National Bairns' Hoose Governance Group minutes: November 2023

Attendees and apologies

Members

• Val de Souza, National Bairns' Hoose Governance Group (Chair)
• Ian Donaldson, Deputy Director of Children's Rights, Protection and Justice, Directorate for Children and Families, Scottish Government
• Will Griffiths, Bairns' Hoose Unit, Directorate for Children and Families, Scottish Government (deputising for Lesley Swanson)
• Laura Buchan, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, Crown Office
• Mary Glasgow, Chief Executive, Children 1st
• DSU Martin MacLean, Police Scotland (deputising for DCC Connors)
• Alistair Hogg, Head of Practice and Policy, Scottish Children's Reporter Administration
• Jillian Ingram, Joint Investigative Interviews (JII) National Implementation Coordinator, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (deputising for Laura Caven)
• Sally Ann Kelly, Chief Executive, Aberlour, CCPS representative
• Chantelle Lalli, Justice Lead, Bairns' Hoose Unit, Directorate for Justice, Scottish Government
• Justine Craig, Chief Midwifery Officer, Directorate for Chief Nursing Officer, Scottish Government (deputising for Alex McMahon)
• Louise Long, Chief Executive, Inverclyde Council, SOLACE representative
• Jackie Irvine, Chief Executive, Care Inspectorate
• Joanna McDonald, Deputy Chief Social Work Adviser, Office of the Chief Social Work Adviser, Scottish Government (deputising for Iona Colvin)
• Shawna Von Blixen, European Barnahus Network Coordinator (attending virtually)
• Mary Mitchell, Senior Lecturer in Social Work, University of Edinburgh
• Sharon Glasgow, Protecting Children Policy and Practice Advisor, Social Work Scotland

Guests

• Camille Warrington, Research Fellow, University of Edinburgh
• Franca McLeod, Principal Research Officer, Children and Families Analysis, Scottish Government
• Jack Murray-Dickson, Bairns' Hoose Unit, Directorate for Children and Families, Scottish Government
• Tricia Lang, Bairns' Hoose Unit, Directorate for Children and Families, Scottish Government (secretariat)

Apologies

• John Burns, Chief Operating Officer, NHS Scotland, Scottish Government
• Alex McMahon, Chief Nursing Officer, Scottish Government
• Laura Caven, Chief Officer, Children and Young People Team, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities
• Andrew Watson, Director of Children and Families, Scottish Government
• Cat Dalrymple, Director of Justice, Scottish Government
• Anna Donald, Deputy Director, Criminal Justice Division, Directorate for Justice, Scottish Government
• Iona Colvin, Chief Social Work Adviser, Office of the Chief Social Work Adviser, Scottish Government
• Lesley Swanson, Head of Bairns' Hoose Unit, Scottish Government

Items and actions

Welcome, introductions and apologies (agenda item 1)

The Chair welcomed attendees to the meeting and introduced new members Mary Mitchell, Senior Lecturer in Social Work at University of Edinburgh and Shawna von Blixen, European Barnahus Network Coordinator. The Chair then invited each member to introduce themselves in turn.

Minutes of last meeting, matters arising and action register (agenda item 2)

The Chair invited any comments on the minutes of the previous meeting held on 22 August 2023. An issue was raised highlighting an error with a Group member’s job title and an action taken to rectify. No other comments or issues were raised regarding the minutes.

The Chair summarised the open and ongoing actions from the previous meeting:

• 3.2 Once the new children and young people engagement arrangements have been established members to consider how they would best like to introduce themselves to children and young people, open
• 3.3 Children 1st to coordinate a meeting between Chair and Changemakers Group, open
• 3.4 Children 1st to request update from Sheriff Mackie on his work to share with the Group, open
• 3.8 Children 1st to share slides and impact report once finalised, open
• 3.9 Group members to consider how to use the learning provided by the presentations to maintain group focus and connection with children's experiences, as well as to share more widely with partners, open
• 3.10 Scottish Government Justice, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), and Children 1st to meet to discuss the circumstances outlined in Children 1st presentation, open
• 4.3 Scottish Government Justice to speak to Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) in relation to action 3.10, open
• 4.4 Group members to feedback on Lydia's poem, open
• 4.5 Office of the Chief Social Work Adviser (OCSWA) to take lead on how we contribute to the sustainability of this Scottish Child Interview Model (SCIM) model as we move forward and invite Ian Ramsay to the National Bairns' Hoose Governance Group (NBHGG) meeting in January to link with action 4.6, open
• 4.6 Another session with the Group on SCIM to be held in January 2024, including a particular focus on social work/police pressures in relation to turnover, open
• 4.7 Professional advisers to engage and study the material from Don McIntyre's presentation on the child's journey at the April meeting and the SCIM presentation, and report back to the Group on what this means for NBHGG organisations, open

The Chair noted that ‘open’ actions would be carried over to next meeting.

Actions

• 5.1 Secretariat to amend job title for Louise Long.

Children and young people (agenda item 3)

Jack Murray-Dickson (Scottish Government Bairns’ Hoose Unit) reminded the Group of the involvement from children and young people (CYP) during the assessment of Bairns’ Hoose Pathfinder applications and how their input fed into the overall recommendation submitted to Ministers.  The importance of continuing this engagement with CYP throughout the Pathfinder phase was highlighted.

Following the showing of ‘Lydia’s Poem’ at the previous NBHGG meeting, an audio clip from 'Lydia’s Mum Poem A Parent's Frustration' was played to the Group and feedback and any thoughts (for both clips) was gathered.

Actions

• 5.2 Comments and reflections gathered on for 'Lydia’s Poem' and/or 'Lydia's Mum Poem A Parent's Frustration' to be shared with Lydia and her mum as part of the feedback loop.

Chair’s update (agenda item 4)

The Chair spoke to her paper:

• Congratulations were offered to Pathfinder and Affiliate partnerships and the importance of including and engaging with non-applicant partnerships was reiterated as we move into the next phase. The opening of the ‘Wee Hoose’ was recognised as a major achievement in Scotland and further congratulations offered to representatives from that partnership.
• The Chair went on to share membership updates and welcomed two new members, attending their first NBHGG meeting – Shawna von Blixen (European Barnahus Network) and Mary Mitchell (University of Edinburgh).
• Reflections were shared on the Collaborative Intelligence Workshop which was held on 11 October 2023. This workshop, which was well attended by all sectors had been lively, challenging and productive. The Workshop had confirmed that the Group’s role was to lead the national roll out of the project. The presentation today (agenda item 6) on Theory of Change, had emerged from discussions during this workshop with a view to inform the Group of the methodology and to support implementation from an evidence base.
• A meeting between the Chair and the Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise (Ms Don) and the Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport (Ms Todd) had taken place on 24 October and included discussion around future considerations and actions for the Group:
  • to ensure the sufficient attention is given to data/analysis 
  • to ensure Scottish Government engages with the partnerships beyond the Pathfinder programme 
  • an opportunity for the Group to meet with Scottish Ministers in early 2024. 

Bairns’ Hoose Unit (Scottish Government) (agenda item 5)

Will Griffiths (Scottish Government Bairns’ Hoose Unit) provided an update of main points:

Pathfinder and Affiliate partnerships

The announcement of the six selected Pathfinder partnerships by the Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise on 24 October 2023 marked a significant milestone for the development of Bairns’ Hoose in Scotland. The Pathfinder partnerships were Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Fife, North Strathclyde, Outer Hebrides and Tayside. These partnerships would help show how the Standards worked in practice in different contexts, enabling the design of a national Bairns’ Hoose model.

Pathfinders would have access to bespoke support and coaching from quality improvement and design experts, through collaboration sessions and workshops, analysis support and with the development of a learning exchange programme. The Standards Self-Assessment and Readiness Tool (StART) would be helpful to gather evidence to help understand the starting position of each Pathfinder. Each Pathfinder had also been allocated a Scottish Government Bairns’ Hoose Single Point of Contact, a named Improvement Adviser and a Fund Manager Development Officer to provide ongoing advice and support.

An Introductory Workshop for Pathfinders was scheduled for 20 November 2023 and would provide an opportunity for engagement and relationship building. Jason Leitch would be in attendance as keynote speaker.

Affiliate status had been offered to partnerships that were not selected as a Pathfinder, to maintain momentum for the delivery of Bairns’ Hoose.  These were Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Highland, and the Sycamore Partnership (Edinburgh, East Lothian and Midlothian).

A list of supportive options for Affiliates was referenced and included workshops, knowledge exchange sessions and earlier access to funding support than areas which had not applied. Affiliate partnerships had also been allocated a Scottish Government Bairns’ Hoose Single Point of Contact and would have a named Fund Manager Development Officer providing ongoing advice and support.

For those areas which had not applied to be Pathfinders, professional advisers would engage with local representatives to scope their readiness and aim to produce a written report on their findings by summer 2024. Impact Funding Partners (IFP) would also provide support and would capture intelligence about their developments through the grant monitoring and reporting process.

An update paper on the Scottish Government’s approach to analysis had been tabled separately, along with the 2022 data review. One of the elements of the research plan was the collaborative development of a key indicator set, with representation from Pathfinder partnerships and analytical experts with an interest. Scottish Government wished to invite two NBHGG members to be a part of this.

Bairns’ Hoose Fund

Funding, amounting to £6m for 2023-24 with a similar amount for 2024-25, would support the Pathfinder phase and would be administered by IFP. The fund consisted of three funding streams: the Pathfinder Fund, the Development Fund and the Thematic Fund. Attention was drawn to milestones and key dates listed in Bairns' Hoose Unit Update Paper (Paper 3).

Further funding would be available for Affiliate partnerships through the Development Fund (Phase 1). Phase 1 of the Development Fund would cover the period 8 January 2024 to 31 March 2025.  Attention was drawn to milestones and keys dates listed in Bairns' Hoose Unit Update Paper (Paper 3).

The Development Fund (Phase 2) would open in February 2024 and close early March 2024 and would cover the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. This would be open to any other partnership in Scotland and the criteria for this fund would be shared with key stakeholders in advance. This Fund would support partnerships at an earlier stage of their Bairns’ Hoose journey and which had not applied to become a Pathfinder.

The Thematic Fund would open in April 2024 and close in May 2024 for the period up to 31 March 2025. This Fund would be open to all areas and would support thematic tests of change. For example, this could be for therapeutic support and recovery services or workforce support.

National Bairns’ Hoose Governance Group

The National Child Protection Leadership Group (NCPLG) was currently on pause. The implications of this on the reporting structure for the NBHGG were being considered by the Bairns’ Hoose Pathfinder Programme Board but in the interim, the Chair could report directly to Scottish Ministers. 

Discussion points

The Chair thanked Will Griffiths for the report and invited comments:

• Concerns were raised on the challenging timelines around spending funding allocated for the financial year 2023/24. These concerns were acknowledged and it was noted that there were ongoing conversations between Scottish Government, IFP, and Pathfinders/Affiliates to mitigate challenges. 
• Several questions were raised about the role and the priorities of the NBHGG. Some members of the Group argued that the Group was not being adequately informed of or included in important decisions. The decision to establish Affiliate partnerships and the assessment of applications were highlighted as key recent decisions in which the Group could have been involved to a greater extent. Transparency relating to the allocation of funding between Pathfinders and Affiliate partnerships was also raised as an issue.
• The Scottish Government noted that, in line with the planned governance process presented to the NBHGG earlier in the year, all Pathfinder applications had been assessed and selected through a two-level panel process and approved by Scottish Ministers. The panel had been chaired by Deputy Director for Children’s Rights, Protection and Justice, and had included representatives from Justice and Health within Scottish Government. It was also noted that the Independent Chair had been part of the selection panel, and so had been involved in the assessment process and in the decisions relating to Affiliate partnerships.
• The Scottish Government recalled that the main aim of the Pathfinder phase was to provide evidence of implementation of standards to allow a blueprint to be developed and to learn from and deliver on a wider scale. The Affiliate partnerships had been established as their applications had demonstrated aspects which they could take forward to contribute to this evidence. The emphasis was on building momentum for Bairns’ Hoose.
• In relation to a question raised around reporting and testing standards, it was noted that Scottish Government had a learning programme in place and there had never been an expectation that Pathfinder partnerships would need to bring in external evaluators.
• In answer to a question, the Scottish Government confirmed that, reflecting the Group’s Terms of Reference and the information diagram relating to governance previously shared with the Group, the Bairns’ Hoose Pathfinder Programme Board, members of which were Scottish Government officials and professional advisers, was the focus of decision-making - subject to Ministerial approval - in relation to the Pathfinder phase.
• The role of the NBHGG was discussed. It was recalled that under its Terms of Reference the Group had an important and potentially highly influential function in advising Ministers to support their decision-making. There had been and would be further opportunities, as the Bairns Hoose programme moved through to roll-out, for the Group to exercise that function. Concerns were raised that given the pace of decision-making and progress over recent months, the Scottish Government had not been sufficiently transparent in providing information to the Group to support this advisory role. It was agreed that Scottish Government would support this process by keeping the Group more widely informed.

Actions

• 5.3 Request for two NBHGG members to support the development of a key indicator set. Expressions of interest (EOIs) by Thursday 30 November.
• 5.4 Bairns' Hoose Unit to re-circulate governance diagram to NBHGG.
• 5.5 Following Pathfinder/Affiliate/funding discussion, Group members to send any comments or concerns to bairnshoosegovernance@gov.scot by Friday 1 December. 
• 5.6 Following above action, Bairns' Hoose Unit to consider comments and prepare a paper in response by Christmas break. The purpose of this paper would be to provide a clear description of current arrangements for the Pathfinder phase and to provide background on decisions made and direction taken to date. The paper would be discussed at next NBHGG meeting on 6 February 2024.

Data (agenda item 6)

A presentation was given from the Scottish Government Principal Research Officer to Directorate for Children and Families on the analytical approach. 

Following the presentation, a question was raised around children and families and where they are in this. It was noted that CYP have been extensively involved in the development of the Standards, and CYP participation is a workstrand within the Pathfinder programme and a key part of the work to be taken forward. The analysis will explore the extent and effectiveness of CYP participation.

There was a discussion around the StART and the indicators. The Group was reminded that the StART is structured around the Standards. The indicators will be drawn from existing statistical data as set out in the mapping paper, plus any additional collections to be agreed by the indicator development group. They are not tied to the Standards, which will inform other parts of the analytical work (StART).  The Standards have been intensively coproduced including with CYP and have been signed off by all stakeholders. A query was raised relating to the involvement of Children and Young People's Centre for Justice (CYCJ) in the Bairns’ Hoose analysis programme. It was explained that their involvement in supporting the Scottish Government analytical team had been built into an existing Scottish Government grant arrangement with CYCJ. 

Actions

• 5.7 Laura Buchan to meet with Franca on discussion relating to data and analysis.
• 5.8 Bairns’ Hoose Unit/Healthcare Improvement Scotland to share copy of StART tool with NBHGG.

Improvement theory (agenda item 7)

Mary Mitchell and Camille Warrington, Research Fellow, University of Edinburgh, gave a presentation on improvement theory based on material gathered from the North Strathclyde project. The Group responded to their research questions and feedback was gathered.

Actions

• 5.9 Feedback requested on approach, short term and long-term actions – opportunity for the NBHGG to feed into this work.

Any other business

The next meeting is scheduled to take place on 6 February 2024 and will be virtual via Microsoft Teams.