubt is that we do have a

:29:43. > :29:47.shared desire to prove outcomes for vulnerable children and I do have a

:29:48. > :29:53.pragmatic streak running through me. I'm not some ideologues who will

:29:54. > :29:58.just sit there, and create a wall of noise. I wanted to hear the argument

:29:59. > :30:02.but I'll am also wanting her to hear mine too. She raised a report

:30:03. > :30:05.although she did fail to show the official government response to that

:30:06. > :30:10.report which says" we disagree with the option in the report relating to

:30:11. > :30:14.the privatisation of children's social care services and we will not

:30:15. > :30:22.be implementing this option." So it couldn't be clearer about our

:30:23. > :30:25.position. Madam Deputy Speaker if I can move briefly about the power to

:30:26. > :30:28.innovate, that has generated the most debate in this bill and the

:30:29. > :30:32.honourable members have raised questions over the power, a

:30:33. > :30:36.provision to remove the bill and referred to by the right honourable

:30:37. > :30:40.member, Mr for skill standards at the opening of this debate. We do

:30:41. > :30:45.intend to revisit these powers in this house because of the important

:30:46. > :30:48.role that they stand to play in improving the quality of children's

:30:49. > :30:54.social care and I'm grateful to my right honourable friend, the member

:30:55. > :30:57.for Basingstoke her support in explaining the new ways of working

:30:58. > :31:02.are a way to drive improvement in practice. Whenever I visit local

:31:03. > :31:06.authorities and speak with front line social workers, I am obviously

:31:07. > :31:10.not meeting the same ones as the honourable lady opposite because I'm

:31:11. > :31:13.always struck by the passion, energy and dedication that they bring to

:31:14. > :31:17.their work and to offer my leave with a message that rather than

:31:18. > :31:21.helping them in their task, the structures and processes that we put

:31:22. > :31:23.them in place top them from using their professional judgment to truly

:31:24. > :31:28.respond to the needs of the children they look after. As the Munro

:31:29. > :31:33.landmark review told us, overregulation gets in the way of

:31:34. > :31:37.social workers ability to put children first. So this power

:31:38. > :31:42.dresses that challenge has been called for by local authorities

:31:43. > :31:44.around the country. Because it would give councils the ability to test

:31:45. > :31:48.new ways of working designed to improve outcomes for children in a

:31:49. > :31:52.safe and controlled environment where the impact of removing a

:31:53. > :31:58.specific requirements can be measured carefully. That is not to

:31:59. > :32:01.say that important points haven't been raised in this house, all of

:32:02. > :32:07.which I have and will consider carefully and will bringing back a

:32:08. > :32:11.power with significant changes, and additional safeguards that I hope

:32:12. > :32:16.provide the reassurances requested. What I do want to be clear Madam

:32:17. > :32:22.Deputy Speaker, we don't want to privatise protection services for

:32:23. > :32:25.children. We would privatise child protection services, they are

:32:26. > :32:29.already, there is already clearly just the tip restrictions on the

:32:30. > :32:33.outsourcing of children social care functions, it was never the

:32:34. > :32:39.intention to use the power to innovate to revisit these but to put

:32:40. > :32:42.these beyond doubt. Bringing for the classificatory amendments in the

:32:43. > :32:46.other place. And we went either remove fundamental rights or

:32:47. > :32:50.protections from children dash Ashley went either. Our aim is to

:32:51. > :32:57.strengthen and not weaken. My mission, has always been, to improve

:32:58. > :33:02.the lives of vulnerable children. It is our job as a government to create

:33:03. > :33:05.the conditions in which excellent practice can flourish and I'm

:33:06. > :33:09.convinced that with proper safeguards in place, the ability to

:33:10. > :33:14.pilot new approaches will be in the long-term allow this house to enact

:33:15. > :33:17.more effective evidenced -based legislation, drive wider improvement

:33:18. > :33:24.from another tip people across the system. And I agree, with a

:33:25. > :33:29.professor when she says, "I welcome the introduction of the power to

:33:30. > :33:32.innovate, this is a critical part of the journey set out in my

:33:33. > :33:36.independent review of child protection towards a child welfare

:33:37. > :33:40.system that reflects the complexity and diversity of children's needs.

:33:41. > :33:44.This quote it goes on to say "Trusting professionals to use their

:33:45. > :33:47.judgment rather than be forced to follow unnecessary legal rules will

:33:48. > :33:52.help to ensure that children get the help that they need when they need

:33:53. > :33:55.it". Testing innovation in a controlled way to establish the

:33:56. > :33:58.consequences of the change is a sensible and proportionate way

:33:59. > :34:05.forward. However, I would ask the honourable members, but forecasting

:34:06. > :34:09.a final judgment to consider the amendments that we intend to table

:34:10. > :34:13.that I believe provide that sensible proportionate approach built on a

:34:14. > :34:18.clear and single purpose of improving the outcomes of vulnerable

:34:19. > :34:23.children. Finally Madam Deputy Speaker, I want to talk about sex

:34:24. > :34:27.and relationship education. And my right honourable friend the member

:34:28. > :34:32.for Basingstoke and the member for Stroud and wharf in Stoke, spoke out

:34:33. > :34:40.on the question of sex and relationship education. I also want

:34:41. > :34:43.to recognise its importance. And of course the government already issued

:34:44. > :34:47.stat tree guidance on teaching relationships and has made funding

:34:48. > :34:52.ready, to improve the quality of that teaching. I have heard the call

:34:53. > :34:55.to go further in this area. To help build the resilience and confidence

:34:56. > :35:00.of children and young people, in tackling what the modern world

:35:01. > :35:04.throws at them, not least online. This is of course a topic on which

:35:05. > :35:08.there are many and strongly held views, and it will be important to

:35:09. > :35:22.look at those in the round. Not least because PSHE, and H REI

:35:23. > :35:25.linked. And it is, pay per job the Secretary of State and have asked

:35:26. > :35:29.people to advise me further on these matters. And I will ask them to

:35:30. > :35:33.accelerate this work so that I can report on our conclusions at a later

:35:34. > :35:36.port in the bill 's passage, when has everyone in this house we will

:35:37. > :35:40.be able to look at them and have their say. Madam Deputy Speaker I'm

:35:41. > :35:43.sure that these reflections only started do justice to the range of

:35:44. > :35:48.important issues that we have debated today. I look for to picking

:35:49. > :35:53.up these matters in greater detail as it moves into committee stage. I

:35:54. > :35:56.see the contents of the children social work Bill as a major step

:35:57. > :36:00.forward in making sure that our most honourable children get the levels

:36:01. > :36:04.of support and opportunity that any of us would want for our own

:36:05. > :36:08.Georgian. I welcome the debate and the challenge we have engaged this

:36:09. > :36:13.afternoon, it helps to maintain momentum find a shared endeavour,

:36:14. > :36:17.the United commitment to improving the lives of our most honourable

:36:18. > :36:22.children. Please let me leave this out in no doubt, that I recognise

:36:23. > :36:27.and accept the challenges that we face. This government is more