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ICHA Weekly Bulletin 15th April 2011
2011-04-17 14:00:00ICHA PO Box 99 Hebden Bridge HX7 9AA Email: admin@icha.org.uk: Web: www.icha.org.uk Tel: 07794779893
ICHA Weekly Bulletin 15th April 2011
ICHA Strategic Development Plan 2011
This document can now be viewed on the ICHA Website. Go to: www.icha.org.uk log into
the members’ area/papers of interest/misc
ICHA: Yorkshire & Humberside Meeting
Several ICHA Members met in Yorkshire this week to discuss ‘fee reduction’ letters received
from Local Authorities from within the Yorkshire & Humberside Consortium.
A response from ICHA is in the process of being finalized and will be available for members
to view soon.
ICHA: Denmark visit with MPs
ICHA Co-Chair Jim Sullivan and Committee Member Alison Trainor were in Denmark this
week alongside Gary Kent, ICHA Political Lobbyist, Jonathan Stanley, Earl of Listowel and
MPs Jessica Lee and Toby Perkins. The purpose of the visit was fact-finding and to speak to
professional colleagues in the country to learn about their experiences of providing
residential care to children and young people.
A full account of the visit will be available soon.
In the Press
Children's home budget cuts could trigger fresh abuse scandals
Guardian, Monday 11 April 2011
One of the first actions of the coalition government was to cancel a £300,000 contract for
improving standards in children’s homes.
A fresh wave of scandals threatens children’s homes, care leaders are warning, after the government cut annual training funds for staff to just 69p a head. Only £25,000 has been set aside for work in children's homes in England out of an overall training budget of £113m for the children and young people's workforce over the coming 12 months. The bulk of the budget has been set aside for training social workers who operate in the community, considered the priority since the Baby Peter affair. But some 12,000 children, including between 10% and 15% of those in care, are looked after in residential homes. The Social Care Association (SCA), which promotes good practice in the sector, has written to the education secretary, Michael Gove, who is responsible for child welfare, warning that he risks a return to the scandals of abuse in children's homes. "It is a sector still recovering from a series of scandals going back to the 1970s and our concern is that this is letting that recovery slip and sowing the seeds of future scandals," said Nick Johnson, the SCA chief executive. Gove has authorised £113.4m of spending by the Children's Workforce Development Council (CWDC) in 2011-12, of which just £25,000 has been earmarked for "completion of a test and trial of professional practice standards for residential care". A £6m training pot previously available for residential care has been exhausted. In addition, one of the first actions of the coalition government was to cancel a £300,000 contract for improving standards in children's homes that Labour had awarded to the Tribal consultancy. Although there are no accurate figures for numbers of children or staff in residential homes, the SCA's estimate of 36,000 workers equates to an individual share of the £25,000 amounting to 69p. Johnson said there seemed to be an assumption that the sector, now dominated by private care providers, should fund its own training. But the state sent some of society's most vulnerable children to private homes and could not absolve itself of responsibility for their treatment, he said. "Scotland is funding a nine-year investment programme to support the workforce in its children's homes," said Johnson. "My message to Michael Gove is that if you don't act on this, it will come back and bite you."
Successive governments were forced to intervene in children's homes in the 1980s and
1990s in response to revelations of endemic physical and sexual abuse in Staffordshire,
Leicestershire, Islington in north London, and elsewhere.
Minimum standards for children's home workers specify that they must undergo formal
induction and hold, or work towards, a workforce diploma qualification. But many are paid
only the minimum wage and turnover is high.
A spokesperson for the Department for Education said: "We know how important it is to
have highly qualified staff in children's homes who can support and care for often
vulnerable children.
"The department is also working with key representatives from the sector to improve the
quality of children's homes. This includes working with the CWDC to train and develop the
workforce."
Response from CYP Conferences to enquiry re: Outcomes
Conference 19.5.11.
My colleague Jacki forwarded me your email and your feedback regarding the pricing
structure we have in place for CYP Now’s Impacts & Outcomes conference.
When producing this conference, we spent a lot of time and effort on ensuring that we
could make it as financially viable for people across all sectors and industries – especially
given the current economic climate and the cuts in the public sector in particular.
We looked at the pricing structure and decided to introduce the super early bird and early
bird rates which make our conferences much cheaper than we have ever priced them
before.
The differing rates were also put in place based on an analysis of our past delegate’s and
potential audience to ensure that our event remains affordable and great value for money.
I can assure you that these were not intended to be discriminatory.
I do appreciate you taking the time to provide us feedback regarding our pricing and we will
definitely look into it for the next conference that we have planned.
Thank you again for your time.
Ash Khan
Marketing Co-ordinator
Email: ash.khan@haymarket.com
www.haymarketconferences.com
Training & Events
Tri-X South East Workshop re regs and NMS
After the success of our previous workshops we have decided to hold a third workshop in
the South East.
Cost: FREE
The amended Regulations, Guidance and NMS for Children's Homes and Fostering have
recently come into force, heralding many changes, not just in practice but in culture and
values. This is part of a wider Government agenda, signalling fundamental changes in the
social care sector.
For example, managers will need to take account of the new 'Care Planning' Regulations, as
well as other matters on the Government's policy agenda (vetting and barring, issues
around schools discipline and the forthcoming Munro Review: 'The Child's Journey').
These workshops will help managers understand the implications of the new Regulations
and start thinking about the wider policy agenda
Registration
You can register for this workshop at
http://www.trixonline.co.uk/website/workshops.html or by calling Claire or Yasin on 02476
678053
Tuesday May 3rd Start - 10:00 Finish - 3:00 (Lunch will be provided)
The Care Planning Regulations
The amended Children's Homes Regulations and NMS
The amended Fostering Regulations and NMS
The Munro Review 'The Child's Journey'
Searching and Confiscating – hands on or off?
Updating Your Procedures
The Ridge Golf Club: Chartway Street Sutton Valence Maidstone Kent ME17 3JB Organisers and Sponsors Tri-x-Childcare are organising and convening the workshop in association with the Independent Children's Homes Association (ICHA), PRICE Training and HBJ Gateley Wareing.
ICHA Members Continuum Care offer the following training
Recent changes to the Children's Homes: National Minimum Standards will require
professionals to review areas of training.
Standard 3.9 demonstrates “staff understand and manage their own feelings and responses to the emotions and behaviours presented by children and understand how past experiences and present emotions are communicated through behaviour” The Continuum Group provides an individualised training package covering this standard for professionals working in children’s services, children’s homes, fostering agencies and educational establishments.
The Continuum Intervention Programme (CIP), has been used across 75 Children’s Homes for the past three years and holds a British Institute for Learning Disabilities Physical Intervention accreditation.
Components of the training programme include:
• Communication
• De escalation
• Emotional intelligence
• Self awareness
• Resilience
• Behaviour management
• Recording
• Legislation pertaining to physical intervention
• Break away techniques
• Assessing risk
• Health and safety
• Reflective practice
For more information on the training programme please contact Lorna Fearon on 07896
560 696 or email lorna.fearon@continuumgroup.org.uk
Information can also be found at http://www.continuumgroup.org.uk/Outward_Bound.asp
Dates for Your Diary
26th May – 10am – Committee Meeting – St Mary & St John’s, Erdington, Birmingham
16th June – 10am – General Meeting – Royal Court Hotel, Coventry
14th July – 10am – Committee Meeting – Thoughts of Others, Birmingham
22nd September -10am - Committee Meeting – Thoughts of Others, Birmingham
29th September - 1.30pm – WICHA Meeting - Branas Isaf, Llys Edeyrnion Business Centre,
London Road, Corwen, Denbighshire, LL21 0DB
20th October – 10am – General Meeting – venue to be arranged
17th November – 10am Committee Meeting – Thoughts of Others, Birmingham
Ends