Councillor Mrs Patricia Bradwell OBE, Deputy Leader & Executive Councillor for Children's Services, Lincolnshire County Council
Lincolnshire children’s services provide some of the best support in the country for our vulnerable children and young people, their families and carers.
We are rated by Ofsted as a top authority for providing effective services and considered a leader nationally in the vital areas of safeguarding and wellbeing.
Which is why I was so disappointed to read Karen Lee‘s alarmist column about social care being in crisis and that families and children in Lincolnshire are suffering as a result.
Let me pick up on her points.
The funding to meet a child’s SEND needs, including those associated with autism, is based on detailed assessments. Where a child has an Education, Health and Care Plan, appropriate funding is provided to schools, based on their needs. These are reviewed to ensure that the school has the necessary resources to meet the child’s needs.
Here in Lincolnshire we have announced our commitment to SEND support with a planned investment of over £50 million into schools. This will help create an extra 500 special school places, major builds and refurbishments at our special schools to make sure they have facilities to meet all needs and improved support at mainstream schools.
These exciting developments will see a new special school built in Lincoln and a new school will replace the current John Fielding School to provide updated facilities.
Our Lincolnshire Parent Carer Forum have played an integral part in ensuring parents views and experiences were at the heart of the new vision. Recently asked to showcase their part in the partnership to ministers and other parent carer forums, they are vital in representing the views of parents and carers who need support for their children.
For early years pre-schools, nurseries and childminders working with children with SEND there is a range of services available in delivering quality early years education and care to all children.
Specialist teachers from locality teams work with looked after children, vulnerable children on a care plan and children at risk of exclusion. They also link in with health and social care colleagues for specific advice and support.
Parents with small children who need specialist support can also tap into the portage service with outreach workers from special schools providing learning in the home to prepare children for starting school.
In Lincolnshire 95% of SEND assessments are completed within the timescale of 20 weeks. Those that take longer are typically more complex and additional reports or assessments are necessary. Any extension on 20 weeks is usually agreed with parents but they can request that the authority complete the EHC Plan at that stage, to be reviewed later. Most parents prefer to wait until all assessments have been completed.
We’ve been working with the local Clinical Commissioning Groups to reduce waiting times for assessments for children and young people and improve the quality of assessments. A new, better process should be fully in place from April next year.
It will be much more responsive to the needs of families, reduce waiting times for assessments and provide more support to children and families, including from health visitors and through schools.
Finally, let me put the picture straight on our nursery schools.
Lincolnshire has five maintained nursery schools, in addition to the 579 early years and childcare providers across the county that provide early education and include nurseries, preschools, schools and childminders.
This is despite Lincolnshire having been funded at the minimum funding rate of £4.30 per pupil per hour since 2017 and this will continue up until 2019/20.
Local authorities do receive supplementary funding for maintained nursery schools, which helps support them to a higher level than other providers
There will always be individual cases where parents, carers and their children have particular difficulties which we will strive to solve, but the picture for children’s social care in Lincolnshire is one of solid support.
Maybe Karen Lee should highlight the dedication and commitment of our educational psychologists, occupational therapists, health visitors and school teachers in supporting our most vulnerable young people, rather than scare stories about children’s social care.
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Conservative Councillor Mrs Patricia Anne Bradwell is the deputy leader of Lincolnshire County Council and sits in the Billinghay and Metheringham division. Patricia is the Executive Councillor for Adult Care and Health Services as well as for Children's Services.
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Phase two of the works at Speakers’ Corner in Lincoln is well underway and expected to finish on schedule this summer.
Phase two, which began on Monday, January 11, will see existing paving upgraded, as well as new street furniture being installed.
It will follow the first phase which was completed and open to the public on December 22, with a new bench put in place around the existing London Plane tree, instead of the demolished kiosk.
Speakers Corner bench is in place, but closed off until phase two paving works are finished. | Photo: The Lincolnite
Site setup for phase two is complete, with workers on site currently digging out the existing hard paving standings at the Cornhill.
A large portion of the area has been fenced off while work takes place, leaving just two pedestrian strips on either side to access both the High Street and the Cornhill Quarter.
There is limited access in the area while works take place. | Photo: The Lincolnite
Despite the cold and wet weather throughout January, progress of the paving removal has not been affected.
This means that phase two works are still on course to be finished in summer this year.
It is hoped that once the area is completed, the walkways will blend in with those at Exchange Square, as well as utilising the space for events.
A look at how the finished development will look. | Illustration: City of Lincoln Council
Bin collections in Boston and in parts of East Lindsey will be suspended for the rest of the week due to COVID-related staff absences.
The collections will be suspended from Wednesday, January 27 as a number of East Lindsey District Council’s and Boston Borough Council’s waste crews either have coronavirus or are self-isolating.
Boston Borough Council and East Lindsey District Council said it is not a decision that has been taken lightly and it is necessary for the service to be suspended in some southern parts of the district until Monday, February 1.
From Monday, waste collections are expected to continue as normal.
Households impacted by the disruption can present any accumulated side waste in black refuse sacks alongside their black bins on their next scheduled bin collection.
The following areas are affected:
Boston
Friskney
Eastville
New Leake
Stickford
Coningsby (part)
Coningsby Moorside
Dalderby
Haltham
Mareham Le Fen
Moorby
N Bolingbroke
Revesby
Scrivelsby
Tumby
Tumby Moorside
Tumby Woodside
Wilksby
Wood Enderby
Carrington
Dogdyke
Frithville
Gypsey Bridge
New Bolingbroke
New York
Scrub Hill
Thornton Le Fen
Westville
Antons Gowt
Cowbridge
Fishtoft
Frithville
Langrick
Sibsey
East Keal
East Kirkby
Hagnaby
Keal Coates
Midville
Stickney
Toynton All Saints
West Keal
Victoria Burgess, Assistant Director for Operations at the council, said: “Over the past couple of days it has proved a real challenge to keep the service going with a number of rounds having not been completed due to staff absences.
“With more crews off again today we needed to take action now and suspending the service is the only realistic option available to us to keep everyone safe – something we’ve worked hard to avoid.
“Our workforce has done an amazing job over the past year and they’ve received much praise from the community and are grateful for your continued good wishes.”
Meanwhile, Lincolnshire County Council has agreed to extend their open days at the Household Recycling Centre on Bittern Way for the disposal of black-bagged general waste and recycling only.
The two extra days of opening are Wednesday and Thursday of this week and next, between the hours of 8am and 4pm.
Over 6,000 people living in and around the Scunthorpe have signed up to donate convalescent plasma after having coronavirus.
This comes as NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is appealing for more potential plasma donors ahead of an upcoming third trial.
Convalescent plasma is the antibody-rich plasma of people who’ve had coronavirus. This can be transfused into people who are struggling to develop their own immune response.
NHSBT wants more people in the area hitting the 28-day recovery mark to sign up.
Over 30 donations have so far been taken at the Scunthorpe donor centre at Berkeley House at Berkeley Business Centre on Doncaster Road, which opened in December last year.
People can register to donate online here and can donate 28 days after they’ve recovered from coronavirus.
The Lincolnshire centre is located at Berkeley House at Berkeley Business Centre on Doncaster Road in Scunthorpe. | Photo: NHSBT
NHSBT is collecting the plasma for new trials for older people or those with cancer to treat them early in the course of the infection.
Two earlier trials have now stopped for data analysis. The upcoming third trial’s focus will be on those with low immune systems and all donations are tested for COVID antibodies.
The NHS trials of convalescent plasma are the largest randomised controlled trials for this treatment of COVID-19.
Professor Dave Roberts, Associate Medical Director for Blood Donation at NHSBT, said: “More people than ever are now able to help – the time to donate is now.
“We especially need donations from people in Scunthorpe who’ve had hospital care. Men who had hospital care are around six times more likely to have the high antibody levels which might save lives.
“We have completed two trials and analysis is ongoing. We now need to collect plasma for further planned clinical studies. We’re particularly looking at high risk groups such as the elderly and people with cancer.
“Donations are vital to the ongoing lifesaving research, which gives us a better understanding of how we can best treat patients with COVID-19 and help prevent deaths in the future.”