Enterprise and Learning Committee

Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru | National Assembly for Wales

Pwyllgor Plant, Pobl Ifanc ac Addysg | Children, Young People and Education

Committee

CYPE(5)-09-16 – Papur | Paper 1

Ymateb gan : Llywodraeth Cymru

Response from : Welsh Government

Title: Evidence paper for Draft Budget Allocations 2017-18 – Children & Communities MEG.

1. Introduction

This paper provides comments and information to the Committee regarding the Communities and Children (C&C) portfolio and future programme budget proposals outlined within the Draft Budget which was laid on 18 October 2016.

As requested by the Committee, Annex A provides a breakdown of the Draft Budget figures for the C&C Major Expenditure Group (MEG) relevant to the Committee, by Action and by Budget Expenditure Line (BEL).

2. Background

Summary Financial Tables:

C&C MEG	2016-17 Supp. Budget £000	2017-18 Baseline Budget £000	2017-18 Changes £000	2017-18 New Plans Draft Budget £000
Resource DEL	357,631	358,468	12,600	371,068
Capital DEL	376,370	328,012	9,693	337,705
DEL Baseline	734,001	686,480	22,293	708,773

Within the overall C&C MEG, the main elements for the Committee are Children, Young People and Families. The budgets for those elements are summarised in the table below.

	2016-17 Supp. Budget £000	2017-18 Baseline Budget £000	2017-18 Changes £000	2017-18 New Plans Draft Budget £000
Resource DEL	172,453	172,558	8,500	181,058
Capital DEL	3,000	0	1,260	1,260
DEL Baseline	175,453	172,558	9,760	182,318

3. Budget Overview

This is a Budget which has been developed against the backdrop of uncertain and difficult times. The outcome of the EU referendum will recast our relationship with the European Union in the long term and there is uncertainty about the future of important European funding streams and the impact on UK public finances and the Welsh budget.

We continue to face ongoing cuts to our overall funding from the UK Government – the influential Institute for Fiscal Studies has commented that “Wales is looking at an extraordinary 11 or more years of retrenchment in public service spending…”

This means that, as a Welsh Government and as a National Assembly for Wales, we face some hard choices as we continue to work to protect our public services from the worst of these effects and invest in Wales to grow jobs and our economy, taking our country forward.

The UK Government will publish an Autumn Statement in November. Even though early statements by the Chancellor of the Exchequer indicate that the Treasury will no longer be aiming to achieve a surplus by 2020, he has also said it is not an end to austerity. This is why, in our Draft Budget, we have decided to publish revenue spending plans for 2017-18 only and capital plans for four years, providing certainty for longer-term investments.

We are now in the second year of the UK Government’s Spending Review settlement, which set the Welsh Government’s revenue budget for the period 2016-17 to 2019-20 and the capital budget until 2020-21. Overall, the Welsh budget will continue to reduce in real terms over the period.

The cuts yet to come compound the successive real terms reductions which have been made since 2010-11. The Spending Review reductions to our settlement reinforced the UK Government’s squeeze on public spending and commitment to austerity. Our budget will be 9% lower in real terms by the end of the decade – this is equivalent to almost £1.5billion less in real terms for public services in Wales in 2019-20 than in 2010-11.

The Devolved Administrations have urged the UK Government to rethink its economic and fiscal policy. Working together, we are determined to act to ward off further austerity policies which may be considered as a consequence of the referendum result.

The result of the EU referendum has added to the level of uncertainty about future resources for Wales. Withdrawal from the EU will have an impact on the availability of resources available to Wales as it benefits from £650m a year from various European funding streams, including agricultural payments.

We need revenue plans now which support our public services today and our priorities for the longer term as well as enabling us to prepare for the inevitable budget reductions over the next few years if austerity continues unabated.

Once we have assessed the impact of the Autumn Statement, we intend to publish planning assumptions for 2018-19 and 2019-20 in the New Year. Our decision to publish a one-year revenue budget means we are providing stability for core services and investing in priorities in the immediate term. This provides a stable platform from which we can manage the tough financial times ahead in innovative ways with our partners and stakeholders.

Specific to my portfolio, I propose merging three of the current SPAs (Children, Young People and Families; Supporting Communities and People and CAFCASS Cymru) into one, called ‘Enabling Children and Communities’. Within the new SPA, there will be three Actions to cover Supporting Children, Prevention and Early Intervention and Third Sector/Financial Inclusion. The main difference is that the Prevention and Early Intervention Action will combine the revenue budgets for Flying Start, Families First and Communities First. It is not my intention to merge these programmes. I have indicated that some local authorities may be able to benefit from increased financial freedoms and flexibilities where this would improve service delivery. As indicated in my recent oral statement I am minded to phase out the Communities First programme and we are currently engaging with communities on the implications of this. This proposed Action shows a reduction of £1.15million, the amount my portfolio has contributed to the austerity cuts in 2017-18.

An integrated, long-term approach to capital funding

In this budget we have the opportunity to drive investment in the economy, make improvements in vital public services and start to deliver the key priorities set out in Taking Wales Forward.

In previous years we have mainly had traditional capital and financial transaction funding at our disposal to fund public infrastructure projects – now new borrowing powers and more innovative finance models are open to Wales as the level of available public capital continues to decline.

We will set a four-year capital budget, matching the capital settlement set out in the 2015 UK Spending Review, and consists of a firm budget for 2017-18 and indicative allocations for the subsequent three years. It is important we provide as much transparency and certainty to our key stakeholders and delivery partners as we can to deliver capital investments and so we have concluded that a long-term capital approach is the right decision.

Total available capital funding

The budget sets out plans for £6.9billion of capital funding, which is enhanced by our plans for £1.5billion of investment through our innovative finance investment programmes. We will make full use of the capital borrowing powers provided by the Wales Act 2014. This source of funding, included within our overall capital allocation, gives a £395m boost to our four-year Capital DEL budgets.

Given the many factors that impact on the timing and costs of strategic infrastructure projects, access to borrowed funds will be carefully considered during each budget period and used for agreed strategic investment priorities. Our strategic infrastructure plans and decisions are shaped by the commitments in Taking Wales Forward and the investment priorities in the Wales Infrastructure Investment Plan.

The timing of allocations

As we are setting out a four-year plan, we are supporting our strategic commitments through a combination of firm allocations for 2017-18, indicative allocations for the subsequent three years, and specific ear-marking of capital reserves. This approach provides flexibility to respond as proposals develop and funding requirements are established.

Reserves

Our approach will maximise allocations to portfolios while retaining a prudent level of central reserves as a contingency for unforeseen pressures. Whilst this principle applies equally to our revenue and capital budgets, we are increasing capital reserves further ensuring that sufficient central funds are available to support our priority commitments as they progress over the Assembly term.

Therefore, our resource reserves for 2017-18 are 1.7 per cent of the Resource DEL and Capital Reserves are 7.1 per cent of the Capital DEL, rising to between 30 and 34 per cent in subsequent three years. We are satisfied that these levels of reserves will enable us to manage risks and respond to unforeseen pressures, while giving individual Cabinet Secretaries funding certainty to begin planning and delivering the key commitments set out in Taking Wales Forward.

4. Programme for Government

This is a Budget to take Wales forward, to provide stability for our core services and to make progress in implementing our ambitious Programme for Government Taking Wales Forward 2016-21

http://gov.wales/docs/strategies/160920-taking-wales-forward-en.pdf .

Taking Wales Forward sets out how this government will deliver more and better jobs through a stronger, fairer economy, improve and reform public services and build a united, connected and sustainable Wales and the development of four cross cross-cutting strategies:

· Prosperous and secure

· Healthy and active

· Ambitious and learning

· United and connected

This government will work in partnership with others to tackle the challenges and issues facing Wales and grasp the opportunities as we continue to work together to create a strong and confident country.

We are working on four cross-cutting strategies: Prosperous and Secure; Ambitious and Learning; Healthy and Active; and United and Connected. These will set out in more detail the interdependent actions we will take to give everyone in Wales the opportunity to flourish at every stage of their lives.

They will support Taking Wales Forward and enable us to use all the levers available to us to have the greatest impact and deliver the promise of the Future Generations Act. These interlinked strategies will ensure that public services are integrated, efficient and available to support and enrich people’s lives when and where they need them.

We are committed to providing an environment that encourages innovative delivery in the current environment. Collaboration, partnership and efficiency across the public services are vitally important, as are challenging ourselves and our partners to use our collective resources to maximise the benefits of our collective endeavours. The Future Generations Act gives us, and other public bodies, a strong foundation to build on.

In working with my Cabinet colleagues we have discussed common areas of interest, which whilst not having a budgetary implication will reflect our commitment to work in collaboration to strengthen the delivery of our commitments. For example we are aligning Flying Start with the Health Child Wales programme to ensure a continuum of support for those children and families who moved between Flying Start areas and non Flying Start areas and that the interventions provided and public health messages are consistent. In the development of perinatal mental health services we will work in collaboration to develop common pathways and integrated services.

5. Key questions

Impact Assessments

The Equality Act 2010 aims to ensure public authorities consider how they can positively contribute to a fairer society in their day-to-day activities through paying due regard to eliminating unlawful discrimination, advancing equality of opportunity and fostering good relations.

We have again decided to complete an Integrated Impact Assessment of the Welsh Government Draft Budget, which takes into account children’s rights alongside impacts on equality, Welsh language and socio-economic disadvantage. Our approach was informed by recommendations from a range of stakeholders including the Assembly Committees and the EHRC. The SIIA highlights where such impacts were identified.

An integrated assessment provides a more comprehensive assessment of the overall impact of spending decisions. This approach reflects our wider understanding of the sustainability of our decisions and the aims and objectives set out in the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act, including the focus on prevention, collaboration and long-termism.

We as a Government are responsible for proposing and implementing policy and laws which would apply in Wales and which aim to improve the lives of everyone in Wales. In doing so, we are absolutely committed to listening to the views of the people of Wales, including children and young people. To enable this to happen, I am providing a total of £1.8 million over 3 years to Children in Wales to create structures to enable children and young people to have their opinions heard and influence our work. Their participation model, called Young Wales, aims to reach thousands of children and young people, including those who may be marginalised, shy, poor, excluded or in challenging circumstances

All of our grant award letters set out that recipients; “must apply a policy of equal opportunities as employers, as users of volunteers, and as providers of services, regardless of race, gender/gender identification, sexual orientation, religion and belief, age or any disability.”

There are no significant changes to either children’s rights or equalities as a result of this budget. We will ensure our Families First programme will continue to promote the development of more effective services for families with a disability, by providing ring-fenced funding for specific disability services, as well as encouraging disability concerns to be embedded in mainstream service delivery.

The funding we provide to the Children’s Commissioner enables the organisation to make a significant contribution to developing policy in relation to equalities. These benefits include:

improved health of children, leading to a healthier Wales,
better equality for children, leading to a more equal Wales,
improved physical environments of children, leading to a more globally responsible Wales, and
children’s rights to an identity, leading to a Wales of more cohesive communities and thriving Welsh language.

Children’s Rights Impact Assessments have been conducted for many areas within the Communities and Children Portfolio including:

· The extension of regulations and changes to the Childcare Regulation Framework. Refer to Annex B1.

· The Play Wales Strategic Policy grant ends 31.09.2017 but officials are considering arrangements for further funding subsequent to this. The CRIA is included at Annex B2.

· To underpin the Welsh Government’s Child Poverty Strategy published in 2015 – see Annex B3. The impacts of budget changes on tackling poverty were considered more widely as part of the Welsh Government’s integrated impact assessment of the 2017/18 budget.

· In relation to the Children and Families Delivery Grant within the Families First Budget. There were no changes to allocations as a result of the assessments. The CRIA is at Annex B4.

· In relation to the Positive Parenting Campaign. This was funded under the Families First BEL. There were no changes to allocations as a result of the assessments. Refer to Annex B5 for a copy of the CRIA.

· As part of CAFCASS Cymru’s work on Children’s participation. The CRIA is available at: http://gov.wales/docs/cafcass/publications/260216CRIA_YourVoice.pdf

Prevention

Prevention and early intervention are at the forefront of my mind. My role as Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children will be focussed on achieving my priorities of wellbeing and economic renewal both within the context of my portfolio responsibilities and working with Cabinet colleagues across Government.

The evidence is clear that the roots of wellbeing and economic prosperity lie in early childhood. The earliest years are vital: early life experiences can have a profound impact on a child’s development and influence behaviours in adolescence and adulthood. So we must take a long term view and invest in preventative services which promote individual and family resilience.

I am immensely proud of the investment that we have made in Flying Start – supporting over a quarter of all children under 4 years of age in Wales. I will maintain my commitment to Flying Start and seek to extend its reach through ensuring practice from Flying Start informs, the development of and practice in, mainstream services. There are opportunities through working in partnership with Public Health Wales and the WLGA on the first 1000 days and as part of the development of our universal Healthy Child Wales Programme.

One of the greatest threats to children’s wellbeing and to their future prosperity comes from Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). These adverse experiences, such as physical and verbal abuse or being in a household where there is domestic violence, substance misuse, parental separation or mental illness, negatively impact on a child’s development and affect long term outcomes.

Exposure to ACEs, particularly multiple ACEs can affect young people’s engagement with education, influence whether they adopt health harming behaviours and their propensity to criminal behaviour. All of these factors in turn reduce wellbeing and affect economic outcomes – the likelihood of being in secure employment.

So I will focus the work of my portfolio on addressing the incidence of ACEs, by seeking to prevent them where we can. At the same time we will work to reduce their impact on children’s life chances in order to improve wellbeing and economic prosperity. I am in no doubt this is a long term challenge and the benefits of this approach are equally long term. It is the right approach if we want to achieve the intergenerational benefits of breaking the cycle.

There is a wealth of evidence concerning the positive role of childcare in influencing parental employment, and the role of both good quality childcare and play in children’s development, ensuring that they have a good start in life. There is much evidence to show that early intervention has long term benefits (Gunnar & Davis (2003); Edwards et al (2009); Luther et al (2000), cited in Save the Children’s Early Intervention Review 2010).

The Children’s Commissioner’s role in scrutinising us in government and ensuring that legislation, policies and decisions provide the best possible outcomes for children, young people and their families again very much focuses on preventative measures. Likewise, the funding allocations I have made for Advocacy and Supporting Children’s Rights have a strong focus on preventative spend – informing, reassuring and empowering children to make positive changes in their lives, and resolving issues without the need for undue and stressful escalation.

Welsh Language

All programme publications and promotional materials we produce are printed bilingually and all services to families are provided bilingually. All of our social media communications are posted bilingually and all messages to Programme staff are sent in accordance with their specified language preference. We ensure Welsh language provision is an integral element of the Flying Start and Families First programmes with a requirement on local authorities to respond to parental choice, and to deliver Welsh-medium provision where required. Our strategic guidance makes it clear that local authorities must put in place arrangements to meet the preference of parents for Welsh medium and/or bilingual provision.

We have developed a specific project to promote the Welsh Language within the Flying Start programme this year.In addition, our Childcare activities include support for organisations such as Mudiad Meithrin and the CWLWM consortium which provide Welsh Medium childcare. Our enhanced childcare offer will work to ensure that there is adequate Welsh Language Provision, for those requesting it. In line with the Welsh Language Standard requirements, our PaCE programme asks each of its participants what their preferred language would be for receiving services. These services are then delivered to the individual according to their preference.

Value for Money

Evaluation takes place as part of normal grant management and project management activities. Where I directly fund Third Sector organisations, my officials will undertake due diligence checks to advise on an organisation’s financial viability, its governance and Director history before a grant is awarded and then regularly review during the life of the project before payments are made. In relation to funding to local authorities, I will continue to collect data from them to monitor performance, assess outcomes and drive the future improvement and delivery including value for money.

EU Referendum Result

There are no immediate direct effects of the decision to leave the European Union. Our core programmes such as Flying Start are not dependant on EU funding. However, our Flying Start Programme provides £3.2million of match funding to two ESF programmes which support employment and prosperity. These are the Parents, Childcare and Employment (PaCE) project and Progress for Success (PfS) project. We will ensure the impact of leaving the European Union will be carefully monitored and discussions held to limit the impact. It is my intention to carry out an impact assessment of the EU Referendum result on children and young people as the impacts of the result become clearer.

5 Ways of Working

Across the whole MEG, but also in the creation of the new Prevention and Early Intervention Action, the Sustainable Development Principle is a fundamental part of how I want to develop and implement my programmes. These programmes seek to ensure the needs of the present are met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The principle is made up of five key ways of working which apply to this portfolio as follows:

· Collaboration – recognising that many of the solutions to the ‘sustainability’ challenges Wales faces cannot be solved by one organisation. Multi-agency working is now recognised as essential and not optional. Our Flying Start and Families First Programmes have improved the way agencies work together to support our most vulnerable families through joint commissioning of services and Team around the Family approaches to service delivery. I will also continue to pursue opportunities for collaboration across Government and with other partners, including the third sector, in order that programmes and services reach into the communities that most need them. CAFCASS will strengthen the partnerships with local authorities and contribute to improving services and outcomes for children and families by sharing data and information more effectively. With Looked after Children, the protection of individuals and improvement in well-being outcomes will be achieved through collaboration via multi-agency working and communities.

· Integration – within the Flying Start, Families First and Communities First programmes local authorities are expected to involve other relevant programmes and organisations including Local Health Boards, and voluntary and private sectors in drawing up their plans ensuring that needs assessment and delivery are jointly managed and, where appropriate, there is a seamless progression for children between different interventions and programmes. CAFCASS will develop outcome focused performance information to evidence the impact of our intervention and share it with the wider public sector to support the improvement of services across Wales.

· Long term – I have taken account of the potential long term impacts of decisions and balanced this against my short-term needs. This has enabled me to plan on the basis of recognising challenges before they arise so that I am able to balance short-term pressures with long-term needs. In particular the evidence is that, through investing in early years and family support, this will have greater benefits in the long term. For example, through supporting practitioners by ensuring they have the tools they need to do their jobs, the programme on Fostering, Adoption and Looked after Children will help ensure individuals in Wales will be safeguarded in the long term.

· Prevention – seeking to tackle problems at source and earlier, rather than tackling the consequences of these problems at a later date. Prevention and early intervention is an approach which not only benefits people and communities but has the potential to generate long term cost savings. This approach is at the heart of my tackling poverty programmes, in particular Families First, and in the approach to tackling the inequalities experienced by those with protected characteristics. CAFCASS will continue to work with parents and carers who are involved in private law matters that are before the family court to support them to come to a mutual agreement on arrangements that will promote the physical safety and emotional well being of their child.

· Involvement– a core tenet of what this portfolio does is recognising the importance of involving people, especially children, in the decisions that affect them. Promoting the rights of children can not be achieved without the involvement and voice of the child heard in decision making about their lives.

Separately, the ‘Communities and Tackling Poverty Programmes Alignment Project’ has been looking at ways to reduce bureaucracy and increase efficiency within the main Programmes. The movement of funding for Families First, Flying Start and Communities First into one BEL from 2017-18 has the potential to reduce administration costs within the Welsh Government, and also for local authorities.

6. Specific areas

Flying Start

The Flying Start programme aims to improve outcomes for children in some of the most disadvantaged areas across Wales. This is done through providing four key Flying Start entitlements to children under four years old and their families: 1) enhanced health visiting; 2) parenting support; 3) support for speech, language and communication; and 4) the provision of free, high quality, part-time childcare for 2-3 year-olds.

The Flying Start grant is not disaggregated into the 4 elements as local authorities have discretion on how they allocate the grant in order to meet local needs. As a guide to the proportion of funding utilised to deliver the programme entitlements, spend across Wales for each element in 2015-16 was as follows:

Element	Amount
Childcare	£36,134,487
Health Team	£24,253,305
Early Language Development	£4,120,000
Parenting	£11,543,711
Total	£76,051,503

At the Wales level in 2015- 16 (the latest year for which information is available) 97% of all requests by parents for childcare in the medium of Welsh were met. My officials are working with colleagues in the Welsh Language Division developing a pilot to try to improve the take up of Welsh medium provision in areas with low numbers of Welsh speakers. I aim to assess the links between the take up of Flying Start services and parental preference for Welsh Medium Education.

The take up of the language and play entitlement (now referred to as Speech, Language and Communication provision) for monitoring purposes continues to be defined as ‘a course offered to an individual parental figure who attended the first session’. However, it is important to recognise this entitlement is woven through activity in the other three entitlements. Every family in a Flying Start area should have ongoing access to an appropriate language and play group. From this, a more targeted approach based on assessment and referral can be taken where there is evidence of additional need. In some local authorities, speech and language therapists are employed as part of the core Flying Start team. Where this approach can be linked to evidence of local need and impact on outcomes, it will be supported by the Welsh Government.

The evidence provided in the 2013 impact evaluation commissioned by the Welsh Government shows awareness of, referral to and take-up of parenting programmes and Language and Play was higher amongst parents in the Flying Start group. Greater engagement with early years services is important for building the medium and long term outcomes the programme is expected to deliver. In the recent qualitative evaluation report, published in 2016, parents identified a range of improvements in their children’s development. This included talking and communication, reading and counting, practical issues and behaviour and attitude. In addition, almost all parents interviewed felt Flying Start had a positive impact on their families’ overall level of well-being.

Flying Start has been subject to a robust independent programme of evaluation which considers impact and value for money. Evaluation reports are published on the Welsh Government Social Research web page. The latest statistical release, published in July 2016, can be found at:

http://gov.wales/statistics-and-research/flying-start/?lang=en

Both Flying Start and Families First are early intervention programmes informed by the growing international body of evidence that supports the positive role of interventions in early years in improving the development of children and young people and their prospects in adulthood. A report published in 2015 by the Early Intervention Foundation highlighted the fiscal cost of missed opportunities to provide early, targeted support to children and young people. The report concluded “early Intervention is the smart and realistic choice for using ever scarcer public money”.

Recent qualitative research found that parents whose children had attended Flying Start childcare felt they had improved social skills and were better prepared for school. Investment is targeted in the communities with the highest proportion of households with children aged 0-4 who are on income benefits.

In addition, parents interviewed as part of the qualitative research reported all anticipated immediate outcomes of the programme. These include the language development, social and emotional development and cognitive development outcomes for children. There is also evidence that some parents of children in the Programme benefit from the opportunities available to learn new skills and improve their employment prospects.

Value for money of childcare within the Flying Start programme is assessed on an on-going basis. Costs are compared across local authorities; take up of places purchased is monitored and childcare budgets are agreed as part of annual work plans. Welsh Government Account Managers discuss delivery and budget allocations at regular meetings. Expenditure is agreed and projects assessed on an on going basis for eligibility with programme objectives and value for money.

A range of activity is currently underway to allow us to build on the findings of the independent national evaluation of Flying Start. The first strand of work involves qualitative research following 72 families on their journey through Flying Start over three years. The first annual report was published in early 2016. Secondly, officials are working with the Administrative Data Research Centre for Wales to utilise existing datasets to monitor and evaluate Flying Start. The research involves exploring differences in education and health outcomes for those living in Flying Start and non-Flying Start areas. Current evaluation activity also includes developing and testing an approach to identify outcomes for Flying Start children in relation to their level of engagement with the programme. This includes an exploration of children’s attainment and attendance as they move through school as well as a range of health outcomes.

Flying Start – Capital - The Flying Start capital funding provided in previous years has been used to support the expansion of the Flying Start programme and providing the infrastructure needed to double the number of children benefitting from the programme from 18,000 to 36,000.This investment has contributed to developing the ‘social infrastructure’ referred to in the Wales Infrastructure Investment Plan by working at the heart of our most disadvantaged communities and improving the well being and life chances of the under 4’s. Flying Start has provided high quality setting essential to deliver the programme in areas of high deprivation.

This Flying Start Capital Budget for 2017-18 is £1.2million, which is sufficient to complete existing projects. Following several years of capital investment all 22 LA areas have an established network of childcare settings. This infrastructure provides the most tangible legacy for all Flying Start areas and provides the physical platform from which to sustain activity. Both the nature of Flying Start settings and the extent of their role as hubs of activity for Flying Start and related services will influence the likelihood that sustainability will be achieved.

Childcare

The Welsh Government recognises that affordable, available and accessible childcare enables parents to work, supporting the drive to increase economic growth, tackle poverty and reduce inequalities. It also provides opportunities and long-term benefits for our children and improves their life chances. This is why developing a flexible and quality childcare offer is a top priority as outlined in Taking Wales Forward.

My commitment to offer working parents of three and four-year-olds free childcare for 48 weeks of the year is aimed at supporting parents already in work, and to help those who want to work or start a business but are currently constrained by childcare costs.

Work is already underway with partners in local authorities, alongside extensive engagement with parents and providers, to develop and deliver the offer. In September I launched the #talkchildcare campaign in September to engage with parents and providers. There has already been a high level of interest and responses from parents and providers and I will continue to engage through social media and face to face over the coming months.

To support us in developing and implementing the offer local authorities were contacted in August seeking a number of them to become advisory partners and early adopters. Expressions of interest were received from a large number of local authorities keen to work with me on the development of the new childcare offer. I will shortly be announcing the local authorities where we will be testing the offer in the autumn of 2017, to make sure it meets parents’ needs and can be delivered efficiently and effectively by childcare providers. I will want to test how the offer works for parents in a variety of contexts, for example, parents of children with additional needs, parents who want Welsh language provision and parents who have to travel to work and to their childcare provider.

For 2017-18, £10million of revenue funding has been allocated to test the first phase of the Offer. In addition, £20milion per annum from 2018-19 has been included in the Education MEG for investment in childcare settings alongside the 21^st Centuries Schools programme.

Detailed cost modelling work is currently being undertaken. This modelling and analysis builds on the work undertaken by Public Policy Institute Wales / Frontier Economics in autumn 2015. This is a highly complex piece of work because key factors such as the number of eligible children, take-up rates, number of hours utilised, length of eligibility, and hourly cost impact on the cost estimates. Alongside this work, I am also commissioning an independent financial review of the provision and cost of providing childcare, and the value of the childcare sector to the Welsh economy. This will make a major contribution to building the evidence base needed for the childcare offer and will enable us to deliver government-funded childcare that is attractive to the sector and also provides value for money for the tax payer.

I know that quality early education and childcare leads to better outcomes for children. A well qualified, professional workforce is by far the most important factor in delivering the quality of services that will give children the best possible start in life. To ensure quality provision I need our early years, childcare and play practitioners to be equipped to provide the best possible support for children, to encourage them to develop to their full potential. My 10-year plan for the early years, childcare and play workforce in Wales, to be published next Spring, will set out ambitious plans to move towards a profession which is highly regarded, able to recruit and retain a high quality skilled workforce and actively pursuing continuous professional development.

Successive evaluations have concluded that the availability of quality, affordable childcare is essential to support people who need to work, or acquire skills to enable them to work. Alongside affordable childcare some parents may need additional support to return to work and sustain employment. Some of the barriers to employment include financial stability, reluctance to use formal childcare and parents’ lack of confidence in returning to work especially if they have been out of work for some time. The ESF Parents, Childcare & Employment (PaCE) grant supports parents into training and employment by addressing barriers and meeting any childcare needs that may be presenting a barrier. Ultimately, over 1,500 parents should be assisted to enter sustainable employment.

Parents, Childcare and Employment (PaCE) was launched on 13 October 2015 for parents aged over 25, with a total budget of £10.9million up to 2018. The Welsh Government is the lead beneficiary with DWP as joint beneficiary. DWP will employ 43 Parent Employment Advisers who will mostly be based within Flying Start settings, and other family based centres. It will target almost 8,000 economically inactive parents over the life of the operation and support lone parents, parents from a workless household or assist a second earner in a working household. It will operate outside Communities First Clusters and will complement the Communities for Work ESF operation. No additional allocation has been made to the Childcare and Play budget in order to support PaCE but the necessary match funding is being provided via the Families First Budget.

The childcare offer has the potential to be a catalyst for a wider transformation in the childcare sector, increasing the accessibility, affordability and availability of childcare for all parents and children of all ages, improving the flexibility and quality of what is available. This will build on the other support I currently provide for childcare providers including:

· Providing local authorities with £2.3million funding each year since 2012 to help them to provide wrap around childcare out of school hours and during holidays. In line with my priorities, local authorities have focused on offering out of school childcare, including holiday play schemes, to children from low income families and those with specific needs;

· Providing over £4.3 million over three years (since September 2014) to the CWLWM consortia, comprising the five main childcare organisations in Wales, to support the childcare sector and help us develop innovative flexible childcare solutions to meet the needs of families;

· Securing £6.3m within West Wales and the Valleys, jointly funded by Welsh Government and the European Social Fund, to support the raising of skills and standards across the existing childcare workforce;

· Working with CSSIW to ensure the National Minimum Standards are fit for purpose and that the regulation and inspection ensures that children and parents in Wales can access safe, quality childcare;

· The funding for the Family Information Service (FIS) who provide free, impartial help, support, guidance and advice to families and childcare providers.

· Providing business advice and support to childcare providers through Business Wales.

I am also leading on the ESF Project ‘Progress for Success’ (PfS), which has been developed alongside the draft 10-year plan for the early years, childcare and play workforce in Wales. The main purpose of PfS is to increase the quality of provision accessed within registered maintained and non-maintained settings by increasing the levels of recognised childcare and play qualifications held by the existing Early Years, Childcare and Play workforce.

Other Support for Families

· Families First

The Families First Programme is an innovative programme that promotes the development by all local authorities of effective multi-agency systems and support for families, with a clear emphasis on prevention and early intervention for families, particularly those living in poverty. The Welsh Government has committed to maintain the Families First programme in 2017-18.

During 2017-18 I am making changes to the commissioned projects element of Families First. I have agreed a lengthy transition period to allow the full impacts of the changes to be considered. Changes which will be phased-in during 2017-18 will ensure that the Families First programme is able to focus on developing services which address identified gaps in service provision for parents and young people (including youth work), linking the programme with the prevention of Adverse Childhood Experiences.

The Families First programme is a major driver in the development of multi-agency ‘Team Around the Family’ approaches (TAF). Wales is currently the only UK country that requires all local authority areas to develop and embed a ‘Team Around the Family’ and local authorities are encourage to use the approach in other Programmes beside Families First.

Evaluation evidence shows Families First has delivered a significant change in the way every local authority delivers family support. Multi-agency working is now recognised as essential, and the programme has improved the way agencies work together to support our most vulnerable families. The third report from the National Evaluation of Families First was published in September 2015. It highlighted the transformative effect the programme could have on families’ lives. In particular, families recorded progress in relation to the following outcome areas: children, young people and families are healthy and enjoy well-being; families are confident, nurturing, resilient and safe; and children young people and families in or at risk of poverty achieve their potential. The recent evaluation also highlighted the potential large cost savings the programme can make through helping families avoid poor long-term outcomes. The commissioning of services through the Families First programme now better reflects the needs of families than ever before. The family-focused approach to assessing and tailoring family support is making a real difference to family outcomes and life chances are being improved as a result.

· Family Information Services

Funding for the Family Information Services is primarily delivered via the Local Authority Revenue Support Grant (RSG). Children and Families Division currently contribute £45,000 per annum towards co-ordination and communication activities with the Family Information Services (FIS) programme. This grant ensures FIS workers receive training and personal development, are able to share good practice and raise any key gaps in provision. It also provides a mechanism for ensuring consistent messages of key policy are able to be disseminated effectively to FIS.

· Parenting Support

My approach to positive parenting is set very firmly within the wider context of economic improvement and wider wellbeing. As set out in “Taking Wales Forward” the Programme for Government, we are committed to helping improve health and well-being for all to ensure everyone can fulfil their potential, meet their educational aspirations and play a full part in the economy and society of Wales.

The proposed legislation on removing the defence of reasonable punishment will form a key part of my overall action on promoting positive parenting, driving behavioural change and bringing about positive outcomes for our children in Wales. This is being delivered through the provision of information and advice via the Parenting: Give it Time website, Family Information Services and Family Point Cymru and through practical support via Flying Start and Families First.

A budget of £0.4million has been identified to take forward my positive parenting work next year. No additional funding has been allocated as yet for any legislation to remove the defence of reasonable punishment.

· Children and Families Delivery Grant (CFDG)

The five Children and Families Delivery Grant projects are proceeding as planned. The current programme ends 2017-18. Grant allocations have not changed since the grant was awarded. However, Children in Wales has been tasked with additional work for which they have been awarded £0.240 million per annum over 4 financial years until 31 March 2017. The additional funding comes from the Empowering Children BEL (311) but is paid through the CFDG for convenience.

I will review the future of this grant during 2017-18.

Child Poverty

There is no separate budget for tackling child poverty for the Welsh Government. This is because there are a range of policies and programmes in place to tackle child poverty, which are being taken forward. This includes key commitments such as Flying Start, Families First, the Pupil Deprivation Grant and the Healthy Child Wales Programme. There are also a range of other mainstream services which are delivering support for low income households, which form part of wider funding arrangements.

Tackling poverty continues to be a priority for the Welsh Government. Although Ken Skates has overall responsibility for economic equality, all Cabinet Secretaries are expected to contribute to the agenda and improve the outcomes of low income households.

Children’s and Young People’s Rights and Entitlements

A budget of £0.357 million has been allocated to take forward the following work in 2017-18. The proposed programme of work takes forward Ministerial commitments in relation to the Rights of Children and Young Person’s (Wales) Measure 2011 and, the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010.

This funding will enable us to meet the responsibilities under legislation and more importantly ensure the voices of children and young people are heard as we develop and implement policy under this new government.

Section 5 of the Measure places a duty on Ministers to take such steps as are appropriate to promote knowledge and understanding amongst the public, including children and young people, of the UNCRC and the Protocols. This duty is designed to give effect to obligations on government, ensuring the UNCRC is part of the framework for all decision making. This is set out in Article 42 of the UNCRC which states Governments should make the Convention widely known to adults and children alike. Knowledge and understanding of the UNCRC and its Optional Protocols amongst children, adults and organisations has a very important part to play in ensuring the rights and obligations they contain are respected.

Measuring increase in awareness has been challenging. However, last year I was able to include some questions in the Beaufort Survey around awareness of UNCRC. This provided me with a baseline and the same questions will be run again this year. In addition, I am hoping to have some questions included in the national survey.

Children’s Commissioner for Wales

The Commissioner’s budget has been protected for a number of years, but in the current financial climate I have been clear that my priority must be front line services that impact directly on children, young people and families. To this end, the Commissioners budget was reduced by 10% for the financial year 2016-17 and will remain cash flat for 2017-18. All Commissioners faced the same percentage cut for 2016-17. The Commissioner has reviewed her office organisation and is delivering with the reduced budget.

It is not for the Welsh Government to comment on how the Commissioner allocates the budget made available to her. The budget estimate for 2017-18 makes no reference to any potential costs of implementing recommendations from the Independent Review of the Office of the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, Many of the recommendations related to improving value for money and this has helped the Commissioner in reviewing her structure to realise savings.

Advocacy

The development of the National Approach to Statutory Advocacy for children with a statutory entitlement will, when applied, deliver consistency of entitlement and good practice in the commissioning, delivery and awareness of statutory advocacy provision in Wales. This also supports professionals, families and those promoting and protecting the rights and well-being of children and young people through wider networking, enhancing the partnership model to embed the service within other professional sectors. Advocacy services can also help to safeguard the most vulnerable children and young people and guard against poor practice.

An implementation plan with phased implementation of the national approach along with Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will be monitored. This is currently in development by local authorities and will require agreement by Welsh Government. I will monitor quantitative and qualitative information against agreed KPIs.

To align budgets with the new Ministerial portfolios, at the First Supplementary Budget in June 2016, £1.06million transferred from the Health and Social Services MEG to the Communities and Children MEG. Included in this transfer was £190,000 used to support advocacy services for Adults. As a result this will transfer back to the HSS MEG in the Second Supplementary Budget. This leaves a budget of £0.870 million remaining within the Communities and Children MEG for 2017-18.

Part of this work includes the development of the MEIC Helpline. This is the first national information, advice and advocacy helpline of its kind providing children and young people with a single point of contact via freephone, instant messaging and text. A two year contract (plus the option for an additional 2 years) was awarded in April 2016 to Promo Cymru following public tender exercise in 2015.

From the short through to the long term, MEIC will be the first point of contact for children and young people, as well as those who are concerned about them, to access an independent, confidential support empowering them to get their voice heard on matters that affect them. It will promote, protect and secure the rights and entitlements of children and young people, providing accessible information, assistance and advocacy appropriate to individual circumstances, need and communication preferences. It will ensure quality provision delivered by professional, appropriately skilled and trained staff, supporting development and training opportunities for children and young people.

MEIC will ensure accessibility and inclusion with regard to diversity and equality in respect of Welsh language, hearing/ sight impairment, learning difficulties, literacy, culture, gender, sexuality and any other issues throughout the service.

20 Degrees Consulting Ltd were commissioned in 2014 to undertake an evaluation of MEIC to evaluate the effectiveness, impact and value for money delivered by MEIC, in providing national advocacy and advice for children and young people in Wales. The results from that review have informed the new contract which went out to public tender in 2015.

The programme of work is considered to support the Welsh Government priorities for tackling poverty by better empowering professionals to safeguard children at risk of abuse or harm and by securing access for children and young people to information, advice and advocacy, enabling them to take forward informed discussions about the issues impacting on any aspect of their lives including their health and well-being.

The improving outcomes work programme has a key theme of prevention and early intervention. The whole work programme is being delivered using a collaborative approach. It is a long term change programme to deliver sustainable preventative services that place the well-being of the child at its heart. The voice of children is integral to the way I work and is represented through a care experienced young person who is vice chair of the Ministerial Advisory Group and through membership of Voices from Care, Children in Wales and the Children’s Commissioner.

Play Policy

Funding for play has been provided via the Children & Families Delivery Grant, which has been supporting Groundwork Wales to provide outdoor play experiences for children in areas of high deprivation. In addition, a dedicated grant has funded Play Wales, enabling them to to raise awareness of children and young people’s need and right to play, promote good practice and provide advice and guidance to support all those who have an interest in or responsibility for providing for children’s play. The funding for both organisations ends in September 2017. Their grant awards for 2017-18 are £204,495 and £120,000 respectively. I am currently considering options to provide future support for the play agenda in Wales post September 2017.

CAFCASS Cymru

The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) Cymru is a direct service delivery organisation undertaking statutory functions across Wales on behalf of Welsh Ministers. In 2015-16 it worked with 7,500 of the most vulnerable children and young people in Wales.

Family Justice policy is not devolved to Wales. CAFCASS Cymru works closely with Her Majesty’s Court and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) and only becomes involved in cases when requested to do so by the court. Their role is to safeguard children and young people who are subject to family court proceedings and ensure their voice within the Family Justice System is heard.

The financial allocation for 2016-17 is £10.162million and is split across direct running costs and programmes, which include a contribution of funding to supervised and supported contact centres and contact activities related to the Children and Adoption Act 2006.

The organisational running costs budget (£9.830million) is split between staff (£9.063million) and non staff costs (£0.767million), meaning 92% of the organisational running costs budget is committed to staff costs providing statutory duties to courts across Wales.

The contracted-out budget is allocated to Child Contact Services (£0.242million) and the IRIS management system (£0.090million). This budget is fully committed on a Ministerial or contractual basis. In 2015-16 a new case management system (IRIS) was introduced. To enable the implementation to take place, the organisation received ‘Invest to Save’ funding of £210,000. This is to be paid back during the 2016-17 and 2017-18 financial years at £105,000 per year.

The budget continues to remain at the same level despite increasing demand on referrals over the last 12 months. The organisation has delivered a significant change programme over recent years. Work undertaken included an Administrative Review and a LEAN review of administrative functions that resulted in a consistent, streamlined and more efficient administration model across Wales.

Whilst the major change programme has been completed, there is a need to continue to absorb the increasing costs of demand for services and constantly review practices to ensure maximum efficiency. During 2016-17 an Innovation Programme was launched aimed at maximising efficiency and the ability to respond to this increasing demand for services.

In the last 12 months, Private Law referrals have increased by 13.6% and Public Law referrals have increased by 11.5%. Care cases, which are the most resource intensive work, increased by 8.6%, a trend that has continued into the current financial year.

Despite these increases, overall outcomes are to continue to deliver on the 26 week statutory target for the completion of care cases in public law and ensure the organisation continues to have no waiting list for children. This work also seeks to secure early resolution in court to achieve early outcomes for children.

Outcomes will be measured by monthly reporting of management performance information internally and to external partners and engagement with stakeholders to scrutinise and review contracts/grants to ensure value for money/ quality of services for children.

Adoption, Fostering and Looked after Children

This budget looks to address Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) by taking forward a programme of work which will improve outcomes for looked after children including adoption and other placements. This budget contributes to reducing ACES, supporting prevention and early intervention priorities and improving the well-being measure outcomes. The success of this work will be measured against the:

· National Adoption Service performance framework;

· Wales Adoption Register (quarterly performance data);

· National outcomes framework for people who need care and support and carers who need support (indicator);

· Performance measurement framework for local authorities in relation to their social services functions;

· Local authority social services data collections.

The Ministerial Advisory Group on Improving Outcomes for Children includes representatives from across local government, health, the court system, education and housing to enable effective links and joint ownership to be delivered. The Ministerial Advisory Group on Improving Outcomes for Children will have responsibility for overseeing the improving outcomes for children programme of work. I regularly have trilateral meetings between Ministers and Cabinet Secretaries to discuss common priorities in this area of my portfolio.

To align budgets with the new ministerial portfolios, the budgets used to support the maintenance and development of adoption, fostering and looked after children will transfer from the Health and Social Services MEG to the Communities and Children MEG as part of the Second Supplementary Budget in January/February 2017.

Evaluation by CASCADE (Children’s Social Care Research and Development Centre) has been built into the projects within the work programme to ensure value for money. The Social Service and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 provides the legislative framework for sustainable service transformation in innovative ways through early intervention to support improved outcomes.

There are 2 areas that have the potential to impact on the Welsh Government Legislative Programme. In respect of Looked after Children, the ‘Social Service and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014’ and the ‘Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016’ provide the primary legislative basis of the work programme. The secondary legislation, regulations, under Part 2 of the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016 will be co-produced. In respect of advocacy, further legislation under the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act (2015) will be introduced in 2017.

Carl Sargeant AM

Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children

ANNEX B1

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment: Extension of regulations and changes to the Childcare Registration Framework

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment (CRIA) Template

Title / Piece of work:	Extension of the Childcare Registration Framework within the “Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010”
Related SF / LF number (if applicable)	SF/LG/2075/15
Name of Official:	Jenna Smith
Department:	Childcare Development Division
Date:	xx/03/2016
Signature:

Please complete the CRIA and retain it for your records on iShare. You may be asked to provide this document at a later stage to evidence that you have complied with the duty to have due regard to children’s rights e.g. Freedom of Information access requests, monitoring purposes or to inform reporting to the NAfW.

Upon completion you should also forward a copy of the CRIA to the Measure Implementation Team for monitoring purposes using the dedicated mailbox CRIA@wales.gsi.gov.uk

If officials are not sure about whether to complete a CRIA, they should err on the side of caution and seek advice from the Measure Implementation Team by forwarding any questions to our mailbox CRIA@wales.gsi.gov.uk

You may wish to cross-reference with other Impact Assessments undertaken.

NB. All CRIAs undertaken on legislation must be published. All non-legislative CRIAs will be listed on the WG website and must be made available upon request. Ministers are however, encouraged to publish all completed CRIAs

Six Steps to Due Regard

Step 1. What’s the piece of work and its objective(s)?

Currently in Wales childcare registration is generally required where childcare providers provide care for children up to the age of eight. This requirement is set out in Section 19 of the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010, and includes both day care providers and child minders. l registered childcare providers must abide by relevant regulations and by standards as set out in the National Minimum Standards. This standard of care is assured through inspection and regulation by CSSIW against these standards. Regulated childcare encompasses a wide range of different types of provision including child-minders, day nurseries, out of school childcare, open access play provision, and holiday play schemes.

We are increasing the upper age limit for the compulsory registration of childcare beyond the age of 8 for the following reasons:

· The current system of regulation in Wales means there is no consistent means of regulating the quality and suitability of childcare provision for children aged eight years and over. This is different to the situation elsewhere in the UK.

· The Welsh Government, in our Building a Brighter Future: Early Years and Childcare Plan, committed to conducting a review of early years regulation and inspection. The Independent Review into Childcare and Early Education Registration, Regulation and Inspection which was published in 2014 recommended all child care provision in Wales, including child care for children aged eight and over should be registered and subject to inspection. The Welsh Government is committed to ensuring an appropriate registration framework is in place in Wales, which provides assurances regarding the appropriateness and safety of childcare provided for all children. This will benefit not only the child, but the parents/carers and also childcare providers.

· Wales has also committed to ensuring that the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is upheld in regard to all policy work. The convention includes the need to ensure children are properly cared for, the need to ensure their opinions are listened to and the need to ensure they get support with any disability they have. We wish to ensure that the articles contained within the convention are upheld not just for younger children, but also for older children in childcare.

The key aims of the proposed changes are to ensure:

Proportionality – the care provided for children is regulated in a proportionate manner taking into account the needs and age of the child
Quality – a quality care service is provided for children of all ages across all ranges of provision.
Safety – all children are cared for in safe and secure environment.

The desired outcome will be an increase in the number of registered childcare providers in Wales for children from 0 to 12 years.

Step 2. Analysing the impact

In developing proposals to take forward our policy objective to ensure there was an appropriate childcare registration framework in place for children over the age of 8; a number of options were considered. These included:

· What should be the upper age limit at which childcare providers should be required to register; and

· Whether there should be a voluntary or compulsory system of regulation for children over the age of 8 years.

Welsh Government officials undertook a number of activities whilst developing this policy. Firstly, they engaged with representatives of the childcare sector. This engagement was via CWLWM, a consortium of the 5 main childcare sector organisations. Representatives of the Play sector and Local Authorities were also engaged in the process. Finally, a 12-week public consultation took place between March and June 2015 seeking views about the proposed changes to the registration of childcare provision in Wales. Consultation events were arranged in north and south Wales aimed at a strategic level within Local Authorities, Childcare, Play and Youth Sector. Events at a local level aimed at providers took place in partnership with the childcare CWLWM consortium and Play Wales.

Although the consultation was public and open to all we did not engage directly with children and young people. However, in the consultation events, discussions took place about the impact of the proposed changes on children and a specific event was held with the youth service, who works with young people aged between 11 and 25 years. During post consultation events, providers were also asked to give their “top tips” for caring for and engaging with children over the age of 8. This information will be used to create help and guidance for providers when caring for children, to learn lessons on the sorts of needs older children will have.

The Consultation demonstrated wide scale support from the childcare sector for extending registration to children aged 8 and over. Equality of treatment for all children in line with the rights based approach of the UNCRC was given as a reason for supporting the proposals; with comments referring to the fact that children over the age of 8 were as deserving of high quality care as those under that age. A summary of the outcome of the consultation including the Welsh Government response can be found here.

Following consultation and in the light of the responses received the decision was made to extend the upper age limit for the registration of childcare provision from 8 to12 years with effect from 1 April 2016. Responses to consultation suggested this was the upper age limit at which most parents use formal childcare. This would also bring the system of registration in Wales in line with other parts of the UK, align it with the new Tax Free Childcare scheme in 2017 and help reduce the risks of bringing other youth support activities into the scope of childcare registration.

As part of the arrangements to implement an extension to the registration of childcare some changes will also need to be made to the National Minimum Standards for Regulated Childcare. These changes need to take account of the different requirements for older children, to ensure their care is regulated in a manner proportionate to their age and increased autonomy. The changes will be informed by the consultation responses, engagement with the childcare and play sector, arrangements currently in place elsewhere in the UK. We will also ensure changes pay due regard to the UNCRC.

These changes include amending the qualifications requirements to ensure providers are qualified to care for children up to 12 years of age and amending the adult – child ratios to ensure providers can provide safe, quality care for children, whilst minimising any negative impacts such changes could have on the sector. These changes were informed by consultation responses, further post consultation engagement with the childcare sector and information about existing registered provision from CSSIW.

As a result of increasing the upper age limit for compulsory registration of childcare. arrangements were also made to extend existing exceptions from childcare regulation. These include provisions not exceeding two hours care in any one day and those where carers provide coaching or tuition in certain activities e.g. sport or performing arts. In line with the consultation responses, youth services for children who have attained the age of 11 will also be excluded from childcare registration.

Links with the UNCRC

Pre-Consultation we took account of the UNCRC when developing proposed changes to the NMS, to ensure proposals within the consultation complimented the current standards, and met relevant UNCRC objectives. The articles which could be met by these legislative changes were identified in the early policy development stages.

Post consultation we have worked carefully with the sector and providers to ensure that our requirements are fit for purpose for older children. Throughout the updated NMS we have specified the requirement for older children to have a say in their wants and needs, and an influence on the setting. This is designed to encourage, develop and support older children to gain important skills and to develop during their attendance at child care or play settings.

The changes will inevitably put an increased regulatory burden on the sector however we have sought to ensure any additional requirements on providers are proportionate and take account of the views expressed in consultation. We have worked with CSSIW to ensure arrangements are in place to support all childcare providers to effect a seamless transition in complying with the new registration rules and changes to the NMS. The arrangements which have been put in place minimise burdens and potential disruption to providers’ businesses. In addition any changes made to the NMS are proportionate with where necessary lead in times provided to ensure the impact of the changes are mitigated and the potential for increased costs reduced and are reflective of a guiding principle, article 3, of the UNCRC in ensuring the best interests of children.

Step 3. How does your piece of work support and promote children’s rights?

There are numerous articles within the UNCRC which our policy change will seek to uphold. These include:

Article 3 states that all organisations should work towards what is best for the child. The best interests of the child are at the heart of our changes, and this means ensuring that services which care for children conform to the standards established by Welsh Government. The primary concern of the standards is to ensure that children are cared for in a safe, quality environment.
Article 12 states that a child must be able to express their views in weight with their age and maturity. Post consultation we have worked carefully with the sector and providers to ensure that our requirements are fit for purpose for older children, and have not made assumptions that the current NMS is satisfactory in regulating care for children over the age of 8. Throughout the updated NMS we have specified the requirement for older children to have a say in their wants and needs, and an influence on the setting. This is designed to encourage, develop and support older children to gain important skills and to develop during their attendance at child care or play settings.
Article 18 states that Government should support parents in helping to look after children, particularly when both parents work. The Welsh Government has a statutory commitment to ensuring high quality, sustainable, affordable childcare is available across Wales, and works closely with Local Authorities to achieve this. This policy change will ensure provision is protected for children up to the age of twelve. This change will also allow parents to access the UK wide tax and benefits subsidies open to parents who use registered childcare, to help make childcare more affordable.
Article 19 states that the government must act to safeguard children from mistreatment using all the powers at their disposal. Through childcare settings registering, they will need to comply with section 9.6- 9.9 (Behaviour), 20.1-20.6 (Environment) and 24.12 (Safety) of the NMS. By extending these standards to older children we will be improving safeguarding procedures.
Article 23 states that state parties should ensure that disabled children should have specialised care and support in order to lead full, independent lives. Through childcare settings registering, they will need to comply with section 4.8 and 4.9 (Meeting individual needs) of the NMS. These specifically state that the facilities and environment should both be suitable for disabled children and children with additional needs, in order for them to have access alongside their peers to provide opportunities and promote their welfare and development.

Step 4. Advising the Minister and Ministerial decision

The decisions made by the Minister following the consultation can be found here.

Development of this policy has taken account of the UNCRC articles as set out above. The increase in the upper age limit for the compulsory registration of childcare provision ensures children up to the age of 12 will now be covered by the NMS and associated inspection requirements.

This policy change will also provide opportunity to impact on other cross policy areas including the tackling poverty agenda. This change will enable more parents in Wales to access the UK wide tax and benefit subsidies available in respect of the costs of using registered and approved childcare. This will help to reduce the costs of childcare, therefore contributing to the tackling poverty priority of enabling more parents to access affordable childcare.

Step 5. Recording and communicating the outcome

Final version to be retained on i-share

A summary of the outcome of the consultation including the Welsh Government response can be found here.

The Ministerial response to the consultation, including her decisions as a result, can be found here.

Step 6. Revisiting the piece of work as and when needed

It is anticipated that this piece of work will need to be revisited at the following points:

Announcement on changes to Childcare Registration – September 2015
Provider workshops with CSSIW – December 2015
Publication of the updated National Minimum Standards – March 2016
Coming in to force date – 01 April 2016

Budgets

As a result of completing the CRIA, has there been any impact on budgets?

It is important that where any changes are made to spending plans, including where additional allocations have been made, that this has been assessed and evidenced as part of the CRIA process.

Please give any details:

The requirements of the principles of the UNCRC have been considered in the development of this policy and where possible, embedded within the policy. Revising the NMS to take account of the needs of older children and extending the registration of childcare beyond the age of 8 have cost implications but these were part of the initial policy decision and not a result of completion of the CRIA

Monitoring & Review

Do we need to monitor / review the proposal?

Yes

If applicable: set the review date

April 2016

ANNEX B2

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment: Play Wales Strategic Policy Grant

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment (CRIA) Template

Title / Piece of work:

Play Wales Strategic Policy Grant

Related SF / LF number

(if applicable)

SF/LG/3165/14 - Funding for Play Wales

Name of Official:

Robert Edwards

Department:

Children Young People and Families Division.

Date:

21 October 2014

Signature:

Upon completion you should also forward a copy of the CRIA to the Measure Implementation Team for monitoring purposes using the dedicated mailbox CRIA@wales.gsi.gov.uk

You may wish to cross-reference with other Impact Assessments undertaken.

Six Steps to Due Regard

Step 1. What’s the piece of work and its objective(s)?

The Purpose of this grant is to support the development of childrens Play policy in Wales. It directly supports the objectives of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. (UNCRC).

The Play Wales Strategic Policy Grant (PWSPG) is perceived to fill gaps in advice on policy development and advice on the practical implementation of policy including such issues as workforce development and play activities. Essentially the beneficiary organisation, Play Wales, will support the Welsh Government at a strategic level to continue to lead the children’s play agenda in Wales and internationally. There is also an element in the proposal to provide accredited training to Play workers. The primary project activities are:

a) provision of strategic support to Local Authorities and partners for implementation of the Play Sufficiency Duty;

b) development of an international centre of excellence around play;

c) advice to Welsh Government in relation to all policy areas where there are links to play; and,

d) advice to Welsh Government on development of the play workforce.

e) continuation of training for those already registered, or in the process of registering, for the Play work: Principles into Practice (P3) qualification, developed and facilitated by Play Wales.

Play Wales’ activities under this project will also support the Welsh Government in its work at an international basis in terms of play policy, where Wales and indeed the Welsh Government are seen as world leaders. It will also help support the Welsh Government’s agenda in delivering the 10 year strategy for the childcare and play workforce, recently been published for consultation. It will also support the Welsh Government’s work in relation to the play duties that have been placed on local authorities.

The over arching view of Play related policy and the collaborative approach that this grant encourages is intended to provide children, young people and families with a more coherent play based service through organisations working together move from focussing on services and process to focussing on delivery.

Funding for 18 months has been agreed.

Step 2. Analysing the impact

The Children and Families Delivery Grant is specifically about better Play outcomes for children, young people and their families and the development of a professional work force. The grant is relatively short term lasting only 18 months for the policy element and 12 months for the training element.

An account manager has been assigned to the project and a work plan agreed. Regular account management meeting will assess progress against the delivery plan and the impact the project is having on Policy development in Wales.

At project end Play Wales will be required to evaluate the actual impact and outcomes of their project in accordance with the methodology agreed with their account managers. This will include the requirement to submit an evaluation report to the Welsh Government within 6 months of the end of the project.

Step 3. How does your piece of work support and promote children’s rights?

The grant is intended to support children’s rights to play. The grant focusses on making rights to play reality for many children, young people and families in Wales. The range of play related activities which could be covered by the grant is potentially wide ranging from the provision of high level over arching services to the Welsh Government, the provision of advice to support capacity building amongst delivery organisations or representing Welsh interests at international events.

The Grant focusses on supporting the following UNCRC Articles/themes:

Article 3. The success of the programme will be monitored closely and evaluated with a primary focus being the best interests of children and young people. The measurement of Outcomes and impact is an integral part of the grant.

Article 24. Increased Health benefits through active play opportunities developed from policies and initiatives which are informed through participation from Play Wales.

Article 29. Language and Play are essential components of divisional activities. The new grant can provide additional support in this area. Early interventions allow the child to develop both in terms of their personality and linguistic abilities making them more sociable and amenable to engaging more closely with the education system.

Article 31. Play activities are directly supported through policy development and workforce training.

Step 4. Advising the Minister and Ministerial decision

Ministerial advice was provided under submission:

SF/LG/3165/14 Funding for Play Wales.

The Minister has approved the recommendation of the submission.

Step 5. Recording and communicating the outcome

Final version to be retained on i-share

Documentation relating to the development of the grant can be found on iShare under reference: fA719706.

Step 6. Revisiting the piece of work as and when needed

The grant commences October 2014. Reviews of the programme will take place on an quarterly basis as part of normal contract management activities

Budgets

As a result of completing the CRIA, has there been any impact on budgets?

It is important that where any changes are made to spending plans, including where additional allocations have been made, that this has been assessed and evidenced as part of the CRIA process.

Please give any details:

Monitoring & Review

Do we need to monitor / review the proposal?

If applicable: set the review date

ANNEX B3

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment: Child Poverty Strtaegy for Wales

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment (CRIA) Template

Title / Piece of work:	2015 Child Poverty Strategy for Wales
Related SF / LF number (if applicable)	SF/LG/0236/15
Name of Official:	Beverley Morgan
Department:	Local Government and Communities
Date:	20 March 2015
Signature:	Beverley Morgan

Upon completion you should also forward a copy of the CRIA to the Measure Implementation Team for monitoring purposes using the dedicated mailbox CRIA@wales.gsi.gov.uk

You may wish to cross-reference with other Impact Assessments undertaken.

Six Steps to Due Regard

Step 1. What’s the piece of work and its objective(s)?

Development of a Revised (2015) Child Poverty Strategy for Wales

The Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010 placed a statutory duty on Welsh Ministers to publish a Child Poverty Strategy for Wales and to set objectives for tackling child poverty and improving the outcomes of low income families. Welsh Ministers fulfilled this duty when they published the 2011 Child Poverty Strategy for Wales. The 2011 Child Poverty Strategy covers the period 2011 to 2014. As a result, the Welsh Government issued a revised Child Poverty Strategy for a 12 week period of public consultation (6 November 2014 to 29 January 2015). The Child Poverty Strategy has been amended in light of over 80 written responses. A final version of the Child Poverty Strategy (and a summary of consultation responses) was published on 27 March 2015.

This revised Child Poverty Strategy reaffirms our commitment to the ambition of eradicating child poverty by 2020. The most recent Households Below Average Income (HBAI) data for Wales show us that 31% of children are currently living in relative income poverty in Wales (After Housing Costs).

The Revised Child Poverty Strategy for Wales aims to tackle child poverty by delivering on five strategic objectives. Three of these objectives were set out in our 2011 Strategy. These objectives are focussed on reducing worklessness, increasing skills, and reducing inequalities in the health, education and economic outcomes of children and families living in poverty. In response to the consultation, Welsh Government has also developed two new strategic objectives for tackling child poverty. These are:

i. To use all available levers to create a strong economy and labour market which supports the tackling poverty agenda and reduces in-work poverty in Wales.

ii. To support families living in poverty to increase household income, through debt and financial advice, action to address the “poverty premium” (where households pay disproportionally more goods and services) and action to mitigate the impacts of welfare reform.

These additional objectives provide us with an opportunity to strengthen our approach to tackling child poverty. Jobs and growth and full-time employment opportunities for low income households are essential, particularly if we are to reduce the number of children living in workless households and also tackle rising levels of in-work poverty. Investing in the financial inclusion agenda and providing subsidised services for those living in disadvantaged communities is also critical. It has long been central to the Welsh Government’s approach to mitigating the impacts of poverty. The second new objective (on supporting households to increase their income) reflects and prioritises this work.

This revised Child Poverty Strategy should not be seen in isolation. While the Child Poverty Strategy sets out the Welsh Government’s overall approach to tackling child poverty, action to address the issue and to achieve better outcomes for children, young people and their families is being taken forward through our Tackling Poverty Action Plan.

The intended beneficiaries of this strategy are children, young people and families living in low income households. The strategy will specifically affect children and young people living in poverty. It aims to tackle income poverty – and ensure that parents earn enough to ensure that their children are not living in a low income household. As reflected in the fourth strategic objective, we commit to supporting families to increase their household income and to addressing the “poverty premium” (where low income households pay more for good and services). Crucially, the Child Poverty Strategy also aims to improve the educational, health and economic outcomes of children and young people living in poverty.

The Strategy is underpinned by policies and programmes for children, young people and families that are taken forward across the Welsh Government. Within the Revised Child Poverty Strategy, we commit to considering poverty impacts alongside equalities impacts and the needs of those with protected characteristics. This will strengthen the links between the poverty and equalities agenda – and help to ensure a focus on improving the outcomes of children and young people, and their families. We also commit to working collaboratively to ensure child poverty is considered in the development of our policies and programmes through the completion of Children’s Rights Impact Assessments.

We know that children growing up and living in low income households are much more at risk of having poorer health outcomes, are less likely to reach cognitive and developmental milestones in the early years, have poorer educational attainment, are more likely to be not in education, employment or training (NEET) between the age of 16 and 24, and more likely to be unemployed and living in poverty as an adult. This strategy sets out how the Welsh Government will address these issues – by taking forward policies and programmes across all Government Departments. The Welsh Government has identified child poverty as the main barrier towards realising and upholding children’s rights in Wales. For this reason, we have identified the delivery of the Child Poverty Strategy as our priority commitment in relation to the child rights agenda. In reaffirming the Welsh Government’s commitment to the UNCRC, we will make it clear all portfolios and departments have obligations and responsibilities in realising children’s rights.

It is important to recognise that the Welsh Government’s Child Poverty Strategy is underpinned by individual policies, programmes and projects being taken forward by different Welsh Government Departments. Children’s Rights Impact Assessments may have been developed for these individual policies. The Children’s Rights Impact Assessment for the Revised Child Poverty Strategy does not intend to highlight all of the impacts for all of these policies (although key impacts are included). Rather – it is intended that this CRIA will provide a high level assessment of impact. It will also include a focus on how addressing child poverty will make an important contribution to taking forward the children’s rights agenda in Wales.

It is also important to recognise that the 2015 Child Poverty Strategy does not stand alone. It is directly linked to the 2013 Tackling Poverty Action Plan, which includes a strong focus on children and young people. In particular, the 2013 Action Plan includes specific milestones and targets for improving the outcomes of children and families living in poverty. It is the delivery mechanism for realising the strategic objectives of the 2015 Child Poverty Strategy. When the 2012 Action Plan was published, stakeholders expressed concerns about the Tackling Poverty Action Plan moving away from specifically addressing child poverty. The 2015 Child Poverty Strategy specifically highlights the link between the Child Poverty Strategy and the Tackling Poverty Action Plan, and how and the actions and milestones that will make a difference to the lives of children and young people in Wales. In particular, we have developed a series of logic models, which highlight how different policies and programmes will contribute to delivering the five strategic objectives of the Child Poverty Strategy.

Step 2. Analysing the impact

It is important to recognise that the Welsh Government does not hold all of the levers around tackling income poverty. Key policy levers, such as changes to tax and benefits, are the responsibility of the UK Government. Evidence suggests that recent UK Government welfare reforms will have a disproportionate impact on households with children and will have a particularly negative impact on those households that are most at risk of living in poverty – which includes households with disabled parents and / or disabled children. Evidence suggests that child poverty will continue to rise in Wales (albeit at a slower rate in light of some anticipated positive impacts of introducing Universal Credit). The Welsh Government is committed mitigating these impacts, where possible and where we hold specific policy levers.

Improving the outcomes of low income families is at the heart of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy for Wales. The strategic objectives of the Child Poverty Strategy are designed to have maximum positive impact for children, young people and their families who are living in low income households. They are based on what the evidence tells us is likely to have most impact on tackling poverty in Wales. Reflecting the levers available to the Welsh Government, some of the intended benefits of this revised Child Poverty Strategy may not be seen in the immediate future. Improving the outcomes of pupils eligible for Free School Meals, for example, will play a critical role in tackling and preventing poverty – but this is likely to be in the longer term. As a result, the revised Strategy also identifies five key policy priorities where we commit to doing more “here and now” to support low income households achieve better outcomes. These policy priorities are: reducing food poverty, increasing the availability of affordable childcare, tackling in-work poverty, mitigating the impacts of welfare reform, and housing and regeneration. Within the Child Poverty Strategy, we commit to developing new actions and commitments for each of these priorities. Where possible, these will be included in the Annual Report on the Tackling Poverty Action Plan (due to be published in July 2015).

Positive Impacts for Children and Young People

We know that living in a workless household is particularly detrimental for children and young people. Workless households are also much more at risk of living in persistent poverty. One of the strategic objectives of the Child Poverty Strategy is to reduce the number of children and young people living in workless households, by supporting parents into employment and training opportunities. The Child Poverty Strategy (and the Tackling Poverty Action Plan) includes specific reference to programmes such as Jobs Growth Wales and the Lift Programme – which will make a positive contribution to delivering this outcome. Work being taken forward by the Department for the Economy, Science and Transport (EST) will also be important as they take forward policy and action to support businesses in Wales, in order to enable and support the private sector to create further training and employment opportunities.

European Funding streams will play a crucial role in supporting people back into employment and training. Tackling poverty is a cross-cutting theme for all European funding. Furthermore, the European Social Fund includes a specific focus on supporting those furthest away from the labour marker – with projects and programmes being developed to support people into employment. The European Social Fund also includes a strong focus on employment and training for younger people.

The second strategic objective of the Child Poverty Strategy is to improve the skills of parents so that they can secure well paid employment. This is because we know that in-work poverty is a growing issue in Wales, with evidence from research funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation suggesting that there are now more people living in poverty in Wales who are working, than not working. The Revised Child Poverty Strategy recognises how essential it is to use all available policy levers to ensure that households who benefit from accessing training and employment opportunities are not moving from being in out-of-work poverty, to being in in-work poverty. In January 2014, the Welsh Government issued a new Skills Statement for Wales and in July 2014 published an accompanying Implementation Plan. The Revised Child Poverty Strategy for Wales references this important development – which will play a key role in delivering the second strategic objective of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy.

The third strategic objective of the Child Poverty Strategy recognises the policy levers available to the Welsh Government, in terms of improving the health, education and economic outcomes of those living in poverty. Our key tackling poverty programmes (Flying Start, Communities First, Families First, Supporting People and Vibrant and Viable Places) will make an important contribution to delivering these outcomes. We know that children and young people from poorer backgrounds do less well at school and are much more at risk of becoming NEET at age 16-24 years. The Revised Child Poverty Strategy continues the Welsh Government’s commitment to address educational inequalities and ensure that the outcomes of pupils eligible for Free School Meals improve at a faster rate than for non-FSM pupils. The revised Strategy highlights Rewriting the Future, the Pupil Deprivation Grant and Schools Challenge Cymru as key developments which will enable us to deliver this crucial objective. Reducing health inequalities is also critical to the tackling poverty agenda. Through action being taken forward by the Welsh Government’s Tackling Poverty Action Plan, the Child Poverty Strategy aims to reduce the number of babies born with a low birth weight, improve dental health and improve the healthy life expectancy of those living in our most deprived areas of Wales. In the revised Child Poverty Strategy, the section on delivering the third strategic objective includes specific reference to early years and parenting, play, reducing educational inequalities, reducing health inequalities, the role of housing and regeneration, natural resources and the environment, and arts and culture (and how these policy areas are contributing to improving outcomes and reducing inequalities).

The fourth strategic objective recognises the importance of jobs and growth and the role of a strong economy, in terms of supporting the poverty agenda and helping to tackle in-work poverty. This new objective has been included in the Revised Strategy in direct response to the recent consultation. It will be important to explore the role that different sectors can play in tackling poverty, and offering opportunities to young people and parents from low income households. The Department for Economy, Science and Transport has been exploring the role of the tourism as a sector which can provide sustainable and full time career opportunities for young people, which will be important to tackling rural poverty.

The fifth strategic objective recognises the importance of having policies and programmes in place that support parents to achieve better economic outcomes, increase their household income and address the poverty premium, where low income households tend to pay more goods and services. The Welsh Government has a strong history of investing in the financial inclusion agenda, funding a range of different programmes – including Better Advice Better Lives, which provides advice to families with disabilities to ensure access to the benefits they are entitled.

Childcare is critical to delivering on the first two strategic objectives of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy – and also makes and important contribution to ensuring our children achieve the best possible outcomes as they grow up. For those households with childcare needs, the lack of childcare is often cited as a key barrier, in terms of accessing employment and training opportunities. We recognise this in our Child Poverty Strategy and our Tackling Poverty Action Plan, which includes a strong focus on supporting people into work and training. It is also important to recognise the role of childcare in relation to the important contribution it can make to tackling in-work poverty. We know that in-work poverty is a growing issue in Wales, and evidence from recent research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows us that there are now more people living in poverty who are working, than who are not. Evidence shows us that part-working families are especially at risk of living in in-work poverty. Supporting both parents to access full time opportunities will be important to tackling in-work poverty and childcare plays a key role. Supporting second earners into work (the majority of whom will be women) is especially important and again, accessible and affordable childcare is key to delivering on this agenda. Our Tackling Poverty Action Plan includes specific commitments around supporting the development of the childcare network in Wales.

The role of parenting is also crucial to delivering on the child poverty agenda. The revised Strategy recognises the importance of the home learning environment in supporting children to achieve better outcomes – and how parenting can make a significant and positive contribution to the lives of children and young people. We state that it is important to ensure both parents are supported to remain positively engaged in the lines of their children. Article 18 of the UNCRC states: Both parents have responsibility for bringing up their children and should consider what is best for their child. Governments should help parents by providing services to support them, especially if both parents work. Supporting both parents to access tackling poverty programmes is therefore important.

Measures to mitigate any negative impacts of the Child Poverty Strategy

There are no intended negative impacts of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy, as the focus is on improving the outcomes of some of our most vulnerable families and deprived communities. However, there is a strong emphasis within the Strategy that employment is the most sustainable (although not always guaranteed) route out of poverty. When parents are working while their children are very young, or when parents are working outside of school hours, this may mean spending less time with their children. As highlighted above, Article 18 recognises the importance of providing services to support parents, especially when both are working. Whilst recognising the importance of parents caring for their children, evidence suggests that in the longer term, the negative impacts of being in income poverty are particularly detrimental. Being in employment is highly protective against being in relative income poverty. Evidence suggests that there are also additional benefits of being in work for a parent (for example, improved mental health and wellbeing).

How will you know if your piece of work is a success?

The key indicator used to measure child poverty is the percentage of children living in relative income poverty (defined as 60% of the median income) After Housing Costs. The Welsh Government is committed to the ambition of eradicating child poverty by 2020. In addition to this headline measure of child poverty, it is important to monitor the other intended outcomes of this Child Poverty Strategy, particularly in terms of improving the health, education and employment outcomes of children and families living in poverty. As set out below, the Welsh Government will use an additional set of key population indicators to assess progress in relation to tackling child poverty.

Have you developed an outcomes framework to measure impact?

The 2015 Child Poverty Strategy sets out a number of key population indicators for measuring the impact of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy for Wales. This includes indicators on the number of children living in workless households / skills / health inequalities / educational attainment / number of young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET) aged 16-24. These are also the key population indicators that underpin our Tackling Poverty Action Plan for Wales, which includes specific targets for many of these policy areas. The specific indicators are listed below:

· % of children living in relative income poverty (After Housing Costs).

· % of children living in relative income poverty where at least one adult is working (After Housing Costs).

· % of children living in workless households.

· % of working age adults with no qualifications.

· % of working age adults holding qualifications at levels 2, 3 or 4 and above.

· % of children living in low income households who are reaching health, social and cognitive development milestones when entering formal education.

· % of 7 year old pupils eligible for Free School Meals achieving the expected level at the end of the Foundation Phase.

· % of pupils eligible for Free Schools Meals who achieve the Level 2 threshold including English / Welsh and Maths at Key Stage 4.

· % of young people aged 16-18 who are NEET.

· % of young people aged 19-24 who are NEET.

· % of babies (live births) born with a low birth weight (defined as under 2,500 grams).

Within the revised Child Poverty Strategy, we have mapped across these indicators to the five objectives of the Child Poverty Strategy (as part of the five logic models). As highlighted earlier, these logical models also identify the relevant articles of the UNCRC

We will report on the child poverty indicators as part of the Annual Report on the Tackling Poverty Action Plan. The next Annual Report will be published in July 2015.

Have you considered the short, medium and long term outcomes?

Yes. Evidence from our recent evaluation of the Welsh Government’s Child Poverty Strategy for Wales suggests that the approach we are taking in Wales is likely to make an important contribution to tackling poverty, but that this is likely to be in the longer term. In light of the findings from the evaluation, the Revised Child Poverty Strategy therefore recognises the importance of continuing to look for opportunities that improve the circumstances and outcomes of low income families here and now, as well as opportunities that ensure we prevent children currently growing up in poverty from becoming low income households in the future. For example, the 2015 Child Poverty Strategy specifically recognises that food poverty is increasing amongst low income households in Wales. Similarly, the Revised Strategy recognises that access to advice services, income maximisation schemes (e.g. Better Advice Better Lives), projects supporting improved financial literacy and affordable lending (e.g. Credit Unions) and initiatives such as the Discretionary Assistance Fund can make an important contribution to mitigating the impacts of living in a low income households.

Other findings from the 2014 Evaluation of the Welsh Government’s Child Poverty Strategy are also relevant. For example, the evaluation highlights that current policies and programmes are not necessarily at the scale needed to affect change at the required level. The Revised Strategy therefore recognises the importance of looking for further opportunities that will enable us to deliver change – and the population level. The Revised Strategy highlights potential policies that could make an important contribution such as housing and regeneration investments, where the use of a Community Benefits approach can provide crucial employment and training opportunities for those that need these most.

Crucially, the 2015 Child Poverty Strategy also recognises the importance of continuing to develop our understanding of what it will take to eradicate child poverty. In particular, it includes a commitment to undertake further analysis of the outcomes the strategy is looking to deliver and to use this assessment to develop interim outcomes and milestones for tackling child poverty. This analysis will form the basis of the Welsh Government’s strategic approach to tackling child poverty and future work to improve the outcomes of children and young people in low income households, being taken forward by different Departments. An assessment and modelling of key trends will help us understand what needs to be achieved and by when, if we are to eradicate child poverty. In particular, we will use this analysis to determine what this means in terms of fewer children in workless households, supporting people into employment, supporting second earners into work, fewer young people who are NEET, tackling health and educational inequalities and increasing the number of adults with basic skills.

Do you need to engage with children & young people and/or stakeholders to seek their views using consultation or participatory methods?

Yes. The Welsh Government remains committed to taking forward a collaborative approach to tackling child poverty, recognising the critical role to be played by Local Authorities and other public bodies named in the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010. In addition to the requirements of the Measure, we know that the third sector and private sector can also make a significant contribution to reducing child poverty, including offering volunteer placements and jobs.

It is particularly important that Local Authorities and the wider public sector consider the 2015 Child Poverty Strategy when reviewing their own Child Poverty Strategies and objectives. This approach will build on the unique situation in Wales where the Welsh Government, Local Authorities and other public bodies are working to the same objectives to eradicate child poverty.

Consulting, listening and acting on the views of children and young people is essential and the 2015 Child Poverty Strategy includes a commitment to involve the participation of young people in the ongoing development of our Tacking Poverty Action Plan. Officials in the Tackling Poverty Division are engaged with Children in Wales, who have been funded under the Children and Families Delivery Grant, to ensure the participation of children and young people in the decision making processes of Government. Work will be taken forward to ensure that the actions underpinning our Tackling Poverty Action Plan are informed by children and young people themselves.

The Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty will continue to meet with the End Child Poverty Network and the Welsh Government’s Tackling Poverty External Advisory Group (TPEAG) to ensure their ongoing involvement with developing the Welsh Government’s approach to tackling poverty.

Do you need to produce child friendly versions of proposals/consultations?

A children and young people’s version of the Consultation Document was published in November 2015. This was well received by children and young people, as well those organisations which support them. As a result, the Welsh Government will also be publishing a children and young people’s version of the 2015 revised Strategy on the Welsh Government website, on 27 March 2015.

Step 3. How does your piece of work support and promote children’s rights?

Which UNCRC articles are most relevant to the piece of work?

Improving the outcomes of children and young people from low income backgrounds is central to delivering on children’s rights in Wales. Article 26 of the UNCRC (children, either through their guardians or directly, have the right to help from the government if they are poor or in need) and Article 27 (children have the right to a standard of living that is good enough to meet their physical and mental needs) are specifically focussed on addressing income poverty and material deprivation. The right for every child to a standard of living adequate for their physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development is a key element. Governments should provide material assistance and support programmes, particularly with regard to food, clothing and housing.

Other relevant articles of the UNCRC include:

Article 2: The Convention applied to anyone, whatever their race, religion, abilities, whatever they think or say and whatever type of family they come from.

Article 3 (Best interests of the child): The best interests of children must be the primary concern in making decisions that may affect them. All adults should do what is best for children. When adults make decisions, they should think about how their decisions will affect children. This particularly applies to budget, policy and law makers.

Article 6 (Right of life): All children have the right of life. Governments should ensure children survive and develop healthily.

Article 12 (Respect for the views of the child): When adults are making decisions that affect children, children have the right to say what they think should happen and have their opinions taken into account.

Article 18 (Parental responsibilities; state assistance): Both parents share responsibility for bringing up their children, and should always consider what is best for each child. Governments must respect the responsibility of parents for providing appropriate guidance to their children – the Convention does not take responsibility for children away from their parents and give more authority to governments. It places a responsibility on governments to provide support services to parents, especially if both parents work outside the home.

Article 24 (Right to health care): Children have the right to good quality health care and to clean water, nutritious food and a clean environment so they will stay healthy. Rich countries should help poorer countries achieve this.

Article 28 (Right to education): All children have the right to a primary education, which should be free. Wealthy countries should help poorer countries achieve this right. The Convention places a high value on education. Young people should be encouraged to reach the highest level of education of which they are capable.

Article 29 (Goals of education): Children’s education should develop each child’s personality, talents and abilities to the fullest.

Article 31 (Leisure, play and culture): Children have the right to relax and play, and to join in a wide range of cultural, artistic and other recreational activities.

It is important to recognise and highlight the links between the individual articles of the UNCRC and how these specifically relate to what we are trying to achieve through the Child Poverty Strategy. Within the revised Child Poverty Strategy, we have developed a series of “logic models” which demonstrate how different policies and programmes are contributing to delivering the five key objectives of the strategy. The articles of the UNCRC which are most relevant to the delivery of these objectives have been identified within the logical models themselves.

Article 36 (activities which harm development): Children should be protected from any activities which could harm their development.

How are you improving the way children and young people access their rights?

It is important to recognise that being in poverty is a fundamental barrier to children and young people accessing their rights and achieving better outcomes. We know that children growing up and living in low income households are much more at risk of having poorer health outcomes, are less likely to reach cognitive and developmental milestones in the early years, have poorer educational attainment, are more likely to be not in education, employment or training (NEET) between the age of 16 and 24, and more likely to be unemployed and living in poverty as an adult.

The direct link between tackling child poverty and the UNCRC is set out within the Welsh Government’s Tackling Poverty Action Plan. The Action Plan is clear the Welsh Government approaches tackling child poverty using the UNCRC as a basis, recognising tackling poverty is as much about improving children’s wellbeing as it is about addressing income poverty. A child rights based approach links the wellbeing of children with the wellbeing of parents and families and puts support for families at the heart of policies to tackle child poverty. Whilst this Strategy recognises child poverty is a direct reflection of the poverty of their parents (and hence the emphasis on increasing household income and access to employment), we also understand and acknowledge the child as a rights bearer who has specific needs in the here and now. These rights, whilst contributing to improving the position of their families and communities, may also extend beyond the family.

The Annual Report on the Tackling Poverty Action Plan provides us with the opportunity to take forward actions and commitments to address new and emerging issues relating to children and young people. At the same time, ensuring we have due regard to the UNCRC as we develop policies and programmes to support children and young people will be critical to addressing child poverty and improving outcomes. The completion of Children’s Rights Impact Assessments (CRIAs) by Welsh Government Departments provides an ideal opportunity to link both the children’s rights and child poverty agendas. We will continue to work collaboratively to ensure child poverty is considered in the development of our policies and programmes through the completion of Children’s Rights Impact Assessments. The Welsh Government has identified child poverty as the main barrier towards realising and upholding children’s rights in Wales. For this reason, we have identified the delivery of the Child Poverty Strategy as our priority commitment in relation to the child rights agenda. In reaffirming the Welsh Government’s commitment to the UNCRC, we will make it clear all portfolios and departments have obligations and responsibilities in realising children’s rights.

What aspects of children’s lives will be affected by the proposal?

The Child Poverty Strategy aims to deliver a number of positive impacts for children and young people (and their parents) who are living in poverty. Most crucially, the strategy aims to reduce the number of households living in income poverty – to ensure that families have enough money to secure a standard of living that is good enough to meet their physical and mental needs. The Revised Strategy is also underpinned by a number of other existing strategies – that all play a role in improving the outcomes of children and young people. For example, Building a Brighter Future: Early Years and Childcare Plan sets out the Welsh Government’s approach and key actions that will contribute to improving the lives of younger children (aged 0-7 years) in Wales. Likewise, Fairer Health Outcomes for All is the Welsh Government strategic document for reducing health inequalities and includes a strong focus on improving the health outcomes of children and young people. More recently, the Welsh Government published a new strategy – Rewriting the Future – which aims to reduce the inequalities that currently exist in the educational outcomes of children and young people. This includes a specific focus on the role of schools and other key partners to improve the educational outcomes of pupils eligible for Free School Meals, at a faster rate than pupils not eligible for Free School Meals.

What are the main issues that the CRIA should focus on? Does the piece of work help to maximise the outcomes within the articles of the UNCRC?

The third strategic objective of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy is to improve the educational, health and economic outcomes of children and young people living in poverty. This will help to ensure that children and young people currently living in poverty do not go on to be poor as adults. Educational attainment is critical to delivering on this agenda. We know that improving the educational outcomes of pupils eligible for Free School Meals will mean that they are much more likely to secure training and employment opportunities as they enter adulthood. Being in employment is critical to tackling poverty in both the short and long term.

If the Welsh Government is able to deliver on its three strategic objectives (of reducing worklessness, increasing skills and reducing inequalities) it will make a significant contribution to tackling poverty. The ongoing monitoring of the individual policies and programmes underpinning the Child Poverty Strategy (and associated Tackling Poverty Action Plan) is critical. Officials in the Tackling Poverty Action Plan will do this via the Welsh Government’s Tackling Poverty Implementation Board.

The Tackling Poverty Implementation Board (chaired by the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty) oversees delivery of the Tackling Poverty Action Plan – and the policies and programmes that contribute towards delivering these population outcomes. A key role of the Implementation Board is holding different departments to account for the actions underpinning the Plan. Departments are responsible for reporting on progress – with performance measures in place to monitor whether children and families are “better off” as a result of the support and intervention they have received. The Welsh Government will continue to report on the performance of individual policies and programmes as part of the Programme for Government and the Annual Report on the Tackling Poverty Action Plan, thereby ensuring a specific (and ongoing) focus on delivering better outcomes for children and young people living in poverty.

Step 4. Advising the Minister and Ministerial decision

Officials in the Tackling Poverty Division set out proposals regarding the development of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy in a submission to the previous Deputy Minister for Tackling Poverty and the current Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty.

The Deputy Minister agreed to overall approach at the end of July 2014. Following the Cabinet reshuffle, the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty agreed in October to the publication of the Revised Child Poverty Strategy for a 12 week consultation period on 6 November 2014. On 9 March, Cabinet agreed to the publication of the final 2015 Strategy on 27 March.

Within the submissions to Ministers, officials have highlighted how the Child Poverty Strategy links with the relevant articles of the UNCRC and places considerable emphasis improving the outcomes of children and families living in low income households.

Tackling child poverty is a cross-cutting issue (and a key priority for the Welsh Government). Officials will continue to amend and adapt the Children’s Rights Impact Assessment on the Child Poverty Strategy to reflect new commitments being taken forward (for example, as part of the Annual Report on the Tackling Poverty Action Plan) and new evidence on child poverty in Wales.

Step 5. Recording and communicating the outcome

Final version to be retained on i-share

Evidence should be retained that supports:

· How the duty has been complied with (Steps 1-3 above)

· The analysis that was carried out (Steps 1-3 above)

· The options that were developed and explored (Steps 1- 3 above)

· How have the findings / outcomes been communicated? (Step 4 above)

· ‘Tells the story’ of how the assessment has been undertaken and the results (Step 4 above)

When developing the Revised Child Poverty Strategy for Wales, officials in the Tackling Poverty Division have complied with the duty within the Rights of Children and Young Persons (Wales) Measure 2011 to have due regard to the Articles of the UNCRC when developing new policy. Article 26 of the UNCRC and Article 27 are specifically focussed on addressing income poverty and material deprivation.

As highlighted in Steps 1-3, this Child Poverty Strategy will make an important contribution to a number of articles from the UNCRC. In particular, the Child Poverty Strategy looks to tackle income poverty and reduce the number of children living in low income households. This directly links to Article 26 and Article 27 of the UNCRC.

The strategic objectives of the Child Poverty Strategy have been developed to ensure maximum positive impact for low income families – and to ensure that the Welsh Government is using all available levers to tackle child poverty and improve the outcomes of children and young people living in deprived communities. These strategic objectives are based on what the evidence tells us around where we can have most impact, in terms of tackling income poverty and improving outcomes.

This Children’s Rights Impact Assessment is underpinned by what the evidence tells us about child poverty in Wales.

Step 6. Revisiting the piece of work as and when needed

In revisiting the piece of work, consider any monitoring, evaluation or data collection that has been undertaken:

· Has your piece of work has had the intended impact as set out in Step 2.

· Have you engaged with stakeholders to discuss how the policy or practice is working.

· If not, are changes required.

· Identify where improvements can be made to reduce any negative impact.

· Identify any opportunities to promote children’s rights, bearing in mind any additional availability of resources at this time.

Officials in the Tackling Poverty Division revisited the Children’s Rights Impact Assessment during the consultation period. The Child Poverty Strategy and the CRIA was amended in light of consultation responses, and the decision to develop new strategic objectives for tackling child poverty in Wales. We will continue to strengthen and build on the CRIA for the Revised Child Poverty Strategy as we develop new actions and commitments as part of the Annual Report on the Tackling Poverty Action Plan (see below).

Budgets

As a result of completing the CRIA, has there been any impact on budgets?

It is important that where any changes are made to spending plans, including where additional allocations have been made, that this has been assessed and evidenced as part of the CRIA process.

Please give any details:

When the Revised Child Poverty Strategy was submitted to Ministers, it was recognised that further analysis of budgets associated with the Child Poverty Strategy would be undertaken. Within the Revised Strategy, there is also a commitment to develop new actions and commitments for five key priorities. If possible, these new actions and commitments will be set out in the Annual Report on the Tackling Poverty Action Plan. Further information will be included in this CRIA on additional funding allocated for new actions, initiatives, policies or programmes, as these are developed. We commit to reviewing this CRIA following the publication of the Annual Report in July 2015.

Monitoring & Review

Do we need to monitor / review the proposal?

Yes

If applicable: set the review date

July 2015, following the publication of the Annual Report on the Welsh Government’s Tackling Poverty Action Plan.

ANNEX B4

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment: Children and Families Delivery Grant

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment (CRIA) Template

Title / Piece of work:	Children and Families Delivery Grant
Related SF / LF number (if applicable)	SF-JC0456-14 Replacement for the Children and Families Organisation Grant: Children and Family Delivery Grant
Name of Official:	Robert Edwards
Department:	Children Young People and Families Division.
Date:	24 March 2014
Signature:

Upon completion you should also forward a copy of the CRIA to the Measure Implementation Team for monitoring purposes using the dedicated mailbox CRIA@wales.gsi.gov.uk

You may wish to cross-reference with other Impact Assessments undertaken.

Six Steps to Due Regard

Step 1. What’s the piece of work and its objective(s)?

The Children and Families Delivery Grant (CFDG) will replace the current Children and Family Organisation Grant (CFOG).

An independent review in 2011 of the CFOG Family Support and Childcare and Play strands considered that too many organisations were funded through the grant. The report also considered that monitoring arrangements by the Welsh Government were weak and relationships insufficiently dynamic. Following further consultation with stakeholders a decision was reached to move to a more delivery focussed funding model.

The grant, to Third Sector organisations, will be to drive outcomes in five specific priority areas that complement and add value to the Welsh Government’s Family Support agenda. The grant will support families in practical, measurable ways, with a strong emphasis on outcomes that will directly impact on children through its focus on participation and engagement, childcare, policy and play.

The CFDG will commence 1 October 2014 and run for 36 months. Funding will be £2.8 million per 12- month period. The intention is to award 5 grants to address each of the following 5 stated priorities:

· Families across Wales can access affordable, quality childcare;

· Increased opportunities for children in Wales to play;

· Families are informed about financial and other practical support that builds resilience;

· ‘Seldom heard’ families are engaged and access programmes, support and services; and

· Policy and strategic development in relation to Children, Young People and Families is supported and systemic opportunities for Children and Young People to participate in decisions that affect them and have their voices heard is increased.

Step 2. Analysing the impact

The Children and Families Delivery Grant is specifically about better outcomes for children, young people and their families. It is about ensuring delivery on the ground that will be seen and felt. The Minister is clear that all grant activity must be able to evidence that its delivery is making a positive difference to those it intends to affect.

Each application for funding will include a section which outlines the arrangements for monitoring and reporting within the project. The Welsh Government is recommending a Results Based Accountability approach to this activity. Applicants will be expected to outline how they intend to monitor progress of the project and respond to unexpected problems, provide details of milestones and timescales and project tolerances. As part of this requirement applicants will be required to state how they will measure the achievements of the project. They will be required to include details of proposed surveys and research activities and whether or not they will be carried out by independent assessors.

Successful applicants will be expected to submit a quarterly grant claim form which will include a requirement to report progress against agreed outputs. Annual progress reports will also be required.

At project end applicants will be required to evaluate the actual impact and outcomes of their project in accordance with the methodology outlined in their application. This will include the requirement to submit an evaluation report to the Welsh Government within 6 months of the end of the project.

The collaborative approach that this grant encourages is intended to provide children, young people and families with a more coherent service through organisations working together move from focussing on services and process to focussing on delivery.

Step 3. How does your piece of work support and promote children’s rights?

Every priority area of this grant is intended to further children’s rights . The grant focusses on making rights a reality for many children, young people and families. The range of activities which could be covered by the grant is potentially wide. Successful applications could include projects which range from the provision of high level over arching services to the sector as whole to on the ground delivery of services directly to children and their families.

The Grant focusses on supporting the following UNCRC Articles/themes:

Article 5 . Provide Parenting activities so parents learn how to bring their children up in a structured and supportive environment.

Article 6. The programme will potentially support Health Visitor activities with the flying Start programme. This will increase the likely hood of children surviving through the identification of domestic risk and help ensure they grow up healthy.

Article 12. Provide child advocacy services to ensure children’s voices are heard.

Article 18. Support programmes that help both parents have input into the development of their children, Whether the parents are together or living separately.

Article 24. Increased Health care through support for the Flying Start enhanced health visitor service.

Article 26. The primary aim of the programme is to tackle poverty using an early intervention model wherever possible. £8.4million is being made available across a 36 month period to support the aims of the grant.

Article 31. Play activities are eligible for funding under the CFDG .

Priority area 5 is specifically intended to attract proposals that increase and realise opportunities for children and young people in Wales to have their voices heard (article 12). The following eligible activity was identified in the application guidance:

enabling children and young people to have a voice in the workings and developments of the Welsh Government;
the collective voices of children and young people from local forums are heard nationally by Ministers;
ensuring that children and young people, and those who work with them, are aware of children’s right to participation as set out in the UNCRC; and
promotion of meaningful and effective participation through the sharing of good practice.

The range of activities which could be covered by the grant is potentially wide. Successful applications could include projects which range from the provision of high level over arching services to the sector as whole to on the ground delivery of services directly to children and their families.

Step 4. Advising the Minister and Ministerial decision

Ministerial advice was provided under submission:

SF-JC0456-14 Replacement for the Children and Family Organisation Grant. - Children and Family Delivery Grant

The Minister has approved the recommendation of the submission.

Step 5. Recording and communicating the outcome

Final version to be retained on i-share

Documentation relating to the development of the grant can be found on iShare under reference: zA745098.

Step 6. Revisiting the piece of work as and when needed

The grant commences October 2014 following a grant assessment panel in June 2014. Reviews of the programme will take place on an annual basis and reviews of project progress on a quarterly basis. Each successful applicant will be assigned an account manager to monitor progress.

Budgets

As a result of completing the CRIA, has there been any impact on budgets?

It is important that where any changes are made to spending plans, including where additional allocations have been made, that this has been assessed and evidenced as part of the CRIA process.

Yes

Please give any details:

Tackling Poverty Budgets are expected to increase over the 3 year life span of the new grant. There will however be some adjustment of priorities within the main funding Programmes to accommodate changing priorities. The CFDG budget will be similar to the current CFOG grant which it replaces with an annual budget of approx. £2.8m available to support the funded projects.

Monitoring & Review

Do we need to monitor / review the proposal?

If applicable: set the review date

ANNEX B5

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment:Positive Parenting Campaign

Children’s Rights Impact Assessment (CRIA) Template

Title / Piece of work:	‘Parenting. Give it Time’ – positive parenting campaign
Related SF / LF number (if applicable)	SF/LG/1589/15
Name of Official:	Lucy Akhtar
Department:	Education and Public Services Group
Date:	18 July 2015
Signature:

Upon completion you should also forward a copy of the CRIA to the Measure Implementation Team for monitoring purposes using the dedicated mailbox CRIA@wales.gsi.gov.uk

You may wish to cross-reference with other Impact Assessments undertaken.

Six Steps to Due Regard

Step 1. What’s the piece of work and its objective(s)?

You may wish to include:

· A brief description of the piece of work

· What the time frame for achieving it is?

· Who are the intended beneficiaries?

· Is it likely that the piece of work will affect children?

· Will the piece of work have an affect on a particular group of children, if so, describe the group affected?

Description of the piece of work

Evidence suggests that certain approaches to parenting promote successful outcomes for children and research has shown that a positive parenting style is more likely to lead to better social, emotional and academic outcomes for children.

(Sroufe, et al 1990; Emler, 2001; Desforges and Bouchaard, 2003; Seaman et al, 2005; Feinstein and Sabates, 2006O’Connor and Scott 2007; Moullin et al, 2008; Katz and Redmond, 2009; Asmussen and Weizel, 2010 and Nixon, 2012). Please see a full list of references in ‘Parenting in Wales: Guidance on engagement and support’

http://gov.wales/docs/dsjlg/publications/cyp/140910-parenting-in-wales-guidance-en.pdf

Positive parenting is where parents:

are loving, nurturing and respectful;
are supportive and involved;
provide clear consistent boundaries based on realistic expectations according to a child’s age and stage of development;
model good behaviour;
provide appropriate supervision;
praise good behaviour; and
handle problem behaviours consistently without resorting to physical punishment and excessive shouting.

In the Autumn the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty will launch a positive parenting campaign. The overall aim of the campaign is to help bring about an attitudinal change in the general public on the way children and young people are brought up and disciplined, by making physical punishment unacceptable and promoting positive alternatives.

‘Parenting. Give it time’, will promote positive approaches to raising children through a number of different media channels. Using the theme of ‘time,’ the messages given to parents will be positive and supportive. Initially the main target audience will be parents and carers of young children (0-5), as evidence suggests children in this age group may be more likely to be smacked.

(See: Jackson (1999) cited in Henricson, H. & Grey, A. (2001) “Understanding Discipline” National Family and Parenting Institute; and Bunting, L., Webb, M. & Healy, J. (2008) “The ‘Smacking Debate’ in Northern Ireland – Messages from Research”, Barnardo’s Cymru, Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People and NSPCC Northern Ireland).

The campaign would support the overall aim by:

using a range of ‘marketing’ techniques and approaches to raise awareness of the positive parenting message;

providing ‘products’ (such as leaflets, web content, video clips, posters and Facebook posts) which will offer information, practical tips and strategies to support attitudinal and behaviour change;
signposting parents to services (such as health visitors, Family Information Service, Families First, Flying Start etc); and
bringing together a range of internal and external stakeholders who can use their influence to support attitudinal and behaviour change.

Research

Running parallel to this piece of work will be three strands of research activity:

Campaign development: focus groups will be undertaken to explore the key campaign messages and the most effective approaches to promotion. It is likely this will include focus groups with parents of children aged under seven years old.

Children and young people’s attitudes towards physical punishment: qualitative work will be undertaken with children to explore their attitudes towards methods of parenting including physical punishment. Previous work has explored adults’ attitudes on this topic, but there has been no work yet with children and young people who are more likely to be affected by physical punishment. Specialists will be commissioned to carry out this research due to ethical sensitivities.

Quantitative baseline of attitudes: We will commission some work to gauge the attitudes of parents who have children in the target age group, prior to the campaign. We then intend to conduct the research again a few years into the campaign with parents in the target group to explore if there are any differences in attitudes.

Time frames

As attitudes are formed by a complex range of factors, our approach will require a concerted effort over a number of years. It is envisaged that the campaign could run over a period of three years. The first phase will run from autumn 2015 until the end of March 2016.

Beneficiaries and affect on children

Children should benefit from positive parenting by having a happier home life, displaying improved behaviour and having better social and emotional development;
Parents should benefit from adopting positive parenting methods by experiencing less stress and improved well-being;
Parents and children should benefit from a better parent-child relationship.

Step 2. Analysing the impact

· What are the positive and/or negative impacts for children, young people or their families?

· Where there are negative impacts; what compensatory measures may be needed to mitigate any negative impact?

· How will you know if your piece of work is a success?

· Have you developed an outcomes framework to measure impact?

· Have you considered the short, medium and long term outcomes?

· Do you need to engage with children & young people and/or stakeholders to seek their views using consultation or participatory methods?

· Do you need to produce child friendly versions of proposals/consultations?

· What are the positive and/or negative impacts for children, young people or their families?

What compensatory measures may be needed to mitigate any negative impact?

It is not expected that there will be negative impacts on children and their families. The campaign will be a vehicle for promoting positive parenting strategies and helping parents to find positive solutions to managing their children’s challenging behaviour.

Positive Impacts:

The campaign intends to affect a culture change in attitudes towards physical punishment of children in Wales, making it unacceptable. The campaign will promote the rewarding of good behaviour rather than punishing bad behaviour.

The campaign will provide parents with options and alternatives to physical punishment and encourage parents to look after their own health and well-being better to manage stressful situations.

This campaign will promote positive parenting to a wide audience. It will raise awareness among the wider public of the value of positive parenting and help normalise the process of seeking parenting help.

Potential Negative impact:

There may be a perception by some parents that the Welsh Government is telling them how to parent. However we will be promoting the following supportive messages:

The campaign isn’t about telling parents how to raise their children.

There is no ‘one size fits all’ way to parent. Every child and every parent is unique and the campaign does not provide a set of parenting rules that must be followed. It gives tips and strategies so parents can make decisions about what can work for their child and family.
Nobody has all the answers and there is no such thing as a perfect parent. However, psychologists have found the positive parenting style is most likely to help children grow up happy and learn well.

The campaign aims to empower parents to maximise their skills and knowledge in order to build a positive, healthy relationship with their children.

· How will you know if your piece of work is a success?

We will do this on a number of levels:

· The research activity described earlier will explore attitudes to physical punishment and parenting practices amongst parents in the target group prior to and later in the campaign.

· We will be measuring traffic and engagement on social media and our dedicated website.

· The media agency, engaged to support delivery of the campaign, will monitor the effectiveness of the various media channels used to promote the campaign messages.

· Have you considered the short, medium and long term outcomes?

The Logic Model below summarises the intended short, medium and long term outcomes.

· Do you need to engage with children & young people and/or stakeholders to seek their views using consultation or participatory methods?

We will be seeking the views of children and young people on physical punishment and parenting practices through commissioned research, as described above.

Step 3. How does your piece of work support and promote children’s rights?

Dependant upon the impact of your piece of work, use balanced judgement to assess:

· Which UNCRC articles are most relevant to the piece of work? Consider the articles which your piece of work impacts upon. http://uncrcletsgetitright.co.uk/images/PDF/UNCRCRights.pdf

· How are you improving the way children and young people access their rights?

· What aspects of children’s lives will be affected by the proposal?

· What are the main issues that the CRIA should focus on?

· Does the piece of work help to maximise the outcomes within the articles of the UNCRC?

· If no, have any alternatives to the current piece of work been considered?

Which UNCRC articles are most relevant to the piece of work? Consider the articles which your piece of work impacts upon

The Positive Parenting Campaign is based on the core principles of the UNCRC which centres on respect for children’s best interests and rights and support for parents in carrying out their role:

ensuring best interests of the child (article 3);
parental guidance and evolving capacity (article 5);
parental responsibilities (article 18);
ensuring the child’s rights for basic care and survival, (Article 6), play and education (Articles 28 & 31);
protection from abuse, neglect and degrading treatment (Article 19); and
a right to have a say in matters affecting them as their abilities develop (Article 12).

The UNCRC contains a number of provisions relating specifically to parents and highlighting the importance of their role. E.g. the UNCRC gives parents responsibility for providing their child with appropriate guidance and direction on using their rights properly (Article 5) and in matters relating to religion and conscience (Article 14). Article 18 identifies both parents as having the primary responsibility for bringing up their children, making it clear that governments must provide resources and support to help them fulfil their responsibilities. It also gives parents responsibility to provide adequate living conditions to meet their child’s development needs, with financial assistance from the Government if needed (Article 27).

How are you improving the way children and young people access their rights?

Ultimately the campaign is intended to provide advice and information for parents rather than support directly to children. However, for a majority of children, the family home is where they will realise many of the rights laid out in the UNCRC. Parents clearly have a pivotal role as guardians and advocates of children’s rights with a responsibility on the state to act as final guarantor. It is hoped that the campaign will assist parents to parent in a positive, supportive manner that considers and reflects children’s rights. This will ultimately benefit children and enable them to realise their rights and maximise positive outcomes for them.

We will be seeking the views of children and young people on physical punishment and parenting practices through commissioned research, as described above.

· What aspects of children’s lives will be affected by the proposal?

The information provided to parents will encourage them to incorporate positive parenting strategies (such as praise, talking, playing and listening) into every day activities with their children like dressing, playing, shopping, bathing and mealtimes. It will provide specific tips and information for parents on dealing with common behaviours and situations where parents may be more likely to resort to shouting or physical punishment. It will also provide information to parents on what their child can be expected to do, to encourage parents to adopt realistic expectations.

· Does the piece of work help to maximise the outcomes within the articles of the UNCRC?

For a majority of children, the family home is where they will realise many of the rights laid out in the UNCRC. The campaign is intended to maximise the articles of the UNCRC

through:

· a culture change in attitudes towards physical punishment in Wales, making it unacceptable and promoting positive parenting techniques. Helping mothers and fathers understand the importance of their role and the positive difference they can make to their child’s development, (Article 5,18)

· providing all parents with easy to access tips and information about ways to help take some of the stress out of everyday family activities, such as bed time, bath time and the weekly food shop. Providing details of organisations for parents who may need further help and support. (Article 18)

· encouraging parents to play, talk and listen to their children and encourage positive behaviour by adopting positive parenting strategies (Articles 28 & 31)

· encouraging parents to consider their young child’s emerging capacity for autonomy – e.g. giving their young child some choices about what to play with, what to wear and what to eat. (article 5)

· encouraging parents to adopt positive parenting strategies and providing them with options and alternatives to physical punishment. E.g. praising positive behaviour rather than punishing bad behaviour. Highlighting the negative impact of using physical punishment and that it is not an effective method of discipline (article 19)

The campaign will provide age appropriate tips and strategies to promote children’s development (article 3)

The campaign will also work with professionals who support parents and provide information to them on positive parenting.

Step 4. Advising the Minister and Ministerial decision

When giving advice and making recommendations to the Minister, consider:

· The ways in which the piece of work helps to maximise the outcomes within the articles of the UNCRC?

· Has any conflict with the UNCRC articles within the proposal been identified?

· Consider the wider impact; does the proposal affect any other policy areas?

· With regard to any negative impacts caused by the proposal; can Ministers evidence that they have allocated as much resources as possible?

· What options and advice should be provided to Ministers on the proposal?

· In relation to your advice on whether or not to proceed with the piece of work, is there any additional advice you should provide to the Minister?

· Is it appropriate to advise the Minister to reconsider the decision in the future, in particular bearing in mind the availability of resources at this time and what resources may be available in the future?

· Have you provided advice to Ministers on a LF/SF and confirmed paragraph 26?

· Is the advice supported by an explanation of the key issues?

Advice to Minister

Although parents have some access to universal parenting support delivered by partners in local government, health and education, services are primarily provided through our anti-poverty programmes – Flying Start, Families First and Communities First. In his Annual Report (2013-14) the Children’s Commissioner for Wales expressed concern all parents and carers should have access to universal parenting support.

Targeting parenting support to families living in deprivation or to families assessed by professionals to have problems may attract stigma, which could affect parents’ readiness to engage. A targeted approach to parenting support also does not contribute to a culture where parenting is seen as a learned skill everyone can acquire and benefit from.

It is important for parents to receive consistent messages on the key aspects of good, positive parenting from a range of sources. Non-statutory guidance, "Parenting in Wales: Guidance on engagement and support" sets out the Welsh Government's expectations on how parenting support should be provided. The guidance is intended to inform the decisions made by those delivering and commissioning parenting services. It contains a firm expectation for positive parenting principles to be promoted actively and consistently.

Research we commissioned last year has provided us with insights into attitudes in Wales to child discipline. It has contributed to our knowledge of different discipline strategies parents use and their information needs. The research highlights the potential to build on parents' existing skills in order to reinforce the effectiveness of the positive strategies they already use.

Evidence suggests attitudes towards parenting and physical discipline could be influenced by a national social marketing campaign. Lessons can be learned from the implementation of various social marketing campaigns in the UK and internationally. The success of these campaigns depended on having clear, consistent and positive messages promoted through a number of media communication methods.

To take forward the Programme for Government and manifesto commitment on positive parenting, the Minister was advised to consider funding a social marketing campaign and

funding research with children and parents on attitudes to physical punishment and parenting practices.

No advice was given on legislation as the Welsh Government has no mandate to legislate on this issue as it was not part of the Government’s manifesto and does not feature in the legislative programme.

The Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty has given agreement for the campaign in SF/LG/1589/15

Step 5. Recording and communicating the outcome

Final version to be retained on i-share

Evidence should be retained that supports:

· How the duty has been complied with (Steps 1-3 above)

· The analysis that was carried out (Steps 1-3 above)

· The options that were developed and explored (Steps 1- 3 above)

· How have the findings / outcomes been communicated? (Step 4 above)

· ‘Tells the story’ of how the assessment has been undertaken and the results (Step 4 above)

Step 6. Revisiting the piece of work as and when needed

In revisiting the piece of work, consider any monitoring, evaluation or data collection that has been undertaken:

· Has your piece of work has had the intended impact as set out in Step 2.

· Have you engaged with stakeholders to discuss how the policy or practice is working.

· If not, are changes required.

· Identify where improvements can be made to reduce any negative impact.

· Identify any opportunities to promote children’s rights, bearing in mind any additional availability of resources at this time.

Reviewing intended impact:

We will do this on a number of levels:

· The research activity described earlier will explore attitudes to physical punishment and parenting practices amongst parents in the target group prior to and later in the campaign.

Review date: research conducted prior to campaign – follow up research – date tbc

· We will be measuring traffic and engagement on social media and our dedicated website.

Review date: Initially monthly and thereafter bi-monthly

· The media agency, engaged to support delivery of the campaign, will monitor the effectiveness of the various media channels used to promote the campaign messages

Review date: The media agency will provide regular updates, which will be reviewed

Engagement with stakeholders to discuss how the policy or practice is working

Engagement will take place through the following activities:

· presentations to national networks, forums, meetings, conferences and events;

· articles in external Newsletters or briefings;

· meetings with key individuals

The working links with key relevant organisations, already established, will be maintained. These include regular attendance at

· All Wales Health Visiting Forum;

· FIS Network;

· North Wales Families First Parenting Learning Set; and

· National Parenting Coordinators Network.

Budgets

As a result of completing the CRIA, has there been any impact on budgets?

It is important that where any changes are made to spending plans, including where additional allocations have been made, that this has been assessed and evidenced as part of the CRIA process.

Please give any details:

Monitoring & Review

Do we need to monitor / review the proposal?

Yes /

If applicable: set the review date

Month / Year

March 2016

COMMUNITIES AND CHILDREN MAIN EXPENDITURE GROUP (MEG)

RESOURCE BUDGET - Departmental Expenditure Limit
SPA	Actions	BEL Title	2015-16 Final Outturn £000's	2016-17 Forecast Outturn £000's	2017-18 Draft Budget Allocations
Enabling Children and Communities	Supporting Children	Childcare & Play Strategies	2,682	3,066	12,716
		Support for Children's Rights	207	357	357
		Children's Commissioner	1,715	1,543	1,543
		Advocacy Board*	856	870	870
		Grants in Support of Child & Family Services*	115	570	570
		Services for Children*	531	352	352
		CAFCASS Cymru*	10,375	10,162	10,267
	Prevention and Early Intervention	Prevention and Early Intervention	160,788	155,533	154,383
	Financial Inclusion and Third Sector	Support for the Voluntary Sector/Volunteering	6,800	6,125	6,125
	Financial Inclusion and Third Sector	Financial Inclusion	13,349	13,927	13,927
			197,418	192,505	201,110

CAPITAL BUDGET - Departmental Expenditure Limit
SPA	Actions	BEL Title	2015-16 Final Outturn £000's	2016-17 Final Budget £000's	2017-18 Draft Budget Allocations
Communities and Tackling Poverty	Communities and Tackling Poverty	Flying Start Capital	6,892	3,000	1,260

SPA	Actions	BEL	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21
Communities and Tackling Poverty	Communities and Tackling Poverty	Flying Start Capital	1,260	566	529	860