The Children and Families Scrutiny Committee of Waltham Forest Council met on Wednesday, 10 June 2026, to review the services provided by the Children and Families directorate and to discuss the committee's work programme. The meeting included an introduction to the council's children's services and a review of the committee's ongoing actions and recommendations.

Introduction to Children's Services

The committee was scheduled to receive an overview of the services provided by the Children and Families directorate. This report, authored by Nicky Crouch, Strategic Director of Children's Services, aimed to outline service priorities, significant challenges and risks, and upcoming national policy changes. The directorate encompasses Children's Social Care, Education, and SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) services, primarily serving individuals aged 0-18, and extending to 18-25 for care leavers or those with SEND needs.

Children's Social Care's remit includes safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, particularly those who are vulnerable or at risk of harm. The service is structured around several key areas:

• Safeguarding and Family Support: This includes the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) for initial referrals, assessment teams for child and family evaluations, and safeguarding teams working with families on Child in Need Plans and Child Protection plans. This area is undergoing significant change due to government reforms, including the development of Family Help teams.
• Corporate Parenting: This encompasses services for children in care, leaving care services for young people transitioning to adulthood, and placement and permanence teams responsible for finding alternative homes. It also includes the Family Time Service, which supports contact between children in care and their families.
• The Virtual School: This team focuses on improving the educational attainment and life chances of children and young people who have or have had a Social Worker.
• Youth and Family Resilience Service: This service works with children at risk of exploitation or criminality, including the Youth Offending Team and an intensive Edge of Care service.
• Practice Improvement and Quality Assurance: This area includes quality assurance functions, training and development, child protection conference chairs, the LADO (Local Authority Designated Officer) for managing allegations against professionals, and the Parenting Assessment Team.

The Education directorate is responsible for ensuring access to appropriate education for all children and young people aged 0-19, with extended duties for those with SEND up to age 25. The council oversees 44 maintained schools, rated as 'good' or 'outstanding' by Ofsted. However, a recent joint inspection of the local area SEND arrangements in February 2025 identified inconsistent experiences and outcomes for children and young people with SEND. The Education Directorate is comprised of SEND and Commissioning, Learning and Inclusion, and Education, Operations and Performance.

The report highlighted several priority areas of work, including the significant transformation driven by the Family First Reforms and proposed SEND Reforms. Challenges facing local schools due to falling pupil numbers and rising costs were also noted, leading to a review of the school estate. Key challenges and risks for Children's Services include its demand-led nature, the impact of multiple government policy changes, recruitment and retention issues in key disciplines, and significant financial risks associated with care placements and home-to-school transport for SEND children.

The report also detailed the policy context, referencing key legislation such as the Children Act 1989, Children Act 2004, and the Children and Families Act 2014 (SEND reforms). It also pointed to important documents and ongoing reforms, including the Families First Reforms, the SEND White Paper, Fostering Hubs, Regional Care Co-operatives, the Best Start in Life strategy, and Youth Justice Reform.

The Scrutiny Report

The committee was presented with The Scrutiny Report, which outlined the committee's work programme and ongoing actions. This report, authored by Rosie Whillock, Acting Scrutiny Officer, invited members to review suggested items for the 2026/27 Forward Plan and to make additional suggestions.

The report included an Action Tracker, detailing tasks requested of officers from previous meetings, and a Recommendations Tracker, outlining conclusions on how services could change or improve. The committee was invited to review and approve these trackers and any accompanying action responses.

A section on Key Decisions highlighted that the council is required to publicise details of significant decisions at least 28 days in advance. The report noted that a key decision regarding 16+ Semi Independent Accommodation was due to be made by the PLM – Children and Young Peoples, with no date before 11th May 2026.

The Forward Planning section invited discussion on items for the 2026-27 Scrutiny Committee Forward Plan, which covers areas such as statutory responsibilities for children's social care, early help, family hubs, youth offending, SEND, and education. The committee was provided with a draft Forward Plan, which included potential items such as the Youth Justice Annual Report, Local Safeguarding Children Annual Report, Corporate Parent Board Annual Report, and Children's Social Care Annual Complaints Report. Other items for consideration included the Sufficiency Strategy, the IRO Annual Report, the Virtual School Report, and a review of the Whitefield School Investigation.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting

The committee was asked to consider the minutes of the previous meeting held on Tuesday, 17 March 2026. The minutes from that meeting indicated discussions on the Virtual School Annual Report, the Independent Review Officer (IRO) Annual Report 2024-2025, and the Children's Social Care Annual Complaints Report 2024-25. The minutes also noted specific actions for officers to provide further information on foster care standards, include comparative cost data for the IRO service, and provide a breakdown of the 29% of foster care standards not met.

The report pack also contained detailed responses to actions from previous meetings, including information on home-to-school transport for SEND children, the success of youth justice interventions, safeguarding measures for youth spaces, roles for young people on the Police Accountability Forum, and details regarding unmet foster care standards.

The meeting was scheduled to include a segment for Public Participation, allowing members of the public to speak on topics related to the Committee's work.