Reimagining Secure Care Governance Group minutes: May 2024

Quick introductions were made to start the meeting.

Previous minutes

Previous minutes agreed with no amendments.

Previous actions update

Jillian to provide feedback following previous COSLA meeting with Councillor Buchanan and Ms Don. Jillian to update the group at the next meeting.

Further meetings scheduled until December 2024 if required.

Liz advised Ruby Whitelaw (CYCJ) was invited and attended the meeting at HM YOI Polmont regarding transitions.

Fiona forwarded CYCJ information sheet outlining alternatives to Young Offender Institution (YOI) for children aged 16 to 17 not subject to Compulsory Supervision Order to Tom and Vivien, this has now been published.

Tom, Liz and Alison have visited all the secure care centres in the last two weeks, who have been asked to provide proposals, what is required to expedite the YOI delivery. This will be followed up at the end of the month. Ongoing fortnightly meetings agreed with SPS (Scottish Prison Service) and secure care providers regarding the processes and mechanisms required to facilitate removal of children from YOI. The expectation is to achieve readiness and confidence by autumn. However, if an earlier completion is necessary, it is crucial that the necessary supports are in place or ready to go to meet any accelerated timeline.

Secure care providers have already shared views on what they see as essential; some limited physical and security improvements, as well as additional staff training and confidence building.

Regardless of the bill, centres are thinking about managing distress behaviour in terms of crisis management and building confidence to ensure all presenting behaviours can be managed and responded to. Capacity required is difficult to predict as number fluctuates all the time.

Bring YOI upfront to be delivered this year sharply into focus. Preconditions in the environment, the processes, transport all must be addressed before young people can be placed.

Ben asked what the plan is for displacement of young people in Polmont, will they be moved when there is a space available for them in secure care?

Tom explained that they do not wish to move the children 1 by 1. If possible, moving everyone in a short period at the same time, is preferable but difficulties arise due to fluctuation in numbers, this was at 7 however is now at 10.

Alison advised that there are only 13 vacancies in secure care at moment.

Discussion regarding the additional capacity that removing children from Polmont would then create by freeing up a wing that could be utilised fully once children are removed.

The group reiterated from the last meeting that it is important to maintain open and transparent communication and have a clear plan.

Project update

We have now finished the in-person workshops with the codesign group, the last session was on 14 May 2024. We unfortunately had to cancel the first consultancy group session, online, due to illness. We presented the options to the consultancy group through a survey with feedback requested by close of play on 20 May 2024. The options have also been circulated to this group and comments, feedback welcomed.

The next step will be to incorporate the final codesign session refinements with the feedback from the consultancy group survey for the in person consultative group session on 24 May 2024. This will then be followed by the final integration session, online, with the codesign group on 29 May 2024 to share feedback from the consultative group on the proposed options and refine these as far as possible, discuss any gaps, and any final points the group feel are important to flag.

Currently finalising the content of the consultative group session where we aim to gather how the options have been received, their suggestions how to strengthen them, identify gaps, and contribute to refining the ideas.

The options that were sent out, were:

• community based hubs
• multi-disciplinary teams
• physical spaces with flexible levels of restriction and security where children, young people are cared for and may be deprived of their liberty
• assessment
• workforce

The five options are all interconnected and do not exist in isolation, they all overlap with each other.

Donna advised any feedback from the group on the proposed options is welcomed.

Positive movement into crystallising concepts and Tom liked the layered, interlocking, and adaptable services and supports.

Donna and Julia to send the larger document, which was considered to hold too much information. This would not be helpful for the options paper shared with the consultative group, to be shared with Tom and Governance Group.

It is possible with the suggestions that come out of the design process that there will be a need to change legislation. We will have an initial blueprint, but we will need to be clear that this is the elements and foundation, that will need further refinement. This will provide a solid foundation of what we want to take forward in Scotland and what we want that to look like.

Member feedback

This was discussed throughout conversations.

Draft report

General feedback given that it was a lovely document to read, it gets to the root of things what makes difference, a relationship with people, flexibility and person centred. But cannot help but jump to the how and think about what it will look like to implement.

Need to consider future proofing, how can we support current services to work towards the proposed options. Thinking beyond secure and wider aspects, thinking how local authorities will be able to do it and how Scottish Government will be able to support it.

It was acknowledged that the question whether Scotland retains some form of  secure provisions will be challenging politically. How comfortable will ministers be with us setting a horizon with no deprivation of liberty for children. What we are proposing as they will have to make decisions in terms of secure provision in addition to the beginnings of the outputs from this project. This would impact on what we do and would need to be built into what that looks like.

The group is looking forward to hearing feedback on last sessions and bringing everything together. Timings for report will be, full final draft with the governance group end of June and anyone else we would wish to review the report, then gather feedback and refine in July early August and final submission at the end of August.

Fiona advise there will be a suite of 3 reports, a literature review, one for children and young people and the full report with the work of the codesign group including the options.

Key actions and timescales

Share the draft report with the codesign group and need to confirm if anyone else will be asked to review and feedback at the end of June meeting.

Agree an approach on the context, how this is shared and wider connections. Need to ensure connections with the wider development and change work across the landscape. It will be important to pinpoint the groups we have pre-emptive conversations with e.g. Healthcare, GIRFEC etc and agree strategy for engagement and dissemination.

Any other business

There was no other business.  

Date of next meeting

The date of the next meeting is 26 June 2024.

Further meetings have been scheduled for 7 August 2024, 18 September, 30 October, and 11 December.