Agenda item

The Chairman introduced the item and summarised the progress made thus far with the review. It was noted that the scheduling of the review had been heavily impacted by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020, leading to an extended review schedule; there had also been changes to the Committee’s membership which presented further challenges. The Chairman drew attention to the witness sessions which had taken place over the course of the review and the minutes from previous meetings; further to this, it was noted that the following discussion of ideas was to form the basis for the Committee’s recommendations arising from the review. Key officers were present to advise Members if required.

An initial idea for one of the primary recommendations arising from the review was the need for the Council’s public facing service environments to adopt a practical corporate standard, or checklist, to ensure a consistent approach in making those areas more autism friendly. Having autism friendly signage in publicly accessible areas was highlighted as an important measure to take. Members were in agreement that this would give uniformity to the places in which residents with autism access day to day Council services.

The Committee expressed particular interest in the rollout of autism training for front line staff and were minded to explore the possibility of making it a mandatory part of the training offer for staff who regularly interact with residents. Members welcomed the training that had already taken place for front line staff but noted that this would ideally be expanded to more staff, Councillors were inclined to have officers examine the prospect of different forms of training, when circumstances allowed.

There was interest in the support offered to parents and carers of children who may fall short of having an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). It was noted that the SEND Advisory Service offers training and workshops to parents and carers through their ‘Early Bird’ and ‘Signet’ programmes; the Signet programme was not only accessible to families with children with a diagnosis of autism but also children who presented social communication needs without a formal autism diagnosis. The delivery of these programmes was scheduled to increase over the coming months. It was noted that the scope of the review’s recommendations were targeted primarily towards the way in which residents with autism access the Council’s services and not necessarily the statutory care services and packages offered to residents with autism.

Members were minded to explore the feasibility of providing access to, and information about, the Council’s services at one centrally located point to improve accessibility for residents with autism. This could minimise the need for residents with autism to repeatedly access different locations, be it physically or online, to contact the Council’s services.

The Committee sought information on the feasibility and the merits of seeking Autism Accreditation for the Council as a whole, or particular Council services, through the National Autistic Society. Further to this, the idea was raised of possibly having an autism ambassador within each department, this was linked to the discussion around mandatory training for front line staff.

Members highlighted the need for robust procedures in relation to any formal environments whereby a resident with autism may become overwhelmed and need to leave the setting urgently; it was noted that, by leaving the setting spontaneously, it should not be taken as an unwillingness to access the particular Council service or a withdrawal from the process in question. There should be processes in place to continue formalities in an appropriate manner.

It was noted that the results of the autism questionnaire posed an opportunity for the Committee to receive feedback from the managers of the Council’s various public facing service environments on the measures that had already been taken, and potential measures that could be adopted, to facilitate an autism friendly environment. Members highlighted the prospect of using the autism questionnaire as a tool to track and monitor the progress of the review’s recommendations going forward, as a before and after snapshot.

The Committee highlighted the importance of welcoming the culture of continuing improvement such as the appointment of an Advanced Social Work Practitioners with a focus on autism, the development of e-learning training and a clear Council wide policy on reasonable adjustments under the Disabilities Discrimination Act.

The Chairman noted that officers would use the ideas produced by the Committee for the review’s recommendations to explore the feasibility and compatibility of the suggestions with Council services and a draft report would be scheduled to come before the Committee in March 2021.

RESOLVED That the Social Care, Housing and Public Health Policy Overview Committee:

1)    Noted and commented on the results of the autism questionnaire directed at managers of the Council’s public facing service environments; and

2)    Noted the Committee’s review into making the Council more autism friendly and explored findings and ideas for recommendations arising from the review.