Presentation given to Sheffield's Health and Wellbeing Board on the Children and Families Act at the Board's 26 June 2014 meeting.

1. The Children and Families Act
2014
A summary for the Sheffield Health
and Wellbeing Board
June 2014
Jayne Ludlam, Executive Director of Children,
Young People and Families, Sheffield City Council

2. Summary
• Royal Assent 13th
March 2014, comes into force
September 2014
• Part 1: Adoption and Contact
• Part 2: Family Justice
• Part 3: Special Educational Needs
• Part 4: Childcare Reform
• Part 5: Welfare of Children
• Parts 6-9: National Children’s Commissioner,
parental leave and parental working rights

3. Part 1: Adoption and Contact
• Tackling delays in the adoption process and
finding stable secure homes
• Reduce requirement to consider ethnicity
in matching
• From March 2015 Sec of State may require
a Council to outsource it’s adoption and
fostering functions
• Foster to adopt, personal budgets

4. Part 2: Family Justice
• Time limits on care proceedings
• Mediation
• Rules on expert witness evidence
• Requires involvement of both parents in
future arrangements (with exceptions)
• Child Arrangements Order replaces
Residence and Contact Orders

5. Part 3: Special Educational Needs
• Replaces the Statement of Educational
Need (SEN) with integrated Education,
Health and Care Plans (EHCs)
• Promotes Personal Budgets
• Requires Local Authorities and Health
Authorities (specifically CCGs) to work
together to deliver EHCs

6. Principles and Impact of Part 3
• Applies to young people up to the age of 25
where they are still in education or training
(including in apprenticeships)
• Requires cooperation of statutory partners and
‘co-production’ with parents and service users.
• Requires local governance to establish EHC
processes, new joint commissioning
arrangements and publishing a ‘local offer’ of
services and support available

7. Action to date: Education, Health
and Care (EHC) Plans
• Future Shape SEN Group – Reports to Children’s
Health and Wellbeing Partnership Board, chaired
by Director of Inclusion and Learning
• EHCs. Multi-agency development group. Pilot
plan and assessment process running now to
July/Aug
• Elements of children’s involvement, workforce
development, person centred planning
• Data, information sharing challenges.

8. Action to date: Local Offer
• Project Board established
• Mapping Exercise, parental
engagement, user consultation,
data gathering
• Website in development

9. Part 4: Childcare Reform
• Changes to child-minder registration
• Removes Council Duty to assess childcare
sufficiency (Council will still need to do this
in practice as part of children centre
planning)
• Opens way for more schools providing
childcare for early years

10. Part 5: Welfare of Children
• Wide ranging set of measures
• Virtual School heads for LAC
• Care Leavers can stay with foster carers up to age 21
• Duty for all schools to better support pupils with
medical conditions
• Duty to assess young carers needs (council)
• Free School Lunches for Infants
• Restrictions to protect children from nicotine (plain
packaging option, smoking in cars, proxy purchasing

11. Parts 6-9
• Range of measures
• Rights of parents to request flexible
working patterns
• Partner leave (for example to attend
antenatal classes)
• Adoption leave
• Reinforce the office of the Children’s
Commissioner and statutory role

12. Key Issues for HWB Partners
• Joint accountability across health, education
and social care for assessing and responding
to children’s needs e.g.-
• Education, Health and Care Plans
• Young Carers (i.e. their mental and emotional
health needs as well as practical/social
support)
• Support in school for children with
medical conditions