Agenda item

Young People's Health and Wellbeing Project Specification - procurement (verbal update)

Minutes:

The Area Council Manager gave a detailed update of discussions that took place at a recent workshop which explored the opportunity for a North Area Council funded young people’s project.  It was explained that when the commission went out to tender only one application was received, which did not meet the project criteria, rendering the procurement unsuccessful.  Provider feedback indicated that problems had been experienced with the process, particularly YorTender.  The procurement panel met on 12th March to discuss the outcome and way forward and along with other stakeholders, developed a number of recommendations to adapt the model.  It is recommended that the focus of delivery shifts away from in-school delivery to after school and holiday provision in the community, with beneficiaries identified and informally referred by schools to ensure those most in need are supported.  Members were made aware of the Beyond Words initiative.  Beyond Words is a charity that provides books and training to support people who find pictures easier to understand than words, with resources to empower people through pictures.  Kexborough Primary School currently have a staff member trained to use this resources and have found it beneficial when working with children with emotional needs, with positive results. It was felt that it would be of benefit for Beyond Words to be delivered in 3 geographical areas – St Helens, Darton and Old Town, with the same programme running in each area in terms of after school activites and school holiday provision.  All 6 local schools will be involved, with 2 TAs and 2 volunteers trained in each organisation.  It is anticipated that the project will lead to establishing better links between schools and communities in a positive manner.  The children supported wouldn’t necessarily meet the criteria for special educational needs, but would benefit from additional input to manage their emotions.  Members were asked to note that the out of school provision may not be available until September to allow for transition work to be undertaken with Years 5 and 6 from September 2020.

 

 

RESOLVED that: 

(i)                       Members note the procurement update;

(ii)                    the focus of the project be adapted to allow for great invest in community provision;

(iii)                  the process be redesigned and the opportunity converted into a more accessible grant, dividing the opportunity into smaller ‘lots’ based on geography;

(iv)                  the feasibility of training key locality based staff to use ‘Books Beyond Words’ resources be fully explored, and

(v)                    an additional budget be allocated to allow for staff training in the use of ‘Books Beyond Words’.

 

 

 

Supporting documents:

 

A - Z Directory