Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

DisclaimerThe Council is not responsible and accepts no liability for any comments that are contained within this document that are made by third parties as a result of the consultation exercise, nor for any actions taken on the basis of the information provided herein. Any views or opinions contained within this document are solely those of the third parties and do not represent those of the Council.Every effort has been made to ensure that any personal data contained within these responses has been redacted.

Ref: Response 1 Dear Mr Pevez,

As a member of the labour party i was absolutely disgusted to hear the councils proposal to introduce parking charges for blue badge holders such as myself. We pay £10 for our blue badges where in the rest of Staffordshire they are free so we are already paying for parking are we not?

If this charge is introduced then it can only be detrimental to local business, who in there right mind would pay to park in such as Hanley when across the border in Newcastle under Lyme all the parking on council owned car parks is free for blue badge holders, this includes the Midway car park which is multi story similar to the Johns street car park which i refuse to use because i would have to pay for it. There are no prizes for guessing where i shall shop if this measure is introduced.

The conservative and lying democrat coalition has deliberately targeted the disabled and long term sick don’t you do it as well. As for other cuts as in school crossing patrols who will accept responsibility for injuries our deaths to our children? These cuts must be debated at a city wide level not just between a few councillor,s, as a council tax payer i have a voice and so does everyone else so don’t introduce anything without a full and proper public consultation as it appears that a lot of voters are going to vote UKIP because they fell that the traditional party's don’t listen.

May I also bring to your attention that as a council tenant i find that some of the service's offered by Kier are excellent, my wife and i were very impressed with the time it has taken to resolve the rising damp issue in our living room, unfortunately the same does not apply to our front and rear door. We have mould growing on and around our front door that is now progressing up the stairs, the rear door is very difficult to open on due to ingress of water and the leaking through the panels , both doors have been planed to make them easier to open but alas the rear one in particular is beyond repair. we wish to redecorate the landing and kitchen areas but until these doors are replaced it is a complete waste of money, i am therefore begging you to look into this for us.

As a severe asthmatic (nebuliser controlled) you must be acutely aware of the detrimental effect that the mould and other allergens that are associated with it have on my health and wellbeing. 2

It is important to acknowledge the vital role Public Protection plays, in ensuring the city is a safe place in which to live and work, a theme which your report already acknowledges as key.

The department protects the vulnerable with regards to consumer safety and door step crime, it creates a fair and level playing field for the city’s legitimate businesses. It ensures all consumer goods are safe and not incorrectly described, that premises are both a hygienic and safe environment in which to work and sell goods, in particular food.

There is often the public misconception that what they purchase is correct and safe and as a consequence Public Protection services are often not mentioned specifically, in the surveys distributed, as a priority. Whilst they would immediately notice a bin no longer collected, they would not in the first instance, be aware if we no longer inspected businesses to ensure they complied with consumer law. I’m sure if they were to realise our service keeps many people safe, they would list us a priority function. 3 Hello

I am deeply concerned about the proposed cutbacks to the CAMHS services. I have had support from the CAMHS team at Blurton for several years for my 3 children who suffer from autism. Their support has been (literally for my younger child) a life saver and I would hate to think of my children not having the continued and in particular consitent support from the team. We are currently on a several month waiting list for my 14 year old son for CBT therapy and making cutbacks will only lengthen this stressful waiting time. A vulnerable child without appropriate help is a strain on the whole family, especially families like my own where several members need support. The result can then be more support needed from services in the long run, cancelling out savings made to the council.

Could I ask you to reconsider these changes and think of the inevitable fall out it will cause.

Thankyou 4 I wanted to ensure that I raised an issue with the reduction of the number of FTE Social Workers within the CAMHS service.

Having worked with a number of different social workers within the CAMHS service I am able to see the value of having these individuals in each team. Having part of a Social Worker would make it difficult to communicate effectively; attendance at meetings would be nigh impossible; seeing advice and consultancy from these knowledgeable individuals would not happen due to the demands on their time as a result of being part time. Working outside of the CAMHS service, and having to liaise with social workers within Pods can be fraught with difficulties. Keeping social care within CAMHS ensures joined up working, and ultimately, ensures that the Young people and families that we are working with, experience the best care pathway possible. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

5 Please provide a break down of the cost pressures and the total spend per department or work area where they have occurred per year

But as the headline titles differ each consultation, please provide as closecomparable breakdown as you record it, perhaps like this year

grants, recycling contamination , Capital, financing charges, legalreq. social care,DHN, looked after children, learning disabilities. national pay award

Budget 2015

cost pressures of £9.3m and increasing demand for services from residents of £6.3m

Cost pressures - £5.1m e.g. in year changes in grants, recycling contamination , Capital financing charges

Growth - £1.7m legalreq. social care,DHN,

Demographic - £4.3m looked after children, learning disabilities.

Contractual inflation and Employee Adjustments - £4.5m e.g. national pay award

Budget 2014

expenditure pressures of £9m, including

contractual increments, terms and conditions and superannuation liabilities (£3m);

contractual commitments and inflation (£3m);

demographic and service demand pressures (£3m).

Ie so for each year 2010 to 2014 the total cost of looked after children per year, plus the cost pressure included in that years budget, and indicate if the cost pressure in budget is an increase or a carry forward overspend from previous year

2010 to 2014 the total cost of looked after Capital financing charges, plus the cost pressure included in that years budget, and indicate if the cost pressure in budget is an increase or a carry forward overspend from previous year

Please advise if you are unable to answer as business as usual for the Budget Consultation 2015 as a FOI will then be submitted viawhatdotheyknow.com 6 As you will see from my details below, I am a member of staff of the Governance Section and I am a solicitor in what was called Legal Services.

I have looked at the Budget Development Proposals, in particular Reference RES01 on page 15 of the Consultation Document and I may be affected by the proposals regarding Transformation Saving – Professional Services.

Am I correct in thinking that the letters “TBD” in the column headed “Net Staff Decrease” on page 15 stand for “To Be Determined”? If I am correct I have not been given enough information to properly respond to the consultation process as I do not know how many Occupied FTE posts or Vacant FTE posts the proposal will affect. Because of this lack of important information the consultation process on this particular element of the saving proposals may be flawed.

Could you confirm how many Occupied FTE and Vacant FTE posts will be affected by the saving proposal set out in Reference RES01 on page 15 of the Consultation Document so that I can make an informed response to the proposal?

I look forward to hearing from you. 7 Environmental Crime Unit

Fenton East Area residents wish to feedback that further cuts to the ECU service would be a bad move there is a lot of issues re fly tipping, littering services in the area and is needed now more than ever. This point of contact is vital for customers and organisations.

Requested Outcome: To maintain and build on the relationship with the environmental crime unit. 8 I am emailing with regard to the budget consultation 2015-16 and the associated proposal to cease provision of school crossing patrols.

As you are aware Caroline, we have liaised very closely with you this term regarding the absolute need to have school crossing patrols, given the volume of traffic on Sunnyside Avenue and the recent issues with the new crossing put in place on Victoria Road. These wardens are vital to ensuring the safety of our children each and every day.

Whilst I appreciate the difficulties relating to the need to find £30.9 million savings, I do not understand how plans to compromise children's safety on our roads during travel to and from school can be considered as an option. Children's safety should be an utmost priority for any Local Authority.

I would appreciate your response regarding why this is considered to be an appropriate course of action for every young person in our city. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

Public Toilets are a basic necessity of life and a basic human right. The hope that businesses will be willing or able to provide a substitute is unrealistic and unreasonable. Everyone need this facility at some time and those most (and most urgently) in need are the people least able to locate and access one which was never intended for use by the general public. Inevitably, some people would have no option but the humiliation of urinating (or worse) in the street, which would obviously be a health hazard and would be detrimental to trade. The costs of cleaning would offset any saving made by the closures, which is, in any case, a very small proportion of the total savings needed to be made. Most people would prefer to pay to use suitable public toilets rather than there be none available. It is useless to spend large amounts on trying to promote the city as a vibrant shopping and cultural attraction, locally and regionally, whilst negating this by ‘penny-pinching’ on basic necessities. It is imperative that such vital facilities should be available in a prominent and central location, otherwise ‘footfall’ will inevitably be discouraged in the City and the area (and the Council) will have a bad reputation.

I know these concerns are shared by many residents – we cannot all be wrong. The Council has a duty of care to the citizens and to act in their best interests – as perceived by a majority thereof. Thank you in anticipation of your passing on these issues at Consultation proceedings. 10

I was more than a little horrified and shocked hearing on Radio Stoke this morning that one of the areas the Council plans on making financial cuts is school transport services for special educational need children. As the mother of one such child I can only say that this announcement made me feel sick and I feel that the Council needs to have a much clearer understanding of the issues facing families like mine.

My son is 3.5yrs old and as of this September began school at a SEN school a considerable distance from our home; this was not out of choice but necessity - our son has multiple complex issues and requires a high level of support in order to be able to learn and demonstrate what he is capable of (although he is medical complex and in a wheelchair he is an intelligent child and has the same right to an education as any able bodied child). Due to needing a wheelchair (he is unable to sit unsupported) he has to have specialist transport to and from school that can accommodate a wheelchair and an escort for him. Due to a failure of the Council to provide him with a suitable escort, his Grandmother currently fulfils this role.

Both my husband and I work full time and do not get any social security benefits other than disability living allowance. Due to our work, we aren't eligible for tax credits, and we're more than happy with that as we are lucky enough to have jobs that allow us to keep our heads above water financially - however, without school transport our son simply would not be able to attend a suitable school. The Council needs to realise that SEN schools are not usually close to the homes of the children but are very often a considerable distance away. Reducing the funding/provision of school transport would push many families, including ours, to breaking point and would target the most vulnerable of our society. Either myself or my husband would be forced to resign from work to accommodate our sons educational needs, pushing us into a far more unstable financial situation. It costs around three times as much money to raise a child with disabilities than a child without these issues, most parents don't get anywhere near as much support as they need as it is and reducing the provision of one of the most important parts of our children's lives would be nothing short of criminal.

An area that the Council could look at the massively improve the lot of these children would be the provision of suitably trained school escorts - one of the more problematic of our sons issues is intractible epilepsy; he will suffer multiple seizures daily the majority of which are harmless even if somewhat frightening to witness. Currently, the Council does not provide any safeguarding training for its escorts, not does it provide basic training in epilepsy awareness or seizure first aid. The vast majority of individuals with neurological disabilities be it cerebal palsy, congenital malformations, birth trauma etc, exhibit seizures as a result of their condition - it is utterly ridiculous that the Council does not provide such basic training for staff escorting these children to school! I am aware that the SEN schools have been asking for this for many years with nothing being done - if the Council is serious about supporting children with disabilities and their families, then this is something that simply has to be done. 11

To reduce the input of CAMHS social workers would have a detrimental impact to the safeguarding of children & Young people and the quality of multi-disciplinary services delivered to children and families for the following reasons:

· The skills, role and expertise that CAMHS social workers provided through direct work and consultation within CAMHS services is essential to the wellbeing and safeguarding of young people. The CAMHS social workers are frequently the first point of call for CAMHS workers/clinicians to access consultation and provision of social work intervention and thereafter are the direct link to local/county teams.

· There are a large proportion of cases open to and assessed by CAMHS (tier 3 & 4) whereby the majority of needs are social NOT health. When social workers are embedded in CAMHS team, there is more flexibility to work together to manage cases with both health and/or social needs and so there is not an agenda to decide to discharge to one or the other. A holistic perspective applying the biopsychosocial model to the care of CYP and families is accepted as best practice. To separate services/withdraw social work time from health will sabotage this and jeopardise strong working alliances /co-working that benefit the needs of CYP and families.

· Our social worker in tier 4 is an AMHP and is integral to discussions around least restrictive practice to sectioning children. The value of her contributions has been integral to delivering best practice at the point of a mental health act assessment and in the on-going monitoring of in-patient care and respective rights of young people. She also has a vital role in researching the chronology and social history of young people including any historical safeguarding concerns and ensuring all information pertaining to a young person’s safety and well being is reported through appropriate procedures and directly linking to social care. Without the protected time and level of expertise that is beyond the training of allied mental health professionals, the risk is that a child’s current and historical social care needs will not be assessed adequately and fully.

· I fail to see how reducing CAMHS social work time will lead to cost savings. The outcome will be an increase in referrals into social care and potential withdrawal of health involvement in cases that are predominantly social in origin and not mental health. There will be an increase in paper pushing between health and social care without the strong collaboration and presence of social workers in teams. Communication between health and social care is notoriously difficult with hectic working schedules and competing caseload demands. Endless missed phone calls and lack of attendance at CAF/CIN/MDT/Professionals meetings will delay and prevent the child’s needs being addressed in the most appropriate and timely manner.

I would appreciate these points being given serious attention when considering any further action. 12 To whom it may concern,

This would seem to be ill thought out and contrary to government policy, regarding how important young persons’ mental health services are.

In the first instance, this appears to be financially driven, however it is clear that in the long run this plan will be more costly and more damaging for the services and the service users.

I wonder what consideration has been given to the impact of this plan upon the Dudson Centre and services for young people as a whole? Again, a knee-jerk reaction, rearranging services rather than having a holistic view of the bigger picture, and what services will be required in the near future for this specialised service user group.

Additionally, what consideration has been given to supporting the AMHP rota in relation to this specialised role in assessing young people’s mental health? Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

13 We have noted that the Local Authority is considering the withdrawal of all School Crossing Wardens as part of a cost cutting exercise to balance the budget in 2015/16.

Please be aware that everyone associated with St Gregory’s feels that the removal of the Warden on Spring Garden Road would jeopardise the well being of pupils who must cross this busy road each day.

If the LA do ultimately decide to implement this policy would you please explain what traffic calming measures you intend to install to provide a similar level of protection as the School Crossing Warden. 14 On your website you provide 3 different sources of information for the £15.6 m part of the cutbacks next year. These are broken down thus :-

Source 1 :

Cost pressures £5.1m e.g. in year changes in grants, recycling contamination , Capital financing charges Growth - £1.7m legal req. social care, DHN, Demographic - £4.3m looked after children, learning disabilities. Contractual inflation and Employee Adjustments - £4.5m e.g. national pay award

Source 2: Inflation costs of £4.5m and increasing demand in demographic and services costing £11.1m

Source 3: Together with unavoidable cost pressures of £9.3m and increasing demand for services from residents of £6.3m

The first 2 sources can be cross referenced of sorts whereas source 3 cannot since the figures are different . Can you provide a reason for this? Can you also provide a detailed breakdown of the Cost pressure analysis with regards to the Capital financing charges. 15 Do you have any rough timescale when the full details will be available in the budget book in order to understand it and properly engage in meaningful consultation and feedback please.

At present with so much missing it is very difficult to even begin. 16

I refer to PEP23 in your proposed Budget Development Statement for 2015/16 - 2016/17. St Joseph's College, object to the removal of the provision of School Crossing Wardens as part of the proposed savings. This objection is raised on a number of grounds: The year on year savings of £170,000 represent less than 1% of total savings to be achieved. With a current workforce of 11.76 FTE this service is a low-cost option to maximise the ongoing safety of school children. From a human resource perspective, these individuals are some of the lowest paid in your workforce, but provide one of the most responsible, dangerous and highly regarded services to safeguard our children. They form a critical part of road safety and are part of the Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership Strategy. Have the other stakeholders in this partnership been consulted on proposals that impact directly on that strategy? You cite that alternative provision will be provided where necessary . Surely the fact that crossing wardens are already in place and heavily utilised, evidences the ongoing necessity of the service? I understand from discussions with the School Crossing Warden Officer, that no undertakings have yet been made by your Highways Department to conduct assessment and costings of alternative provision. Whilst permanent crossings may be cheaper in the longer term, where is the funding being sourced for planning/consultation, risk assessment, traffic management surveys and delivery and installation of potential alternative provision over the next two financial years? Certainly alternative provision cannot be provided by April 2015, reducing the impact of your proposed £170,000 year on year savings proposal. In terms of St Joseph's, our current crossing warden provides school crossing provision not only for St Joseph's students, but for Oakhill Primary School students based in Rookery Lane. St Joseph's is situated on the extremely busy London Road which is a significant commuter link between Stoke and the A34 at Trent Vale. Traffic flow is constant and congestion at peak times is significant. Our current warden brings intelligent thinking to the crossing of students ensuring that they are crossed in large groups to reduce the impact of stopping the traffic flow at peak times. In addition, due to the high density of traffic in the area, St Joseph's has had to implement it's own traffic flow system to filter parents and their vehicles off and on to the London Road with minimal disruption. Again, aiding the flow of traffic along this road, as well as on and off our school site, and reducing the impact of waiting vehicles and parking issues for local residents. This reduces the availability of our playground facility, increases wear costs and relies on staff resource to manage the on-site traffic flow. The crossing warden on the main road is an integral part of this traffic flow system and a permanent crossing could not work in conjunction with this.A permanent pelican crossing would not provide an intelligent solution to traffic management in this area. The very nature of such provision would further impede the flow of traffic along this road creating increased congestion on the A34 and London Road. There is a further problem with safety as students are more likely to take a risk running through a pelican crossing at the last minute to get across the road, especially to catch a waiting bus at the bus-stop opposite our site. Having a responsible adult controlling the crossing mitigates this serious risk.St Joseph's students also make use of the crossing provision served by the current warden outside St Teresa's on the A34. This is a main bus route and a significant volume of our students have to cross the A34 when they are utilising public transport to and from home.For any alternative provision, serious consideration does need to be given to the whole circular traffic flow between Rookery Lane, the A34 and London Road, to determine the best options going forward to ensure safety, traffic flow and quality of life for local residents. This comes at a cost which I would suggest will be significantly higher than the ongoing employment of our crossing wardens.Finally, service redesign rather than removal may be more appropriate, e.g. paying towards the employment costs of wardens. 17 Blue badges, when we have had to visit Telford shopping center (Hanley doe,s not have a ‘Build a Bear Workshop’) we have parked by the Telford Ice Rink, parking charges do also apply here for blue badge holders but you get twice as long, i.e. pay for one hour get two, perhaps doing the same in Stoke-on-Trent may be a good compramise? As with our doors half a job or concession is better than none at all.

The Telford shopping center does not offer such a concession, neither does the Potteries or the other intu shopping center in Derby, (they have a ‘Build a Bear Workshop’ too) maybe this if introduced could be extended to all council car parks? This would geratly expand the choice we have in parking and it may help to reducduce polution as we wouldn’t need to keep driving around looking for an on street space. When charging was introduced on the Johns street and the one by the Potteries Way I stopped using them imediately, more dedicated dissabled (a little more) parking spaces may be useful too.

I shall leave you to mull over the idea, may I appologise for any spelling or grammar misstakes as this email program doen’t appear to have a working spell check on it, I know not why but thats modern technology for you. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

I understand there is an opportunity to provide comments to the council by the 15th January 2015, which I include below.

The impact to Penkhull, as I understand it, is that the lollipop services offered of a morning and afternoon on Princes Road will be withdrawn. These services are invaluable for a number of reasons.

1. The location of the lollipop service is key in terms of pedestrian safety. Princes Road, whilst not a fast road, does have hazardous areas and can be busy, particularly during school collection/drop off times. The key positioning of this service allows school children and the local community to cross the road in a safe way during these busy periods. There is a blind bend, resident parking spaces and a bus stop near to the lollipop location which makes safe crossing in this particular area more hazardous. Without the lollipop services children, parents and residents are at risk when crossing the road. 2. The lollipop service ensures better management of traffic in the sense that the lollipop co-ordinator manages the safe crossing of small groups of people rather than a continuous pedestrian imposition on the road during busy times. 3. The school encourage children to walk to school for a number of reasons. From a 'fitness' and 'traffic management' perspective. 3i. The 5-10 minute walk to school and back for children each day can only be a positive approach in terms of mental and health wellbeing, something I presume the council would be supportive of? 3ii. There is very limited parking available for parents who drive their children to school at The Willows Primary. There is a regular attendance by parking attendants to enforce parking laws/legislation. For children who are no longer able to take their route via Princes Road in a safe manner, parents may be more likely to use transportation for the school journey causing an increase in traffic to the residents of Greatbatch Avenue (the road on which the school is located), less opportunity for children to exercise by walking and increased risk of incidents for both pedestrians and drivers closer to the school. 4. Since the start of this academic year I have entrusted my children to walk to and from school, purely on the basis, that the only main or busy road they have to cross is Princes Road, and this is facilitated by a lollipop service. I think this opportunity is important for the children. My eldest will be going to high school in September 2015 and the responsibility of walking to school is instilling him with an amount of independence in preparation. From September 2015 my youngest will be making the journey alone. I would not feel secure in the knowledge my children were able to walk to school safely if they were NOT assisted crossing Princes Road.

5. Local childcare clubs walk large groups of children via the Princes Road route. Should there be no lollipop service, I would question whether parents leaving their children with childcare facilities would feel comfortable that their children are crossing a hazardous road, in large numbers, with no assistance from a lollipop service.

Whilst I understand the councils objective to drive down costs, and removing lollipop services is just one small way in which a contribution could be made, I ask whether this proposal has considered the safety of young children, parents, pedestrians and road users around the areas where lollipop services are currently located? And whether the potential small financial savings are comparable with the risks attached? Can I ask you to consider the points raised above which oppose the decision to remove lollipop services in Penkhull and across the rest of the county?

The Willows Primary School are preparing a petition to oppose the proposals which will be submitted prior to the 15th of January 2015. 21 CFT Request - funding not matching 22 I am writing to say that as a former student social worker at Stoke-on-Trent CAMHS, I was extremely concerned to see that the number of social workers will be reducing. As a student at Blurton Health Centre , I saw first hand the valuable contribution that Social Workers made to the team. Social Workers bring a unique perspective to the team which enables a holistic approach informed by welfare issues. I think this is particularly important in a time where child sexual exploitation is an increasing issue in the city, as is gang crime. I fell that now more than ever, a social work perspective is needed within CAMHS. This facilitates effective multi agency working with social care and other agencies to address the broader issues affecting young people. 23 I write to express my concern around the proposed reduction of CAMHS social workers in your Budget Development document (December 2014). I am a Health Visitor based at Blurton Health Centre. Many of my clients have children who attend CAMHS services. Children with psychological problems very often present with social problems. A therapist with both social care and psychological skills can bring a vast amount of knowledge to the table in complex multi-disciplinary care plans (such as CIN or CP plans).

I feel it is of immense value that the link between CAMHS and Social Care is maintained. This is best achieved I feel by having social workers based within CAMHS services. The proposed changes I feel will be a step back for services and joint working. Rather than ‘maximising impact on users’ the changes will actually reduce impact. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

24 Dear Sir I am emailing to express concerns about the proposed loss of social worker posts from specialist camhs teams in Stoke on Trent. Social workers have been attached to these teams for many years and they are an integral part of their multidisciplinary way of working.Many of the young people referred to specialist camhs teams have social as well as mental health needs and as such need a coordinated response across different agencies as part of their management plans.The social workers within the teams are ideally placed to contribute to the holistic assessments that these young people require as well as providing a link with social care to ensure that where appropriate there is a coordinated cross agency response to their needs.The loss of social work posts from the specialist camhs teams would therefore run the risk of this multiagency work being diluted and would of course be contradictory to all national guidance about young peoples’ services, which emphasises the importance of agencies working closely together in a coordinated manner to support young peoples’ needs. The role of social workers in camhs teams in Stoke on Trent has been reviewed on several occasions previously,most recently when these practitioners were managed by Mr Pete Grey.He was tasked with producing a detailed report about the role and value of these posts and his work concluded that in addition to the coordination role as described above,the social workers were also an important source of advice to social work practitioners in field social work teams.More importantly he also clearly demonstrated that the vast majority of direct work done by the camhs social workers with young people and families was targeted directly to those individuals with demonstrable levels of social need and risk and as such was of direct value to not only families but also your department.Indeed there is a very real risk that should the camhs social worker posts be removed, then this would ultimately lead to more families and young people presenting to your services at times of crisis and with increased levels of need that may require expensive resources such as placement in the care system. I have worked as a consultant child psychiatrist in Stoke on Trent since 1995 and have found the support of social workers in our teams invaluable.Should the posts be removed then I feel strongly that this would be a retrograde step and I fear that it would have a profoundly negative impact on some of the most disadvantaged families in our city. I would be grateful if you confirm receipt of my email and I hope that my comments are considered when decisions are made about the future of the posts 25 I hope all are keeping well. Stoke Council informed the school last week and that objections to the ceasing of School Crossing Patrol Officers must be in by Monday 15/12/14. I have yet to experience anything being done by Stoke Council within that sort of tiny time period. Consequentially the time period to object appears somewhat uncooperative and ridiculously short. For example parents have little, if any, time to execute a petition or arrange a meeting. It is only recently that signage was erected in the local area around the school warning drivers they must stop for School Crossing Patrol Officers. This highlights the traffic aggression in the vicinity. As a result and especially as this is a primary school the SCPOs continue to be a vital necessity. It seems unacceptable that these SCPOs should be removed without a complete and thorough full road safety investigation and risk, best practice and detailed duty of care assessment. These are small and vulnerable primary school children and they deserve the same protection as others have enjoyed over many years at this and other primary schools. SCPOs remain a necessity for primary school pupils. I would appreciate any comments, help or advice you can offer. 26 Dear Sir or Madam, I have concerns about the above proposals and ask you to consider the following before you make your decision.

Some disabled people have problems using their hands, so using a ticket macihine can be difficult for some them. The same applies to some people who use a stick, some people use two sticks. It's not easy having to hold yourself up when using a ticket machine and fiddling with coins when you use a stick. It leaves them with less energy to do whatever else they have to do. Disabled people are more likely to move their vehicle about to different car parks to be close to where they are shopping etc. Are they expected to pay every time they move their car? Some carers have enough to do getting a wheelchair out of a car and the person that they are caring for into the wheelchair, without having to do all that as well. As you know, all disabled people in Stoke on Trent under 65 will soon be screened for PIP. The criteria for this benefit is very high and only the badly disabled will receive it. It's not fair that the council should be doing this as well. I realise that the council has to make cuts, but isn't this a labour council? I THOUGHT LABOUR WAS SUPPOSED TO SUPPORT THE LESS FORTUNATE. I'm sorry but if this goes through I don't think I could ever vote for labour again. I hope my views will be considered 27 It is difficult to comment on a document which relies so heavily on vague and ill-defined concepts such as ‘redesign’ ‘review’ ‘remodelling’’balancing’ ‘effective use’’transformation’ ‘manage service reductions to minimise impact’. For all my life in public service reductions in service have been peppered with euphemisms and the hope that somehow a reorganisation will save money when, at least in the short term each one takes the focus and the time away from the service the public want while staff spend their time in working parties/ task and finish groups etc talking about new names, logos, mission statements and money is spent on glossy booklets telling the public we serve about yet another change.

Each organisation talks of savings for example in building use and this is based on an assumption that the other organisations will keep their premises which can be ‘borrowed’. Everyone is doing this and so actually there are no spaces or time is spent by staff travelling about or arranging somewhere to do the job.

What does efficiency mean in the context of services where the overwhelmingly greatest cost is the staff delivering the service. Does anyone look at the cost effectiveness of loading ever more stress on staff who then go off sick or leave and have to be replaced by people who then have to ‘bed in’ for a while? I work closely with Social Care staff and wonder how much more strain can be absorbed if indeed it is being absorbed now. Social work is in crisis nationally and I expect Stoke merely reflects this. However the cost effectiveness of constant reorganisation plus the strain of insufficient staff, the necessary replacement of burned out experienced staff with inexperienced staff is questionable. They come newly qualified, enthusiastic, hard working and responsive and within 6- 12 months, they are cancelling meetings, not replying to messages not because they aren’t desperate to do the best they can for the young people but because they are up to the small hours writing a court report or spending their evenings trying to keep pace with necessary visits, coming in to meetings in their holidays and, though they are young, they can’t keep it up and they go. The children often can’t even name their social worker and the older ones just say it’s become impossible to keep track.

I realise Stoke is between a rock and a hard place but it would be good one day to hear the truth spoken that it is not possible to have the same service for half the money however inefficient and/ or lazy the public are encouraged to think people in public service are. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

Having downloaded a copy of the SoT CC budget plan document I would like to make the following comments. These start with the budget proposal as a whole, then the proposed use of outside consultants to suggest further cost-saving measures, then comments related to SoT museums as a whole and then to Gladstone Pottery Museum in particular.

Relevant information which I submitted during last year's budget proposals are also included.

Lastly, a small set of suggestions regarding this year's budget proposals are presented.

Please ensure that you read the whole document – as well as the other documents attached to it !

This document, and the relevant support documents, will be copied to relevant contacts – several of these are indicated in the text.

1) Budget proposal document as a whole

First of all I must make a formal complaint that the budget consultation document was only released for public consultation in early December – much later than last year.

2) Use of external consultants in the budget process

It has announced by the City Council that around £19M of the £31M cost-savings it hopes to make in the next financial year will be suggested by the external consultants Price Waterhouse Cooper (PwC) – who will be paid more than £2M next year for the job. I must, on principle, object to this as the consultancy will have every incentive to suggest the most stringent cuts as their income will be increased the deeper these turn out to be.

There are six entries in the budget proposal which would be covered by PwC but, as absolutely no details are given for these entries – as PwC has yet to submit any cost-saving suggestions – I fail to see how either the public or the City Council's own overview and scrutiny committee can carry out any proper 'scrutiny' as the projected expenditure for all six entries must be little more than 'guesstimates'. I wonder whether this is in line with legal obligations on the City Council regarding the accuracy of the proposed budget ?

The original plan was that the PwC forthcoming cost-saving suggestions would be assessed only by the City Council's cabinet and chief executive, but I'm delighted to hear that councillors Conway, James and Day have called-in this proposal and it will be subject to formal scrutiny. In my view, all such potentially wide-ranging matters which could affect major City Council services should clearly be considered by both the pubic and all the councillors.

I must also refer to the report on the City Council's review of the use of agency staff and external consultants – what a strange coincidence that this was only released to the public a few days before Christmas.

The report has revealed major and repeated breaches of the City Council's procedures for handing this type of activity – it “uncovered a ‘lack of accountability, transparency and consistency’ in the recruitment of temporary staff” by the authority. It must raise questions as to whether the selection of Price Waterhouse Cooper as consultants to make saving suggestions to the City Council was carried out correctly. I would suggest that this matter should also be thoroughly investigated by the overview and scrutiny committee.

I am copying this document, and the others mentioned, to councillors Conway, James and Day for information.

3) Museums in Stoke-on-Trent and tourism

During last year's budget consultation process I argued strongly that the museums in the city were vital drivers of the local tourism industry.

In particular I submitted a copy of a late-2013 study carried out by Deloitte which confirmed the findings of a similar review carried out by the company the previous year that the tourism sector was the fastest-growing area of the UK economy. Both studies suggested that investment in this area of the economy was the most likely to have a positive result.

Since then both Alton Towers and Wedgwood have announced multi-million pound investments in their facilities to encourage more visitors : such commercial operations do not spend this type of money unless they believe that it is likely to be successful ! (Please see further comments regarding the Wedgwood developments below).

The Deloitte predictions regarding the growth of the UK tourism industry have recently been confirmed by an official report in May 2014 produced by the Office of National Statistics (copy attached). This reports an increase of tourist spending of 12.7 % over the previous year and an increase of 5.6 % in visitor numbers over the same period. Tourism spending in 2013 was just over £21 billion. A heading in the press release states “Tourism sector playing crucial role in helping drive economic growth as overseas residents visits and spend hit record high”. It is suggested in the ONS report that tourism will continue to grow at a fast rate, with a possible increase in spending of close to 10 % over the next year.

Until now, the City Council has largely relied on retail (City “Sentral” - stupid name) and business (Central Business District, now renamed Smithfield) developments in Hanley as the main drivers for the expansion of the local economy, but both of these schemes have failed – no part whatever of the City “Sentral” development having been built – while a large number of shops in the area have been closed - and no business as yet expressing a definite decision to locate on CBD / Smithfield.

I would therefore strongly suggest that the evidencesupporting investment in the tourism sector – specifically by doing nothing which would threaten the continued success of the Potteries Museum and Gladstone and – in particular – by REVERSING the cuts made last year at Gladstone is now overwhelming. Please see section 5 for my detailed suggestions.

Budget proposal PLC01 – described as 'Transformation saving' with the addition comment 'Safeguarding the future of leisure, culture and museum services through consideration of alternative delivery models' would appear to be one of the 'PwC 6'. I trust that 'consideration' is the operative word and that absolutely no decision has yet been taken as to whether this will actually be adopted – if this is the case, then it would appear that this entry in the budget document is factually incorrect !

I am led to believe that the current PLC01 proposal – if put into effect – would result in the City Council's two museums being hived-off to charitable trusts. Having been chairman of the Friends of Gladstone for a number of years, I was also an ex-officio member of the trust which ran Gladstone before the City Council took it over and I am well aware of the problems which the trust had to face. I would strongly fight any such suggestion as I strongly believe that it would threaten the continued existence of Gladstone. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

4) Gladstone Pottery Museum

When it was proposed in last year's budget proposal last year that demonstrators be dropped at Gladstone I fought strongly against this as it was certain that such a step would effectively destroy the attractiveness of the museum to its visitors.

This view was, thankfully, subsequently agreed by the City Council but, instead of the original proposal, it was suggested that the museum should close for two days a week. This proposal resulted in by far the largest number of objections from the public all over the world and it was one of the four proposals which were not supported by the City Council's overview and scrutiny committee. Strangely, while the other three objections were adopted, this was not and the museum started reduced opening in spring 2014.

I had argued strongly that, rather than making these cuts, it would make more sense for the museum to be given a modest amount of money to spend on publicity to attract more visitors – every extra visitor being effectively 'pure profit'.

Having been a volunteer at Gladstone since 1981, I know Lars Tharp of the 'Antiques Roadshow' quite well as I have guided a number of groups he has brought to the musuem and, when he was at the Potteries Museum giving a talk, kindly had a meeting with Adrian Knapper (City Council cabinet member covering museums) and John Holmes and supported my suggestions for increasing the income of Gladstone, rather than making cuts.

Having been awarded both the Sandford award for its education activities and the Visit Staffordshire 'best small visitor attraction' in 2013, Gladstone has recently again been awarded the same award by Visit Staffordshire. The City Council's Executive Director of Place, John Betty, subsequently sent a letter to Gladstone on 28th November congratulating it on the award – a copy of this letter is on public display (copy attached). You will see that Mr. Betty says (my emphasis of the original text) :-

QUOTE

The award builds on the museum's previous successes and clearly demonstrates the quality of the facility's offer.

Gladstone Pottery Museum not only represents an important link to the city's history for local residents, but is a major asset for the city in building the visitor economy , and awards of this nature can only help build the museum and city's profile as a place to visit.

UNQUOTE

I assume that the City Council believes that this statement, made very recently by one of its top officers, can be taken as still absolutely valid !

The Wedgwood visitor centre has just closed for a few months while the major planned expansion is being constructed : the company expects that, when it re-opens in May, visitor numbers will increase from about 30,000 per annum to around 100,000. While we can all be delighted that the Wedgwood collection has been saved and will still be on display at Barlaston, it is a fact that there is little information at the centre about how the ware was made in the “first Josiah's time”. If visitors want to learn about this, where is both the nearest and best place to visit – obviously Gladstone, which is only a few miles away. Unfortunately, due to last year's cuts, Gladstone is currently closed two days per week so this possibilty will not be available for about a third of Wedgwood visitors !.

For all of the above reasons, I believe that it would be madness to do anything in this budget which might adversely affect the status of Gladstone as the independently-rated (Tripadvisor) 'number 1' tourist attraction in the whole of the city of Stoke-on-Trent. Although my own special interest is Gladstone, similar comments would apply to the Potteries museum with its unique collections.

5) Suggestions a) Do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING which might affect the continued success and long-term future of GPM !

b) In view of the comments below, I strongly suggest that the City Council adopt all the evidence that tourism is THE way to grow a local ecomony and, with this in mind, it should plan to reverse the cuts which were made at the museum last year with the intention that, by this time next year, the museum would again be opening on a 7-day opening basis. This would not only take advantage of the increase expected in visitor numbers anyway, but also attract increased visitors coming to the area anyway to use th new facilities at Alton Towers (part of which opened only a few days ago) as well as greatly-increased visitor numbers to the enlarged Wedgwood visitor centre when it re-opens in May. 29

I wanted to express my concerns about proposed cuts in the Budget 2015/16 - 2018/19. As a psychologist working with some of the most vulnerable children and families in Stoke- on-Trent, I am extremely concerned about the proposal to reduce the social work input into CAMHS and into the local authority small group homes. As stated in the document, the volume of referrals that social care receive for children and families in need is huge. They are buckling under the pressure of such a high volume of work. This means that the threshold for children coming into care is much higher and the consequences of such extreme abuse and neglect has significant and long term financial and wider impacts for Stoke- on-Trent. As an NHS service that works closely with social care, we frequently see newly qualified social workers leaving and becoming burnt out within months. This is hugely damaging for the children they work with as rarely do children in care end up with one significant stable adult in their lives. In addition, experienced and knowledgeable staff are leaving, which creates a large gap of knowledge, resulting in inexperienced and young social workers carrying the burden of very difficult cases and decisions on their own. Without strong teams with a mix of knowledge, experience and enthusiasm, services working with this extremely vulnerable group will fail. The long term vision for Stoke-on-Trent, as proposed in the document, is unlikely to succeed given the amount of vulnerable people in the city who are not getting access to services. Cutting provision is extremely short sited and overlooks the long term and ongoing need to break cycles of abuse and neglect, which often result in young people becoming criminalised, accessing adult mental health services and homelessness. I hope that the cuts to these areas can be reconsidered with a longer term and systemic view held in mind. 30 To whom it may concern

I am disgusted to learn of proposals to cut CAMHS social work posts in yet another round of budget cuts! I am a qualified social worker/care co-ordinator, and resident of Stoke-on- Trent, who works within an integrated team within Adult Mental Health Services. This followed sponsorship by the NHS to undertake my professional training in 2010. During this time I spent 5 months on work placement at the Darwin Centre, a tier 4 CAMHS service.

As an Adult Mental Health Services worker since 2006 (integrated with health services since 2008), I cannot stress enough the ongoing need for integrated team practice between health and social care. This enables holistic care planning and co-ordinated approaches, which significantly improve an individual’s potential in terms of mental and physical wellbeing. In terms of CAMHS provision, this may incidentally reduce their need for Adult Social Care provision in later life! 31 During previous budget proposal consultation periods we have been advised on how the proposals would affect us directly. I work in ICT and have so far not been told how the proposals will affect our service, and it isn’t very clear in the document, so I cannot really feedback properly.

Are there any plans for the proposals to be broken down and explained to the individual services so we can better gauge how we might be affected? Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

32 We wish to comment on the proposal to reduce CAMHS social worker input to our service, CONNECT CAMHS and FIRST STEPS.

The reduction of input of CAMHS social workers to our service raises serious concerns which are as follows;

Safeguarding of children and young people is our primary concern and we believe this will be compromised by removing social workers from the teams. Our social workers are invaluable for providing consultation and social work interventions in complex case work in Tier 3.

The quality of multi-disciplinary working will be directly affected by the reduction in social workers. The direct link between CAMHS and Social Care facilitates a more systemic approach with flexible working together. This will be severely jeopardised.

We anticipate a significant increase in the number of social care referrals from CAMHS to Social Care where the child’s needs are predominantly social in origin.

Our social workers provide direct links to the wider social care system. These relationships between Health and Social Care have taken effort, diligence and commitment by both parties to become established and robust. Reduction of social work time will have an extremely negative impact on working together.

It has come to our attention that decisions have already been made regarding the possible placement and roles of CAMHS social workers even though the consultation period does not formally end until January 16th 2015. We would like to think that this is not the case and that our concerns, and those of others, will be noted and given due consideration prior to final decision making. 33

I am sending this email to voice my opinion on your decision to cut this service.As a parent of a student at St Josephs collage London road I feel that you are not looking at the danger you would be putting the students in by removing the crossing warden.the traffic outside this school is chaotic at both morning and afternoon times. Having a crossing put in place instead of a warden would not be sufficient and there will be an accident with out doubt. The last time these cuts were made the wardens that remained were on sites that were deemed to dangerous.Having zebra and even pelican crossings do not necessarily mean it isn't Safe for children.Drivers do not always pay attention to crossings even when those crossings have traffic lights and when a warden is present so without one on these deemed dangerous sites is just an tragedy waiting to happen. KEEP OUR CHILDREN SAFE 34 RESPONSE TO THE CONSULTATION DOCUMENT – REGARDING THE PROPOSAL OF THE CHILD AND ADOLESCENT (CAMHS) SOCIAL WORK POSTS 2015

This is the formulated response from the CAMHS social workers in respect of the proposal to reduce the CAMHS social work service from 5.5 posts to 2.5 posts. This will have a severe direct impact of nature and degree upon the emotional wellbeing of children young people and their families within the city of Stoke-on-Trent. We anticipate that the proposal for this reduction in service/capacity will also have major financial implications for the City, both short term and longer term. Introduction CAMHS social workers interrupt front line services within health and Vulnerable Children and Corporate Parenting (VCCP) to orientate the medical and social model to address, manage and reduce risk of self harm, psychosis, eating disorders, depression, anxiety, sexually harmful behaviour, sexual exploitation, attachment disorders, hyperkinetic disorders, post traumatic stress, severe attachment disorders and high on the agenda the suicide of young people. CAMHS social workers have incredible expertise in understanding and facilitating the potential conflicts and tensions between The Children Act vs. The Mental Health Act and navigate our VCCP/Health colleagues through both systems to formulate a systemic response for children/young people. The Mental health of children and young people with multiple complex needs requires a coordinated and coherent combination of services and different professional identities to work together in a multi agency team. CAMHS social workers are employed by the Local Authority, separately from the NHS, as this gives them greater autonomy and provides opportunities to professionally challenge decisions and systems that conflict between health and VVCP.

What does the CAMHS the Social Worker role bring to the Children/Young People of Stoke-on-Trent? CAMHS social workers sit within a complex multi-agency network whilst preserving a strong social work identity. As a specialist team of social workers we directly link into the social work teams and are able to provide consultation, support and advice to all the social work pods as requested, particularly in relation to the serious complex cases. We attend and contribute to multi faceted procedures involving Early Help, Children in Care, Children In Need, safeguarding discussions, case conferences, legal meetings and court proceedings, Care Planning Approach and tribunals. Our Health colleagues are able to consult with us on a daily basis which assists in their risk management and referrals to the VCCP. Without this in place there will be an increase in referrals and enquiries to the VCCP. In addition the team has a social worker (Approved Mental Health Professional) who is qualified to offer specific expertise in the use of the Mental Health Act verses The Children Act and provides Mental Health Act (MHA) assessments to determine whether young people at high levels of risk should be sectioned under the MHA or whether they meet other thresholds of risk/safeguarding.

We are able to respond promptly to our colleagues in VCCP and contribute to an urgent systemic assessment for a child who is in crisis. CAMHS social workers are able to offer a service which uniquely promotes the young person’s mental wellbeing and family circumstances. We manage thresholds to prevent young people entering the care system and escalate should the risk meet other thresholds.

The following case examples demonstrate how CAMHS Social Workers directly support children and their families with complex needs, evidencing how cases are stepped up and stepped down according to relevant thresholds. This case also illustrates how the CAMHS Social Workers act as the bridge between Health, VCCP and other agencies promoting an efficient and seamless process, ensuring a systemic approach is applied to meet the needs of children and families: Case Example 1 B is a young person who regularly self harms by cutting with Stanley knife blades down the full length of her arms and legs. On numerous occasions she also talks of committing suicide. There is a history of mental health within the family, alleged sexual abuse, physical and emotional abuse. The issues affecting this young person are so complex that they do not fall into one category of need but into several which consequently impacts on her Mental Health, requiring services from both CAMHS and VCCP. Due to the CAMHS Social Workers expertise and training in both mental health and social work, the child and their family’s needs, will be assessed in their entirety and this will enable the CAMHS Social Worker to facilitate a passage between agencies offering a service to the young person. The CAMHS Social worker co-ordinates the process between the allocated VCCP, CAMHS Team, Education and Psychiatry. We also provide direct therapeutic intervention for the young person. The role involves arranging several meetings between VCCP and Health, both at a case holder and management level, additionally a referral was expedited by the CAMHS social worker to CAMHS Psychiatry to involve them in the management of risk. The sustainability of this complex case advice and support is the foundation of CAMHS Social work, incorporating expertise and knowledge, drawn from both a mental health and social perspective. Liaison between Health, Psychiatry and VCCP is a daily occurrence and pivotal to ensure that young people’s needs are being addressed from both a social and mental health perspective, demonstrating that the CAMHS Social Work role is crucial.

Apart from the positive outcome for this young person this case example also illustrates the value for money CAMHS social workers offer. Financial savings - being able to return L to the local area (his out of city placement was £3500+ per week) to a placement costing less than half of this) - being able to complete this process without significant delay - not having to use privately funded companies to complete this work (potential estimated cost £25 000 +) CAMHS social workers have specific expertise to work with young people who exhibit harmful sexual behaviour. This service has been offered for the past 2 years. It provides a swift response to this issue and to our knowledge has stopped the expensive “crisis” response – as it was set up to do. This is not a service that could be replicated within the current social work teams.

In Summary The CAMHS social work provision is an essential cost effective provision. We work with the most vulnerable and at risk children including children who are suicidal, sexually exploited, sexually and emotionally abused, looked after, or are continuing to experience chronically neglectful care. The current CAMHS posts deliver a high service of care. Waiting times are at their worst in the Tier 3 service and something does need to change. We are a small team and have been without a CAMHS manager for over 12months, receiving management support from various children and families managers. We are stretched to capacity each holding a case load exceeding 30 of highly risky, complex needs. The recommendation of 2.5 posts will not be able to deliver a safe service and meet the needs of the geographical area, and immediate risks would be apparent when one of these 2.5 posts is on annual leave or sickness or both. Being in the position of the interface between health and VCCP ensures cost efficiency. This is achieved by CAMHS Social Workers having a crucial and extensive knowledge of both systems which enables us to navigate and expedite referrals from VCCP to ensure the most vulnerable and at risk children are seen “Social workers working in statutory mental health services provide a vital counterbalancing view to clinical models of illness and disorder and where this is done well, can have a powerful impact on NHS culture and practice” Norman Lamb, Minister of State for Care and Support 2014). As a CAMHS team comprising of only (5.5 FTE) posts, we feel very strongly that the proposal for the (2.5) Social Work posts to meet the combined mental health/social needs of the children within Stoke-on-Trent is clearly untenable. It is our opinion that there will be a substantial consequence and an increased risk to the children’s and families of Stoke-on- Trent.

For the outlined reasons contained within this response we have evidenced that the proposal to reduce CAMHS social work provision and resources would be a false economy; and will result in more costly interventions. This is evidenced in the Lincolnshire CAMHS report that after reducing their CAMHS social workers in March 2011, by November 2011 there 35 In reference to the pedestrian and vehicle council, can you please provide dates and times these were taken. 36 Dear Sir or Madam, Further to my email dated 28/12/14 regarding disabled parking charges, you may be aware of the changes at Royal Stoke University Hospital due to pressure from disability rights groups and government guidlines.

I'm sure you will take this into consideration when you make your decision. 37 My son attends St Teresa’s Catholic Primary School. In order to get to school he has to cross the very busy A34. Although there is a crossing there, not all traffic stops when the lights change to red, and as the road is a main route to a busy accident and emergency department, there are often emergency vehicles going through, with their blue lights on. The emergency vehicles do not stop for the red light and the crossing patrol lady stops children from crossing in front of the emergency vehicles. The crossing patrol person stops children from running across the road, when they are excited coming out of school. On occasions that the traffic lights on the crossing do not work, the crossing patrol has had problems in getting the traffic to stop so that children can cross safely. This is a primary school, next to a busy, dangerous road, and the children are young and very little idea of road safety. The crossing patrol has prevented several accidents by being there to prevent the children from crossing. She also stopped my husband from being involved in an accident as he is totally blind and didn’t realise that it wasn’t safe to cross until she stopped him. This is something she has to do frequently with the children as they also have little sense of danger when they come out of school and are excited, and in the morning when they are trying to beat their parents to the crossing. When the children see the crossing patrol lady they know they have to stop. I sincerely hope that the plan to cut the crossing patrol outside of St Teresa’s is not cut because she has prevented many potential accidents. 38 I am the secretary of the Friends of Chatterley Whitfield who have after years of poor communication with the City Council, through the consultant, have now built up an excellent working relationship with a number of staff from the City Council. Through the very proactive work carried out by these staff the Friends of Chatterley Whitfield have made unprecedented progress in a number of keys areas.

We have been able to make steady progress in archiving material on site, develop a very proactive web site and Facebook page. Without their help we could not achieved this.

I understand that the staff may be loosing their jobs.

Can you tell me what the future holds for the Chatterley Whitfield site as we have spent years building up our records and developing the now excellent working relationship with the City Council, 39 Hi there im a parent of a 5yr old son who attends st.teresas catholic school stone road trent vale .i along with all other parents and friends cannot believe as one the recent proposed council cuts we are to lose our most treasured traffic warden on A34 one the most busy and dangerous roads we have ..along with one crossing children by st.josephs school aswell ..we are extremely worried and need this crossing warden who even puts her own life at risk on this busy road where we have lots emergency vechicles rushing to attend accidents..and also if ever these lights stop working this is an accident waiting to happen and why we also need to keep our kids and families safe ...please please listen and look at the signed petitions and stop this from happening we hope to get a positive result from these emails and petitions and look forward to hearing some good news many thanks mrs sharon wyton . 40 I am writing this email as a concerned parent. My daughter goes to St.Teresa's Primary school. I believe that S-O-T city council are planning to withdraw the funding for lollipop ladies at the crossing point for my daughters school. I find it absolutely disgusting that children's lives are being put at risk. The A34 is one of the busiest roads in stoke & I have witnessed near misses myself whilst crossing with my daughter to and from school, not including the amount of ambulances that pass through in emergencies & If it wasn't for the lollipop lady in attendance I believe that lives would have been endangered. I recall a few years ago when the council proposed the withdrawal of the same services. I recall then that the reason we kept our lollipop lady was because the road was deemed one of THE busiest and dangerous roads in stoke. Why is it that this has changed? I don't believe that there are any less cars or emergency vehicles travelling on the road now, nor less children crossing the road. I truly believe that by removing the lollipop lady from st.Teresa's school crossing it will only be a matter of time before there is a fatality. Please keep our lollipop lady for the safety of our children. Thank-you Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

41 As Part of the Stoke-on-Trent Budget Development Statement, you are proposing to cease provision of the school crossing warden service. This means that St.Joseph’s College and Oakhill Primary School may lose the school crossing warden on London Road, potentially from April this year. The council have confirmed that, in principle, you will not jeopardise the safety of school children by removing the school crossing warden without alternative provision e.g. a pelican crossing.

However, at this stage, no alternative provision for London Road has been assessed. The school crossing warden is an integral part of St.Joseph’s College and Oakhill Primary providing a safe and reliable service to students. For those students arriving at school by car, she helps to manage the traffic flow at peak times enabling access and egress for vehicles from the school sites.

I implore you to retain the school crossing wardens to ensure the ongoing safety of students. 42 I am appalled by the decision to dispose of our crossing wardens. It is a ludicrous idea that will without a doubt put our children at great risk. I have 2 children my eldest is at St Josephs in year 7 and my youngest is at St Teresa's Catholic Primary Trent Vale in year 5. The two crossing ladies are essential to the safety of our children and without them I can guarantee their will be serious accidents.

I have observed on a number of occasions where cars have ignored the red light on the crossing outside St Teresa's and gone straight through. My mother in Law personally experienced a near miss. If it wasn't for the fast actions of our crossing lady people would have been seriously injured or worse. We also have a number of emergency vehicles speeding through the crossing due to it's direct route to the motorway from the ambulance station.

The traffic outside St Josephs is also very heavy and our crossing lady manages this very effectively, ensuring that the students cross safely. The number of students leave the school in large numbers and the pavement is narrow, she makes sure they stand well back and prevents any pushing and shoving.

I would suggest that someone comes out to observe and assess both of the crossings and I'm sure they would agree that removing the crossing ladies would jeopardize the safety of the children. Please do not put our children at risk in an attempt to save money!!!!! 43

I am emailing to express my concern at the prospect of the closure of the school crossing warden service. My son is at St Joseph's where London Road is very busy when children are going into and leaving school, this also effects Oakhill Primary. I'm sure there are many other schools in the city where parents and teachers are concerned about this. Though I understand the budget cuts are been forced upon Stoke-on-Trent Council I feel this is a service that must not be cut, the safety of our children is paramount. I don't think school crossing wardens earn very much and doubt the savings would be very great. Maybe much bigger savings would be made by reducing the wages of your higher earners, cuts should be made from the top down not bottom up!. 44 I have been made aware that the school crossing patrol on London Road outside St Joseph's College is under threat, and may potentially be removed from April this year. I am extremely concerned about this as there is no alternative safe route across London Road in the vicinity of the school, and by the nature of the premises there are a very large number of children entering and exiting the property every day. Although the children are generally very well behaved and respectful, with the volume of traffic along the road combined with the volume of students it is almost inevitable that there will be an accident at the location.

Whilst I believe that a pelican crossing (if installed) would be appropriately used by the students, I do not think it would be as safe as having the extremely good crossing lady who is currently in attendance every morning and evening, so I would request that the council seriously considers the potential implications at the site before removing the crossing patrol. At a senior school, unlike a primary school, there is virtually no parental supervision at the end of the day. Those parents in attendance are driving cars so are in fact part of the problem.

In addition to the safety issue I would point out that the crossing patrol actually eases the flow of traffic along the road, particularly at the end of the school day. She holds the students back until there are a large group ready to cross, then while they are crossing cars are able to enter and exit the car park safely.

I hope you are able to reconsider this issue, London Road is a very busy road and as the students at St Joseph's come from such a wide catchment area there are far more car drop offs than would be the norm at a secondary school, there are also bus stops at either side of the road which a large volume of students use, so with no crossing patrol there is a risk that a child seeing their bus would rush to catch it and cross through the traffic in an inappropriate manner.

As a parent myself, one of the worst situations I can imagine would be to take responsibility for a decision that directly led to the serious injury or death of a child, simply to hope to save a small amount of money. The cost of the crossing patrol could easily be spent several times over treating the victims of a single traffic accident, quite irrelevant of the impact it would have on their lives. 45 as a parent and governor at St Josephs College, Trent Vale, I write to express my extreme disappointment at proposals to withdraw school crossing patrol services. Whilst I appreciate the need to review and make budget cuts the safety of school children is absolutely paramount and the proposal to remove this invaluable service is fundamentally wrong.

please accept this email as my very strong objection to the proposals. 46 I write as one of many concerned parents on discovering that the London Road school crossing warden may lose her post as of April 2015.

As you consult regarding the proposals – and knowing that you have to make £30 million of savings in the next calendar year somewhere, I’d like to take this opportunity to draw your attention to news you already know.

RoSPA, Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has, as you will be aware issued guidance that St. Joseph’s College (at London Rd, Trent Vale) id one of 45 schools within your jurisdiction that required either a crossing patrol or Pelican crossing. (ROSPA SCP Guidelines June 2012, Part 2 – Criteria for establishing school crossing patrol sites. ((This is based on the number of pedestrians waiting to cross and the traffic flow in a 20 minute test period. The formula, where Pedestrians = P and Vehicles = V is PV2 (squared) where a score of 2 million means that support is required. In this instance, the figure stands at over 9 million.

More significant though than figures and statistics, our SCP lady watches traffic, takes care of children and plays an integral role in child safety and traffic flow at bust times of the day. To lose this person’s experience and wisdom would be the loss to so many. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

As a parent and senior healthcare professional I wish to voice my grave concern and absolute opposition to the proposed plan to remove the school crossing warden service that currently operates outside St Josephs College, Trent Vale.

As a parent whose child uses the warden crossing service daily I am extremely concerned with the proposal to remove this service. The road outside St Joseph's is an extremely busy and dangerous road and I view the presence of a warden as essential to maintain the safety of my child and of the other children who have to cross this road daily.

Whilst accepting that the council is trying so save money, as a tax payer I view this proposal as totally unacceptable. Removing the warden service at this busy road would put the lives of students at risk. I understand the decision over the warden service outside St Josephs hasn't been made. I trust that you will consider the very real risk associated with this proposal, and trust that you will deem the service currently provided as essential to the safety of students attending St Josephs.

I look forward to and would appreciate a reply to this email 48 I have just learnt that the crossing outside St Josephs College may not have a lollipop lady .....She is a brilliant lady .....always thinking safety first on such a busy road .....we need this service keeping ..please re think and think safety of our younger generation. 49 am extremely concerned about the proposal to cease provision of the school crossing warden service in Stoke on Trent. My two daughters attend St. Joseph’s College and rely for their safety, and that of their peers, on the school crossing warden on London Road. That busy road is crossed everyday by the majority of pupils and surely you have a duty to safeguard and protect those young people?

I urge you not to make a foolish decision which jeopardises the safety of our children. 50 I am aware from local media reports, that Stoke-on-Trent Council are proposing to cease provision of the school crossing warden service outside St Joseph’s College on London Road, potentially from April this year. The school crossing warden is an integral part of St Joseph’s College team providing a safe and reliable service for their students and those attending Oakhill Primary School. For those students arriving at school by car, the school crossing warden helps to manage the traffic flow at peak times enabling access and egress for vehicles from the school site.

I objection to this proposal and feel that by removing the school crossing warden without any alternative provision e.g. a pelican crossing will jeopardise the safety of school children. 51 I has come to my attention that we may be losing our warden crossing outside the school.

This is an essential service as London Road is very busy and many of the pupils rely on the service to get them across the road safely

As a parent, I would be extremely unhappy if this service was discontinued as my son uses this warden crossing every day.

I hope you take this e-mail into consideration 52

It has come to our attention that the School Crossing Warden for St. Joseph’s College Trent Vale may be cut due to financial restraints and I wish to add my objections to this. The School Crossing Warden is essential to the safety of our pupils. My children walk to and from school every day and rely on this person for their safety when crossing what is a very busy road both morning and evening. 53 The Crossing Warden service outside St Joseph’s College on London Road provides a safe and reliable means for hundreds of students to cross this busy road. I implore you to most strongly consider retaining this invaluable service for the safety of our children. 54 I wish to express my concern regarding the continued provision of a school crossing warden service on the London Road in Trent Vale at the main entrance to St Joseph's college. This is a necessary service at a congested junction and also assists children walking to Oak Hill Primary. In an age in which we see a growth in pollution and childhood obesity it seems foolhardy to be withdrawing those services which actually encourage children to walk, or part walk, to school. School Crossing Wardens are poorly paid for a brief portion of the day during school term time. Is it really seriously considered that cutting the service would make any significant contribution to the council's budget? 55 I understand that there is a possibility that the crossing attendant on London Road may be lost. I feel this would be a grave mistake, this road is very very busy and the number of students crossing both in the morning and evening is huge. I feel that one person managing this is a grey achievement in itself. My own children use this crossing and I would be concerned for their safety if they were not aided. Also as a driver crossing through this patrol I feel that the warden should be kept as it adds order to a very tricky driving situation in the area. I feel that the Council would be negligent in their duty of care should the warden be dispensed with. 56

My child goes to St Joseph's College and they have a traffic warden on London road who helps them cross the busy road. I think it's very important that we have someone to help them cross the road in order to ensure their safety. I would strongly suggest you reconsider your decision to remove this service which has greatly benefitted our children. Thank you in advance and I hope for a positive decision on this matter 57 am gravely concerned regarding the cessation of the traffic patrol on London Road by St Joseph’s College; I find this totally unacceptable on a financial basis especially to put children at high risk of potential accidents at very busy periods. Stoke Council leave a lot to be desired when it comes to their financial commitments and any crossing patrols withdrawn in the City should be on head of any leaders who make these decisions. I am sure the monies lost on these highly undervalued and underpaid roles will leave you with more money to spend on some of the wasted decisions the council are now becoming very renowned for. 58 As a parent of a young 11 year old who attends St Joseph's College at Trent Vale I am very concerned that the council are considering doing away with the school crossing /lollipop person on the very busy London Road Trent Vale . This road is very dangerous for the hundreds of children who cross it every day at least twice . It is not just the children from St Josephs but also from Oakhill Primary School who would be put at severe risk if they were not helped to cross this road every day . Please do not jeopardise the safety of all these children. There are many children who catch the bus which is on the opposite side of the road from the school and there are cars coming from all directions at school times 8-9 am and 3-4.30 pm . This situation is very serious and it is totally unacceptable to even consider taking away the crossing patrol staff . Yours in deep concern, 59 Dear Sir/Madam, For the safety of the children and students of St. Joseph's College in Trent Vale, please can you keep in mind the school crossing warden. She has been a very reliable and consistent member of the school community. She has been there in the morning and afternoon to keep an eye on the safety of the children. She has definitely helped a lot with the traffic passing by the school. She has done a fantastic job considering the area she manages is surrounded by three schools. Please keep our crossing warden. We need her. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

For many years, we have been feeling safe with the help of the unending help of these lovely people who help our children's safety when crossing the streets during busy times in school. Please do not wait for any accident to happen. Please imagine your own child crossing the street unaided in a busy day when everybody Is in a rush to get to work and daily routines. My child goes to St Joseph's and having the lollipop lady had been a very good help with traffic as well as keeping the roads safe, keeping the discipline among the drivers. I have high regard to these people who do not mind being under bad weather conditions at times. What is happening to our country? My tax is paid first before anything else and this is what we get in the end, jeopardise their safety? Have some pity on these children, they are only lent to us, please do not take them away from yours and ours. Keep them safe My sincerest thanks. 61 I write to object to the removal of the school crossing warden service at the above venue.

Having had the benefit of such a service when I attended school (1970's), I feel it is an integral part of school life to ensure that pupils can arrive safely and reliably.

An example of which was one dark late Winter's afternoon when I had to cross "my road" alone as the warden was absent due to illness. I ran to the centre of the road waiting on the central white line for a gap in the next line of traffic.... car after car meant that I had to wait and wait becoming more anxious until a Jaguar came down the middle of the road with lights dazzling my eyes... I had no choice but to cross the road narrowly avoiding being hit by a car.... I was lucky and having finished school I went onto University and have a family with 2 children who attend St Joseph' college.

I believe that it is the council's responsibility to provide safe and reliable provision to allow all pupils to attend school so that they have the opportunities to contribute to society as I have. 62 I am very saddened to hear that the council is considering cutting the services of Traffic Warden from Liverpool Road outside St Joseph's CollegeTrent Vale. She plays an integral part in the safety of all children from the local area as well as parents with prams and toddlers , etc. The Lolly Pop lady crosses pupils from the College, Prep and Oakhill Primary. I have noticed there is no longer a Lolly Pop lady/Man outside St Joseph's Prep on Rookery Lane, this is putting children's life at risk especially with the poor parking (lack of ) outside the Prep and Oakhill. I would ask the department responsible for these cuts and proposals to please reconsider as the children's safety should be paramount. 63 Dear Sir/Madam

I am writing to express concern regarding the threatened removal of the school crossing patrol facility on London Road. Children's safety would be compromised as a result, this being a very congested area. The current lollypop lady does a sterling job in managing the traffic and ensuring children are kept safe.

Could savings not be better made by cutting salaries of the top officials on the council? Where cuts are needed , they need to fall on the shoulders of those who can most easily bear the burden. 64 Please can we ask that you seriously consider how dangerous it could be if there is not a crossing patrol outside St Joseph’s and Oakhill schools. I hope that you will consider our views when thinking about making cuts in the city. I live in the city and pay my council tax and would like my views to be taken into account. I also have a child at St Joseph’s so know how important it is to them and the neighbouring school. 65 To whom it may concern,

Im disgusted and alarmed that you are attempting to save money by stopping all traffic wardens outside of our stoke schools. My child goes to St Josephs College and he uses this service everyday. Teachers, children and parents minds are put at rest knowing our children can safely cross these dangerous roads. Iam myself a teacher and have lost children from the school I teach at through road traffic accidents. Therefore I fully understand the devastating effects this could potentially have. How many of our childrens life's will need to be lost until you realise this is preposterous.

I really hope you can reconsider this budget cut and find a suitable alternative. 66

Dear Sir,

I have just become aware from local media reports, Stoke-on-Trent Council have to make significant savings in excess of £30 million. As Part of their Budget Development Statement, they are proposing to cease provision of the school crossing warden service. This means that St. Joseph’s College may lose the school crossing warden on London Road, potentially from April this year. The council have confirmed that , in principle, they will not jeopardise the safety of school children by removing the school crossing warden without alternative provision e.g. a pelican crossing. As a parent I feel very strongly about this, so called, alternative provision! Our children at St Josephs, are the very future of Stoke on Trent therefore we should put their safety above all else. These children are a more valuable a commodity than just money, make your savings elsewhere!

PLEASE KEEP OURCHILDREN SAFE THEY ARE OUR FUTURE! 67

As a Parent of children that use these provisions in Stoke on Trent. I find this whole thought process unsatisfactory. Our Children deserve better.

Any thinking that it is safe to allow children to cross the road without supervision by wardens near the schools is crazy. I am sure it breaks the health and safety legislation on many points ... YOU are not allowed to expose people to risks. When schools are prevented from taking children on any risky activity. When Geology students on field work always have to wear hard hats to prevent them. WHY is it acceptable to allow children to cross buisy roads near to schools without protection. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

I am writing regarding the recent proposals to cease provision of a school crossing warden service outside my son’s school.

My son attends St Joseph’s College in Trent Vale and is in Year 7. He makes his own way to school using two buses and walking the last 5 minutes which takes him across London Road. There is currently a warden who crosses the children safely over this very busy road right outside the school. This road is extremely busy during the school rush hour and the warden provides an essential service, not only crossing the children but also facilitating the flow of traffic to and from the school site. The school has informed me that there are currently no plans for alternative provision such as a pelican crossing. However, I do not believe that a pelican crossing would be safe in this position. Having used a pelican crossing for many years outside my children’s primary school, I can honestly say that it is not a safe option. Many drivers do not stop and some jump the lights. Also some children try and risk the lights and run across – a warden stops this behaviour and ensures safety for all.

I urge you to please reconsider and leave this warden to do her very valuable and essential job on London Road. 69 I am writing with regard to the recent proposals to withdraw the school crossing warden on London Road outside St. Josephs College. Please can you register my objection to this withdrawal. My daughter currently attends St. Josephs College and uses the crossing warden both morning and afternoon. The flow of traffic along the road is significant and I would have serious concerns about her safety without a crossing warden to manage the flow of traffic. I believe London Road is one of the most deserving areas for a crossing warden given the level of traffic passing both ways. 70 RESPONSE TO THE CONSULTATION DOCUMENT – REGARDING THE PROPOSAL OF THE CHILD AND ADOLESCENT (CAMHS) SOCIAL WORK POSTS 2015

Introduction CAMHS social workers interrupt front line services within health and Vulnerable Children and Corporate Parenting (VCCP) to orientate the medical and social model to address, manage and reduce risk of self harm, psychosis, eating disorders, depression, anxiety, sexually harmful behaviour, sexual exploitation, attachment disorders, hyperkinetic disorders, post traumatic stress, severe attachment disorders and high on the agenda the suicide of young people. CAMHS social workers have incredible expertise in understanding and facilitating the potential conflicts and tensions between The Children Act vs. The Mental Health Act and navigate our VCCP/Health colleagues through both systems to formulate a systemic response for children/young people. The Mental health of children and young people with multiple complex needs requires a coordinated and coherent combination of services and different professional identities to work together in a multi agency team. CAMHS social workers are employed by the Local Authority, separately from the NHS, as this gives them greater autonomy and provides opportunities to professionally challenge decisions and systems that conflict between health and VCCP.

What does the CAMHS Social Worker role bring to the Children/Young People of Stoke-on-Trent? CAMHS social workers sit within a complex multi-agency network whilst preserving a strong social work identity. As a specialist team of social workers we directly link into the social work teams and are able to provide consultation, support and advice to all the social work pods as requested, particularly in relation to the serious complex cases. We attend and contribute to multi faceted procedures involving Early Help, Children in Care, Children In Need, safeguarding discussions, case conferences, legal meetings and court proceedings, Care Planning Approach and tribunals. Our Health colleagues are able to consult with us on a daily basis which assists in their risk management and referrals to the VCCP. Without this in place there will be an increase in referrals and enquiries to the VCCP. In addition the team has a social worker (Approved Mental Health Professional) who is qualified to offer specific expertise in the use of the Mental Health Act verses The Children Act and provides Mental Health Act (MHA) assessments to determine whether young people at high levels of risk should be sectioned under the MHA or whether they meet other thresholds of risk/safeguarding.

Case Example 1 B is a young person who regularly self harms by cutting with Stanley knife blades down the full length of her arms and legs. On numerous occasions she also talks of committing suicide. There is a history of mental health within the family, alleged sexual abuse, physical and emotional abuse. The issues affecting this young person are so complex that they do not fall into one category of need but into several which consequently impacts on her Mental Health, requiring services from both CAMHS and VCCP. Due to the CAMHS Social Workers expertise and training in both mental health and social work, the child and their family’s needs, will be assessed in their entirety and this will enable the CAMHS Social Worker to facilitate a passage between agencies offering a service to the young person. The CAMHS Social worker co-ordinates the process between the allocated VCCP, CAMHS Team, Education and Psychiatry. We also provide direct therapeutic intervention for the young person. The role involves arranging several meetings between VCCP and Health, both at a case holder and management level, additionally a referral was expedited by the CAMHS social worker to CAMHS Psychiatry to involve them in the management of risk. The sustainability of this complex case advice and support is the foundation of CAMHS Social work, incorporating expertise and knowledge, drawn from both a mental health and social perspective. Liaison between Health, Psychiatry and VCCP is a daily occurrence and pivotal to ensure that young people’s needs are being addressed from both a social and mental health perspective, demonstrating that the CAMHS Social Work role is crucial. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

Case Example 2 L was placed in an out of city placement. He had sexually assaulted a family member. Criminal proceedings were not pursued and therefore no YOS (Youth Offending Service) involvement. The CAMHS social worker was able to offer an immediate response directly to the CIC (Child in Care) social worker. As a result an assessment was completed, the level of risk was identified and work was undertaken to enable a safe return to the local area, to enable the child to return home. The crucial work was completed over the next 4-5 months and L returned to the local area. Although still in the care of the Local Authority L is still working to return home to his family permanently. Apart from the positive outcome for this young person this case example also illustrates the value for money CAMHS social workers offer. Financial savings - being able to return L to the local area (his out of city placement was £3500+ per week) to a placement costing less than half of this) - being able to complete this process without significant delay - not having to use privately funded companies to complete this work (potential estimated cost £25 000 +) CAMHS social workers have specific expertise to work with young people who exhibit harmful sexual behaviour. This service has been offered for the past 2 years. It provides a swift response to this issue and to our knowledge has stopped the expensive “crisis” response – as it was set up to do. This is not a service that could be replicated within the current social work teams.

Being in the position of the interface between health and VCCP ensures cost efficiency. This is achieved by CAMHS Social Workers having a crucial and extensive knowledge of both systems which enables us to navigate and expedite referrals from VCCP to ensure the most vulnerable and at risk children are seen “Social workers working in statutory mental health services provide a vital counterbalancing view to clinical models of illness and disorder and where this is done well, can have a powerful impact on NHS culture and practice” Norman Lamb, Minister of State for Care and Support 2014). As a CAMHS team comprising of only (5.5 FTE) posts, we feel very strongly that the proposal for the (2.5) Social Work posts to meet the combined mental health/social needs of the children within Stoke-on-Trent is clearly untenable. It is our opinion that there will be a substantial consequence and an increased risk to the children’s and families of Stoke-on- Trent. For the outlined reasons contained within this response we have evidenced that the proposal to reduce CAMHS social work provision and resources would be a false economy; and will result in more costly interventions. This is evidenced in the Lincolnshire CAMHS report that after reducing their CAMHS social workers in March 2011, by November 2011 there had been an increase in children admitted to hospital and 4 confirmed suicides of children under 18. 71 To whom it may concern, I have received communication from my child's school; St. Joseph's college, London Road that you are proposing to remove the warden crossing from London Road in an attempt to save money. I wish to voice strongly my objections to this. The traffic on that road is extremely busy in the morning as I drop my child off. The warden's presence enables control of flow of the traffic and provides a safe haven for the children to cross. The road is narrow and it is not always possible to see every child as they cross that road. The warden, however has control of this. In the afternoon my child walks to the A34 where she catches a bus. The presence of the warden (where my child crosses the road) gives me peace of mind that my child's safety is ensured as she crosses this very busy road at this very busy time of the day. I do not support any decision to remove or amend this under-valued service which ensures the safety of my child on London Road and which enables me to work and not have to contribute further to the volume of traffic at that time of day and promotes and empowers my child's independence and road awareness 72

Dear Sir/Madam

RE: Budget 2015

I am writing to express our grave concern that due to budget cuts there is the potential for a reduction in the school crossing warden service and, personally, my grave concern is the school crossing warden at St Joseph's College on London Road. The school crossing warden is an integral part of the St Joseph's College Team providing a safe, reliable and very friendly service to students at the College and to those attending Oakhill and the local prep school and nursery. The warden not only ensures the safety of the students but also very successfully manages the traffic flow at peak time, which an automated system e.g. Pelican crossing, could not do and without this service it is highly likely the area would come to a complete stop with frayed tempers risking the safety of students. The warden is also excellent at managing the students and the students respect and listen to her; no-one would dare cross without her permission, however, again with an automated system there is no reprimand if people cross incorrectly until the reprimand is too severe leading to injury or death.

Whilst I appreciate budget cuts are difficult I would urge the council to preserve the school crossing service to ensure the ongoing safety of students in our care.

Thank you for time and attention. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

Following a meeting with Craig Barlow and Carmen Owen before Christmas regarding the proposed cuts to our Advocacy funding, I do now want to submit comments for consideration on behalf of Asist. Whilst we do understand the need for the City Council to address the significant financial problems it is faced with, we do want to ensure that full consideration is given to the implications of the proposed cuts to our City provision:

Learning Disability Transition · This advocacy post represents the only independent community advocacy provision within the City focused on young people with learning disabilities moving through into adult services (not focused on young people in care) · Asist has established some very productive links with local education providers both within special education needs settings and more recently in main stream school settings. We have been working closely with Commissioners lately to review how the provision is delivered and have successfully got through to the second stage of a Children in Need bid to develop a peer led advocacy support network in Stoke for young people with learning disabilities and those on the autism spectrum. The project will establish a cohort of advocacy peer champions from amongst service users and use a co-production approach to involve young people in project planning, design and delivery. There will be a strong training and education function in the project which will empower vulnerable young people across the City and enable us to work with colleagues and service users to establish a best practice model to deliver a greater resource within tightening budgets. This funding bid if successful is for a three year period, but is for a part time post. We had planned to utilise our existing experienced Transition post-holder to support this project ( this is our only dedicated post targeting young people). · This would be an ideal opportunity to pilot a new, more inclusive and cost effective way of working with vulnerable young people in the City – we do not have any other posts focused on the needs of young people. · Our Transition Advocate has been able to assist with the City’s Learning Disabilities Day Service Modernisation Consultation recently by getting feedback from around 100 young people with learning disabilities – this was very well received and would not have been possible without the specialist post. · There is a requirement in the Care Act 2014 (which comes into force April 2015) for decision makers to consider the need for advocacy support when involving people in decisions made about them – young people are covered by the Act and again this would be an opportunity to pilot what this provision could look like, even if this is for a limited period or with reduced hours.

Harplands

· The strength of our Harplands project is in having the permanent presence on site within the hospital setting which means that we remain very visible with both the patient group and with health and social care professionals, to ensure that the benefits of independent advocacy support is more accessible to vulnerable individuals and that communication and processes as a result, can be far more effective. Our presence on site allows us to respond in a very timely manner to attend care planning meetings and discussions thus negating the time consuming need to re-arrange meetings and delay decision making.

As a locally based voluntary organisation, any funding cuts do have significant implications, we do however recognise that we all have to work hard to respond to the changing financial climate and Asist has been very proactive in reviewing our delivery models and looking at ways to widen our reach within reducing resources. In our close partnership with Keele University in particular, Asist has been developing some very innovative training and information packages, including a new Communication App (in 5 languages) which have been externally funded and which we plan to build upon.

If cuts to our service are to go ahead, we would ask that consideration be given to enable us to at least retain funding in 2015/16 for a half post working with young people to both support any forthcoming Children in Need initiative and/ or to enable us to pilot the proposed new way of working which we have outlined in the bid – it would be a shame to miss this opportunity to bring new monies into the City which could inform planning for any future service re-design.

I would be more than happy to provide further information or clarification if required. 74 Dear Sir or Madam

I would like to strongly lend my support to St Josephs College re the matter of retention of the school crossing warden. I feel that it's imperative to maintain the safety for the children crossing this very busy road. The warden also acts as a traffic calming measure and helps to control the traffic flow. I do not feel that a pelican crossing would be a suitable alternative. 75 January 2015 This document has been prepared in response to proposals in Stoke on Trent City Council‟s Budget Development Consultation 2015/16 – 2016/17. Specifically this consultation response addresses the proposal to introduce charging for disabled customers in all off street parking locations. The author is a PhD student at Keele University and is also conducting research for the British Parking Association. I have extensively examined the provision of parking and parking enforcement and its role in shaping legitimacy judgements of citizens about authorities. The proposal: „The proposal is to introduce charges for holders of “Blue Badges” on City Council surface car parks in line with other agencies and private sector providers‟ (page 14, reference PLC24) It is my belief that this would be a clear retrograde step that the authority are proposing and would substantially impact unfairly on disabled drivers. Disabled Driving as a mobility right For most disabled people, then, daily reality is of restricted mobility, no mobility, or forms of mobility and movement which serve to highlight their impairment and difference. (Imrie, 2000: 1641) Mobility is a fundamental human right, it is enshrined in the treaties of the European Union and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 13). It is, according to Imrie, „core to people's identities, life experiences, and opportunities.‟ (2000: 1641) He goes on to state that „this is particularly so for those whose mobility and movement patterns are constrained by wider social or situational circumstances over which they have little or no control.‟ (ibid) Mobility is such an important right that we tend to take it for granted, it is an everyday liberty with which we are generally unaware unless we happen to have a disability that prevents us from exercising our mobility. In such a situation we then become all too aware of the importance of this right for our identity, life opportunities and involvement in activities that we also take for granted. A good illustration of this point is given in a study by Musselwhite and Haddad (2010) who examined the experiences of elderly drivers who had their licence taken from them. The authors found three needs that mobility satisfies; utilitarian needs (e.g. general need for mobility for shopping, work etc), affective needs (to maintain quality of life and provide reassurance) and aesthetic needs (the joy of the journey and the freedom of the journey). In addition the authors also found that mobility is not only important in fulfilling the essential utilitarian needs of older people, but also in enhancing social networks and social interaction, creating a sense of control and independence, denoting status and role and helping people interact with nature and exercise cognitive skills (2010: 34) The authors conclude that The reasons why […] people travel and the importance of mobility go beyond accessibility to include the desire for independence, control, maintaining status, inclusion, “normalness” and travel for its own sake. (Ibid: 25) Mobility is thus a key facet of modern life and also a key issue for understanding the situation and circumstances of those who are limited in their mobility. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

Mobility is thus a key facet of modern life and also a key issue for understanding the situation and circumstances of those who are limited in their mobility. The above discussion is given as a grounding in the importance of mobility and the need to avoid barriers to mobility particularly in those situations where that right is already difficult to exercise. I would argue that the proposals for charging in the budget consultation document represent a further restriction (or attempt to restrict, although it is certainly accepted that this may not be the intention) of a disabled persons mobility. Not only is the disabled person already at a disadvantage in exercising their mobility rights, by the very fact of their disability, now it would appear they are to be charged extra, which acts as a further barrier to their participation. For a document that is „centred on looking after our most in-need residents‟ (Stoke.gov.uk) it seems with this proposal does anything but, it places a financial barrier in the way of full inclusion into civic and social life of those who are most in need. For most people the use of a vehicle is a privilege, not a right, but this is only so where use of the vehicle does not involve necessity. For a disabled person the use of a vehicle is not a choice but very definitely a necessity, thus to treat disabled drivers as if they use their vehicles out of choice (like general motorists) and thus can choose where to park through pricing strategy is unfair and discriminatory. Disabled drivers need to park and need to drive, unlike other motorists who can choose whether to drive and whether to park. Imposing a charge on this need is unfair. Disabled drivers do not look for special exemption but require, in order for full participation, access to facilities that are denied to them by reason of their disability. To impose a charge in such circumstances is to impose a charge by reason of their disability, they are a captive market that need these facilities in order to exercise the same mobility rights as non-disabled citizens. Most government policy on equalities (regardless of political persuasion) speaks of the desire for „a level playing field‟ and „equality of opportunity‟, disabled parking concessions in car parks provide this opportunity for those whose mobility rights are already curtailed. It is certainly not a suitable alternative to point out to disabled motorists that they can park on-street without restriction. A finding from my own research was that disabled drivers find this attitude bizarre at times as it suggests that their (and other road users) safety is of less importance than technical compliance with regulations. Indeed a brief tour of some of the council‟s off street car parks identifies a problem in that the surrounding areas have been designated with a no loading at any time kerb markings. Thus the mobility of disabled drivers is being curtailed in the locations where it would seemingly force disabled drivers to use the car park at a cost. Technical Aspects of the proposal There are a number of technical aspects to the proposal that require further examination in addition to the principled objections listed above. It is recognised that this is a budgetary proposal and thus full information at this stage is not available. Nevertheless, there are a number of concerns I would raise at this early stage. 1. In the action plan it says the theme for this proposal is “maximising income and funding streams”. This is clearly contrary to central government policy which states „enforcement authorities should not view CPE [Civil Parking Enforcement] … as a way of raising revenue‟ (Para. 3.1, Operational Guidance to Local Authorities: Parking Policy and Enforcement 2009). Indeed it is quite clear that were this policy justification to be offered for on-street parking then it would be illegal (see Djanogly v Westminster City Council [2010 EWHC 1825 (admin) and R. v Camden LBC Ex p. Cran [1995] R.T.R. 346. 2. Before committing to this proposal I would certainly recommend that the authority provide evidence of the balancing exercise required under section 122 Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. Specifically 122 (2) a which requires the authority to take into account „the desirability of securing and maintaining reasonable access to premises‟ and weigh this against the desired policy justification of „maximising income and funding streams‟ (SOT, Budget, PLC24) 3. Given the impact this policy proposal will have directly on a group who do have protected characteristics under equalities legislation then I would certainly recommend an impact assessment. The demographics of disabled people The government do publish, and regularly update, key statistics on disabilities. These show that approximately 11 million people have a disability, overwhelmingly these disabilities relate to mobility (56%) (ONS, 2013a). There are certainly age characteristics that need to be factored into this assessment since disability disproportionately affects older citizens with 68% of all disabled persons being aged 50 or over. Indeed according to research conducted by Tong, Broughton and Tong (2007) the mean age of a disabled driver is 65 years old, over 40% of blue badges are owned by citizens aged 70+. In addition the study found that blue badge ownership is overwhelmingly male (61% of all blue badge holders) As this is a pricing recommendation it is also worth noting that 19% of disabled individuals in families live in relative poverty (in non-disabled households that figure is 14%) (ONS, 2013a). If that family involves children then the relative figure is 21%. Thus a significant proportion of disabled people will be hit very hard by this charge, and it is worth remembering that the charge is one that will be necessary rather than chosen. A DCMS commissioned „Taking Part Survey‟ in 2012 found that: Disabled people remain significantly less likely to participate in cultural, leisure and sporting activities than non-disabled people. (DCMS, 2012) Thus their mobility has impacted upon their identity and engagement with civic and cultural society. It is worth bearing these statistics in mind when conducting an impact survey for the proposal. 4. There are also a number of other issues that require addressing in any impact study for this proposal: · Access Considerations: Physical architecture of the car parks (drop curbs, access ways, safety measures for wheel chair users, monitoring of locations for access considerations and the frequency thereof) Ticket Machines (the height, comprehensibility and dexterity required to operate the machines.) General Parking Conditions (the length of time allowed for disabled customers who self-evidently require greater time to enter and exit a vehicle which impacts on purchasing tickets as well as the amount of time needed in the car park) · Traffic Management Considerations

What will be the impact of these charges on overspill to on street locations? Have estimates been gathered about the extent of overspill? What is the traffic management situation in the roads around the off street locations? How many off street car parks are surrounded by no waiting, no loading and no stopping restrictions (certainly the more prevalent such restrictions are the more likely that this policy proposal resembles a monopolistic practice of charging captive consumers) What impact will overspill (increased curb side parking) have on pedestrian safety in these locations? Conclusions I do believe that these proposals are a retrograde step as discussed above in that they unfairly impact on disabled motorists and their ability to have full participation in social and civic life. At present there is insufficient information as to why these changes are necessary, the only policy rationale given, maximising income and funding streams, is contrary to government policy and it is suggested may be illegal. As a final point I think it is worth noting the budget position of the council‟s parking services. According to the latest accounts submitted to PATROL Stoke operated at a budget surplus for parking services of £1.8 million (the RAC Foundation estimate the 2013/4 budget surplus was £1,040,000), quite why this extra charging of disabled motorists (which according to the document will only raise £30,000) is necessary is unknown and perhaps should be stated more clearly. Furthermore the costs of these proposals are not neutral, off street car parks will require increased monitoring for disability access considerations as well as enforcement. In addition it is likely that there will need to be some capital spending on machinery to facilitate disabled parking at various locations to ensure the meters are also disability compliant. I would certainly like to take the opportunity to discuss the matter further with the relevant officers and elected members. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

76 To whom it may concern,

REF: Stoke on Trent Budget 2015 - Lollipop Warden Redundancies

I am writing to you further to my contact with Tristram Hunt and Bill Cash MPs.

Our family and school communities are in shock at Stoke on Trent City Council’s plan to remove a very important service, our lollipop ladies, who serve the families of both St Joseph’s College and St. Teresa’s Catholic Primary school in Trent Vale. We personally have two boys aged 8 and 14 and they attend these schools. I have been a pupil and a parent at St. Teresa’s school and witnessed first-hand the dramatic increase in the volume and speed of the traffic on that stretch of the A34. I remember when I was a child that our lollipop lady at the time was knocked over by a car on the road, I have seen our current Lollipop warden prevent several accidents with the children since I have been a parent at the school which is over 10 years now.

The local community around St. Teresa’s and St Joseph’s schools, along with the schools’ parents, children, teachers and governors, and the local parishioners of St Teresa’s Catholic Church have signed a petition in their hundreds. This will be formally passed to the City Council at this week’s meeting on the 15th. We have also had support from the local newspaper, the Sentinel, who have already printed two articles about the cuts and have visited St Teresa’s Primary School in response to the young pupils’ desire to also sign the petition.

I feel that the council are using a blanket approach in looking to dispense with of all the remaining lollipop wardens in Stoke. The Council tried to accomplish this two years ago but after many objections and subsequent analysis you deemed that the remaining wardens were required in order to safeguard the children. So why has this position changed, the roads certainly have not become safer during this period?

I wish to challenge your decision to withdraw the service based on many important arguments along with the fact that we feel you have not given us, the public, an adequate consultation period especially as this decision relates to schools, given the Christmas holidays and the demands on family time during this period. My concerns/questions are as follows:

Has any recent traffic analysis been carried out to identify where there may be a higher risk in the City? The crossing at St. Teresa’s School is next to the busiest roundabout in the city and on a dual carriageway. Although it may have a pedestrian crossing it is situated on the A34 which is an extremely busy dual carriageway and to add more danger to the situation it is on one of the ambulance routes and therefore on numerous occasions the warden has had to prevent the children/parents from crossing when an ambulance has raced through with the lights on red. The crossing at St. Joseph’s College is also on an extremely busy road, London Road, but with no Zebra or traffic light system. It is also situated at a bus stop and when a bus has stopped it is extremely difficult to have a clear view of the road. Without a warden the traffic just would not stop and you have hundreds of pupils pouring in and out of the school on a very busy and tightly packed road. The warden is essential.There have also been cases at St. Teresa’s in the past when the traffic lights have had an electrical failure, who then, in the absence of a warden, would be covered to ensure the safe transfer of the families across the road? Mrs Bailey, the current warden at St. Teresa’s, contacts the Council to inform you of this situation so the dates of this occurrence should be documents somewhere in their files.Does the council have a “safer routes to school” policy, if this policy references that there are lollipop wardens in place to ensure the safe crossing of the children how will that route comply with the policy of the wardens are withdrawn? Surely the council will have to pay for more children to have school transport because of the lack of crossing patrols and therefore the saving will not be delivered?What will be done to mitigate any impact on particular groups of children/parents where it is not possible for the parent to supervise the child? Has an equality analysis been done? If any adverse impact has been identified, what is being done to address this? If the Council has not completed an equality analysis how is that justified?How will this decision to withdraw the wardens affect OFSTED’s safeguarding judgements on the schools?Some may believe it is the parents’ responsibility to ensure that the children cross safely if they are present, particularly at St Teresa’s primary school, but it can be very difficult for parents who have several children at the school to hold their hands, particularly if they have a pushchair or pram to push at the same time. As we know it does not take much for a child to pull away from a parent, our Lollipop lady is a clear authoritative signal to them to wait and then they only cross under her supervision.

I hope you will reconsider your proposal in order to prevent this lifesaving service being withdrawn. No-one would want a child to be hurt or worse still killed. 77 I am very sad to hear that the crossing warden on London Road, by St Joseph College is possibly being removed. It is all very well making cuts to budgets, we are in tough times, especially Stoke on Trent Council, through many poor financial decisions that have been made over many years. However the cut in budget should not put at risk our young children, the traffic warden provides a safe crossing on a busy road and also supports a very good flow of traffic in the area at peak times. If you feel that taking crossing wardens away across our City is a positive decision then you really do need to re think as it could potentially cause heart ache to a family when their child is injured crossing our roads. 78 Please find attatched to this email a peom written by my (then) 11 year old daughter about how she had been helped by CAMHS to see that her life was worth living. Her CAMHS worker has built a solid relationship of trust with my daughter and has been a great support to us all. I am afraid that your proposed cutbacks will affect not only my family but many more in need of support for their children suffering mental health issues.

THE SHADOW THE SHADOW WAS ALWAYS ALONE IT JUST STOOD THERE, SAD AND UNKNOWN THE SHADOW WAS FULL OF FEAR IT WONDERED IF IT WAS EVEN HERE? THE SHADOW WANTED TO BE A PART OF LIFE SO TO GET NOTICED IT CUT ITS WRISTS WITH A KNIFE BUT NOBODY CAME SO THE SHADOW SAT ALONE SILENT IN THE RAIN ONCE SHE STOPPED A 'ROW' BUT IT HAD NO PRAISE, WHY BUT HOW?

SO THE SHADOW SCREAMED AND SHOUTED HOPING IT WAS THERE THEN PEOPLE CAME MAYBE PEOPLE DID CARE? FROM THAT DAY SHE WAS NICE AND GAVE HER PARENTS A HUG AND SHE HAD A LOVELY CUP OF TEA IN A NICE WARM MUG

THE END Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

79 Please find attatched to this email a poem written by my (then) 11 year old daughter. She wrote about the help she had from CAMHS to see that her life was worth living.

Her CAMHS worker has built a solid relationship of trust with her and has been a great support to us all. I am afraid your proposed cutbacks will not only affect our family but many more in need of support for their children suffering mental health problems.

THE SHADOW

THE SHADOW WAS ALWAYS ALONE IT JUST STOOD THERE, SAD AND UNKNOWN THE SHADOW WAS FULL OF FEAR IT WONDERED IF IT WAS EVEN HERE? THE SHADOW WANTED TO BE A PART OF LIFE SO TO BE NOTICED IT CUT ITSELF WITH A KNIFE SO THE SHADOW SAT ALONE SILENT IN THE RAIN ONCE SHE STOPPED A ROW BUT IT HAD NO PRAISE, WHY BUT HOW?

SO THE SHADOW SCREAMED AND SHOUTED HOPING IT WAS THERE THEN PEOPLE CAME MAYBE PEOPLE DID CARE? FROM THAT DAY SHE WAS NICE AND GAVE HER PARENTS A HUG AND SHE HAD A LOVELY CUP OF TEA IN A NICE WARM MUG

I write to you as a foundation Governor of St Joseph's College, London Road, Stoke-on-Trent. I am writing to express my concern that, due to cuts being implemented by the Council, it is proposed to withdraw the school crossing warden at St Joseph's College in April. The safety of the students crossing a busy road is of paramount importance and I urge you to reconsider your decision. While I understand that there are other ways of making the crossing safe I feel that there is no substitute for a real, live crossing warden.

Although not a resident of Stoke, as a Governor, the safety of the children at St Joseph's is my primary concern. 81

As a parent of a student attending St.Joseph's College, it has been brought to my attention that we may lose our school crossing warden, who presently does such a marvellous job crossing the children safely to and from school and also easing traffic congestion on London Road. I am hoping that the council can reconsider their proposal, so as not to jeopardise the safety of our school children by removing the school crossing warden without alternative provision in place, e.g. a pelican crossing.

It would be great to see school crossing wardens maintained across Stoke-On-Trent, in general, to ensure the safety of our school children.

Awaiting a reconsidered positive outcome to an unfortunate proposal. 82 Various letters received in protest of the proposal to remove lollipop ladies from the school. Please see attached. 83 I’d like to add my vote to the objections against the proposal to cease provision of the school crossing warden service, this will compromise the safety of our young children crossing main roads at peak times. Please retain the service. 84

Please accept this email as a note of concern with regards to the proposal of ceasing the school crossing warden at St Joseph's College, Trent Vale. The school crossing warden is an integral part of St.Joseph’s College providing a safe and reliable service to all the students and those attending Oakhill Primary School. For those students arriving at school by car, she helps to manage the traffic flow at peak times enabling access and egress for vehicles from the school site on what is a very busy road. This part of the road has raised concern historically and has evidence of accidents that have occurred on this part of the road during rush hour times - resulting in one student sadly losing their life. With this in mind I'm writing to you to over turn the decision in ceasing the school crossing warden and in turn remain in support of retaining the school crossing wardens to ensure the ongoing safety of students and road users. I trust that a decision is made in the best interests and the safety of St Joseph's and all the staff, students and parents involved 85

Whilst I recognise the difficulties faced by the council in identifying budget savings I understand that you may be proposing to cease provision of the school crossing warden service.

This means that St.Joseph’s College may lose the school crossing warden on London Road, potentially from April this year. The council have confirmed that , in principle, they will not jeopardise the safety of school children by removing the school crossing warden without alternative provision e.g. a pelican crossing.

I am very concerned that at this stage, no alternative provision for London Road has been assessed. Our school crossing warden is an integral part of the St.Joseph’s College team providing a safe and reliable service to our students and those attending Oakhill Primary School. For those students arriving at school by car, she helps to manage the traffic flow at peak times enabling access and egress for vehicles from our school site.

I am assuming that in the absence of alternative provision, you will not jeopardise the safety of any children, and assure the continued provision of the school crossing warden 86 CAB SERVICE Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

To Cabinet Members, We are the Aiming Higher Together Forum, our organisation is for parents of children and young people from 0-25 with disabilities and additional needs. We are linked to a larger strategic partnership both regionally and nationally. Our ethos is to work together with all services to develop and improve the quality of provision for this vulnerable group of stakeholders. These last few years we have been on a journey particularly with Stoke L.A, and evidence shows that by working together we can deliver better outcomes for families, which in turn relieves pressure on our already stretched services. Having read the information provided and deliberating the consequences of these reductions it is therefore the considered opinion of the Aiming Higher Together Parent Forum that we cannot endorse the £150,000 cut proposed by the cabinet members with regard to Section PEP11 Short Break Service for disabled children. Portfolio Holder Gwen Hassall. It is the firm belief of the Forum that if the Cabinet were to make these cuts the effects on families would be adverse and would have no long term benefits. On the contrary, the Forum would go as far as to predict that by making the £150,000 reduction it would lead to: LOSS OF HIGHLY SKILLED WORKERS THE PROBABILITY THAT SERVICES WILL BE SO LEAN THAT THERE WILL BE NO COVER IN TIMES OF CRISIS HIGHER COSTS TO THE AUTHORITY – WITH COSTLY INTERVENTIONS INCREASED PRESSURES ON FAMILIES INCREASED PRESSURE ON THE ACUTE AND SPECIALIST SERVICES INCREASED LEVELS OF LITIGATION.The Forum recognises that the difficulties that Stoke On Trent City Council faces are formidable. However, we would strongly advise and urge the Council not to make these cuts. The Forum would instead propose that 2015/16 parents and services continue and expand their collaborative working and come up with innovative solutions in the redesign of services 88

I am writing to you in response to the proposed reduction in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Social Workers (Ref: PEP14) contained within the Budget Development 2015/2016 – 2016-2017 consultation document.

Whilst I appreciate that the city of Stoke-on-Trent is under enormous pressure to make cost-savings and that this engenders the need to make difficult decisions regarding service provision, as a Clinical Psychologist who specialises in working with Children and Young People, I am moved to write to you to highlight the impact that the proposal will have on a population who would ordinarily struggle to have a voice in the budgetary decisions that directly affect them.

The Social Workers currently placed within CAMHS services play a vital role in ensuring that the children of Stoke-on-Trent with mental health problems get the right support at the right time. The mental health difficulties that affect children and young people are often intertwined with their social circumstances. Consequently, they require support that seeks to address their social context as well as the symptoms they are experiencing. The placement of council-employed Social Workers within CAMHS services is innovative as it means that children and families with complex mental health problems receive a well-coordinated and timely service that avoids unnecessary delays, fragmented treatment approaches and unmet need created by the gaps in provision that typically result from differing thresholds across agencies. It is for these very reasons that there is a national focus on greater integration within the health and social care community. In view of this, disinvesting in CAMHS Social Workers risks adverse impacts on the lives of the local children and their families as alternative service delivery models cannot compensate for the lost capacity for efficient, joint working that is likely to result from the proposed changes (i.e. from 4.5 FTE to 2.5 FTE but with an increased portfolio that includes offering a service to small group homes also).

In an attempt to keep this response as succinct as possible, I will suggest only one more adverse impact of the aforementioned proposal, namely, the potential for reduced spending on CAMHS Social Workers to inadvertently increase council spending in other areas of Children’s Social Care. As you will be aware, children, young people and their families exist within a number of systems that interact with and influence one another. As such, changes in one system directly affect other systems. CAMHS Social Workers currently work directly and indirectly (e.g. through consultation to colleagues) with children, young people and families accessing CAMHS services who have significant social needs. In doing so, they positively influence the flow of referrals to other parts of Children’s Social Care. Reducing CAMHS Social Workers reduces their capacity to influence this flow and will ultimately lead to increased referrals from health to social care, which would have significant cost implications for the council. For instance, if I have safeguarding concerns about a family I am working with, I currently have instant access to CAMHS Social Workers with specific expertise in safeguarding who help to inform my risk assessment of the concerns and, therefore, reduce the risk of unnecessary referrals to Children’s Social Care. This example is, of course, only one of a myriad of ways that CAMHS Social Workers positively influence the interface between health and social care in such a way that reduces wasteful expenditure.

I hope that this brief response adequately outlines the adverse implications associated with the aforementioned proposal in terms the risk it poses to the quality of service that children, young people and their families receive as well as potential for a false economy in terms of cost-saving. 89 With regard to savings proposals RES01 and RES02 it would be interesting to know how these savings figures have been calculated as, without any description of the proposed savings of £7.33m in 2015/16 and £10.1m in 2016/17, it is impossible to comment on service impact or the deliverability of savings.

Whilst the need for savings is understood in light of the anticipated current and future financial settlements, without a published plan of how such sizeable savings are to be achieved, there remains a concern that they will not be deliverable. Without awareness of the detail of any such plan it is not possible to make any meaningful comment on these proposals and this would appear to defeat the object of this consultation process. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust response to Stoke-on-Trent City Council Budget Development 2015/16 -2016/17: PEP14

Whilst recognising the financial challenges facing Stoke-on-Trent City Council we do not support the proposals to reduce the WTE compliment of specialist CAMHS social workers from 4.5 to 2.5.

Specialist tier 3 CAMHS as defined in Together We Stand (1) has historically included social workers as key members of the multidisciplinary team. What distinguishes specialist CAMHS from tier 1 and tier 2 provision is the expertise of multidisciplinary colleagues working together to provide individualised, evidence based treatment for children and young people presenting with severe and complex mental health problems (2).

Social workers have a key role in working with children and young people in the CAMHS context and bring a range of skills in relation to working with troubled families. CAMHS social workers also provide an essential resource for social work colleagues working across Social Care. They provide advice about child and adolescent emotional wellbeing and mental health and can navigate the tiered service provision in CAMHS (e.g. the process of admission to Tier 4 and CPA).

Many of the children and young people referred to specialist CAMHS have social and mental health needs. The CAMHS social workers are able to contribute to the assessment and management of such children and young people allowing a co-ordinated response across agencies. Removing social workers from CAMHS would lead to a loss of this co-ordination of social and mental health care. The majority of children and young people seen by the CAMHS social workers are those with demonstrable social need and who are at risk. It is likely that the removal of the CAMHS social workers will lead to such families presenting to Social Care at times of crisis or for on-going support.

Current local and national agenda for child and adolescent mental health (and health care in general) emphasise the importance of integration. The proposal to reduce the WTE of CAMHS social workers is in direct contradiction of this. In addition the proposed reductions contradict the National drive for parity of esteem between mental and physical health.

The recent Health Select Committee enquiry into CAMHS noted that insufficient priority is being given to child and adolescent mental health. The proposal by Stoke-on-Trent City Council to reduce the WTE of CAMHS social workers is an example of this representing a disinvestment in services for children and young people with mental health problems.

The effects of the reduction in posts will include: · Reduced extent of tier 3 CAMHS multidisciplinary compliment and hence quality of care · Reduced Social Care access to specialist tier 3 consultation regarding children and young people’s emotional wellbeing and mental health · Increased referral to Social Care of children and young people in crisis. · Increased need for placement of children and young people in the care system · Reduced capacity in tier 3 CAMHS and resultant increase in waiting times · Social Care will be expected to meet more of a child or young person’s mental health needs before referral to specialist CAMHS

References 1. Together We Stand. Health Advisory Service, 1995 2. National Service Framework for Children Young People and Maternity Services, 2004. 91

I write in response to Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Budget Development 2015/16 – 2016/17 consultation.

English Heritage understands the challenging economic position the Council faces and we appreciate that local authorities need to focus on delivering key local services for their communities. We are concerned that the proposed changes to conservation staffing may leave the Council unable to meet all its responsibilities in this area.

Statutory responsibilities

As you would be aware, English Heritage is the Government’s adviser on the historic environment and has a statutory role in the planning system. A current version of our Charter for Advisory Services, which sets out our role, may be viewed here:http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/professional/advice/our-planning-role/charter/. Under the National Heritage Act 1983, English Heritage may give advice on matters affecting ancient monuments, historic buildings and conservation areas. We engage with a relatively small, although historically significant, part of the historic environment only. It is local authorities who have the responsibility for ensuring that the majority of historic assets are protected for future generations to understand and enjoy.

Local authorities have a statutory responsibility to authorise listed building consent[1] and the Act indicates that special consideration must be given to, “the desirability of preserving the building or its setting or any features of special architectural or historic interest which it possesses” [2] . In the majority of cases, therefore, it is local planning authorities that are the first point of contact for advice for change in the historic environment. In the case of Stoke-on-Trent, the local authority area has 196 listed buildings, five registered parks and gardens, five scheduled monuments and 23 conservation areas.

The NPPF sets out the responsibilities of local authorities in taking account of the historic environment, and the management of change. We are extremely concerned that, should the proposed staffing changes be implemented, you will not have the appropriate level of professional advice in order to make these decisions, and that the quality of listed building applications will go down. Furthermore we are alarmed at the prospect that Stoke-on-Trent may suffer an increase in unauthorised works, if the availability of pre- application advice is withdrawn from listed building owners. This may result in a costly increase in enforcement measures; the capacity for which the proposed restructure compromises. Good and timely pre-application advice is also a prerequisite for good quality, well-designed schemes which could be compromised. Responses to Budget Development 2015/16-2018/19 Consultation

The value of the historic environment

Stoke-on-Trent has a remarkable collection of historic buildings. The remaining 45 bottle kilns from the pottery industry give the city an iconic architectural form, setting it apart from any other place in Britain. Many other pottery related buildings, often with classically inspired frontages, create unique townscapes. The very different centres of the Six Towns, designated as conservation areas are tangible evidence of Stoke-on-Trent’s local identity.

The value of a well-managed, protected and appreciated historic environment to both quality of life and to the economy is well established. Research published by the Heritage Lottery Fund in 2013 found that heritage-based tourism is worth £26.4 billion to the UK economy due to a significant rise in international and domestic tourism, the tendency of visitors to spend more than in previous years and the fact that heritage has become more important in people’s holiday choices. Stoke-on-Trent’s variety of museums and heritage sites is a major asset is attracting visitors and any reduction in the staff who ensure it is properly cared for could have a negative impact on the visitor economy.

New research reported in Heritage Counts 2014 supports the benefits of a properly supported heritage and cultural sector. Investment in heritage fuels economic growth - figures compiled by Visit England show that, since 2000, the number of visits to historic attractions in the West Midlands has grown by 51%. Further, of every £1 spent on a visit to a heritage or historic attraction (including museums), 32p is spent in the attraction itself. The remaining 68p is spent in local businesses nearby.

Heritage Counts has also shown there is a proven link between heritage and wellbeing. The monetary benefit of visiting heritage sites has been calculated as £1,646 per person per year (by contrast, sport is worth £993 per person per year). The impact of heritage visits on life satisfaction was found to be slightly higher than the impact of participating in sports and the arts. Older people in blue collar jobs, and children were found to have the highest benefit from heritage. Participating in heritage activities also has a positive impact on personal development – Heritage Lottery Fund volunteers have reported levels of mental health and wellbeing that are far higher than that for the general (and the general volunteering) population, especially relating to their ability to ‘play a useful part in things’. One in three volunteers reported an increase in self-esteem and confidence.

Heritage is extremely popular with the community – a fact demonstrated when many people made small donations in order to help with the acquisition of the Staffordshire Hoard. British citizens have the fourth highest participation rates in heritage in Europe. In addition to visiting heritage sites (which 70% of adults have done in the past year), 15% of the public have donated money to the heritage sector. Nearly half a million people volunteered within the heritage sector in 2014. Seven out of ten adults in the United Kingdom believe that heritage sites are important to their local community.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council Heritage Commission

We welcome the report of the Stoke-on-Trent City Council Heritage Commission which, we understand, has recently been formally adopted by the Council. The report rightly identifies that Stoke-on-Trent has a great deal of undesignated heritage, and that heritage plays a key role in economic development and regeneration.

The Heritage Commission identified a number of ambitions for the city including: the formation of a regeneration and heritage task force; building heritage-led regeneration into wider economic strategies; strengthening the heritage tourism offer for local people as well as visitors; and carrying out a new Heritage at Risk survey within the city. We are very supportive of these aims, which we believe will greatly benefit Stoke-on-Trent’s economy. We are concerned, however, that these ambitions will not be realised if the Council’s historic environment staffing provision is cut further.

English Heritage working in partnership with Stoke-on-Trent City Council

Our investment in local areas is rooted in the strength of a local authority’s ability to protect and manage its historic environment, and we have had a long and positive working relationship with you - thanks in part to our confidence in the Council’s building conservation staff.

In the past three years we have provided grants worth more than £280,000 to the Council to support the partnership scheme in Longton conservation area, and work being carried out at Gladstone Pottery Museum. We have also invested nearly £2million in the Middleport Pottery project. We have done this secure in the knowledge that the Council had a robust historic environment service, and are now concerned that this capacity could be lost.

Alternative models

In addition to the beneficial impact the historic environment has on local economies, 93% of people think that it is important to save heritage assets to improve their local place [3]. Proper care for traditional places attracts employers and generates high-skilled, environmentally friendly local jobs and activities that can underpin local economic recovery.

In recognition of this, and the straitened circumstances in which many local authorities are finding themselves, we worked with the Local Government Association, the Association of Local Government Archaeological Officers, the Institute of Historic Building Conservation, and the Planning Officers Society on the Historic Environment: Local Authority Capacity (HELAC) project.

HELAC examined different ways for local authorities for deliver historic environment services and led to the publication of Making the most of your heritage assets: The future of local historic environment services showcasing different models of service. Models where neighbouring local authorities are working together to provide combined services as has happened in Tyne & Wear, and in the Staffordshire Peaks, may be of interest to you.

Conclusion

We are continuing to work with you to ensure the future of Chatterley Whitfield, and explore your aspirations for the Spode site. We are, however, gravely concerned that the proposed staffing structure will not allow Stoke-on-Trent City Council to deliver the high quality historic environment service it has done so to date. [1] S.8 Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.

[2] S.16(2) Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.

[3] Historic Environment Forum, Heritage Counts 2010