External and Out of Area Placements and the Role of the Child Care Commissioning Panel

Child Care Commissioning Panel will make recommendations to the Head of Children & Young People’s Support & Safeguarding Services, in accordance with that department’s financial delegation, when requests are made for a Looked After Child to be placed with an external provider.

The aim of the Child Care Commissioning panel is to ensure that the use of resources is responsive to the assessed need, and placements are outcome focused.  The panel will ensure that:

Looked after provision is used in a planned way to maximise value for money.

Information is collated on needs to inform locality and strategic planning.

To achieve these aims the Commissioning Panel will ensure that:

All community based options or internal provision have been explored prior to an external placement being agreed.

All decisions on the child or young person's needs are identified within Single Assessments and Care Plans.

Placements are made in the most cost effective way, maximising the East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s regional and national contracts.

Placement drift does not result in financial pressure on the directorate's budget.

All needs e.g. education are central to Care Plans.

An overview of all external placement s and the needs of looked after children.

Area Managers will be accountable to the panel for providing accurate information  and for the progress of Care Plans

The membership of the Commissioning Panel will be:

• Service Manager Corporate Parenting (Chair);
• Service Manager, Children's Social Care (Vice Chair);
• Children’s Commissioning & Development Manager;
• Education and schools  representative;
• Quality Compliance Officer;
• Senior Accountant;
• Youth and Family Support representative.

Senior Fostering Social Worker

Clinical Services Manager (CAMHS)

If a member is unable to attend the meeting they should endeavour to send a substitute. If the meeting is held without a representative from children’s social care then recommendations can only be made in principle and will require the endorsement of the service manager, children’s social care

The Commissioning Panel will meet at every Tuesday of each month, and will be scheduled for 90 minutes.

Additional meetings may be convened with the agreement of the members, if required.

Each request for resource at the panel will be presented by the child’s social worker or team manager/advanced social worker

The social worker will ensure the following has been completed prior to the case being brought to panel:

• Panel request for placement form;
• Assessment and analysis of need;
• Care plan;
• Checked that the assessed needs cannot be met by internal placements or community-based packages.

All planned admissions by the local authority into externally provided care will normally have been agreed by the panel prior to placement.

Unplanned placements include, although not an exhaustive list.

• Emergency Protection Order;
• Police Protection;
• Placements via court directions;
• Placements via Emergency Duty Team (EDT).

Unplanned placements will be presented to panel within one week of the placement start date to seek retrospective approval. Approval for unplanned placement can only be given for 7 days by a Service Manager or above.

The panel will make recommendations on each case presented with a timescale for the case to return to panel if appropriate.

If the recommendation made exceeds £30,000 (weekly fee x length of approval of placement) then the endorsement of the organisation decision maker is required.

The requests for resource and review forms which are required to be submitted to the quality compliance officer by 5.00pm on the Monday prior to panel can be found in the Forms Library. Forms need to be authorised by both the team and area managers prior to being presented to panel.

Review forms will be tabled at panel and the social worker is not required to attend unless specifically requested to do so by the panel. The quality compliance officer, will maintain a review schedule and will contact the social worker at least one week prior to panel to confirm a completed and authorised review form is required.