Community Impact Assessment Form For a summary of this Community Impact Assessment, click here Title of Community Impact Assessment (CIA): Changes to the provision of group based activities for disabled children Directorate: Children’s Services Date of assessment: 17th October 2013 Names and roles of people carrying out the community impact assessment. (Please identify Lead Officer): Anne Hayton Lead Officer Jane Roberts Marion Wood Section A – What are you impact assessing? (Indicate with an “x” which applies):A decision to review or change a service A strategy A policy or procedure A function, service or project x x Are you impact assessing something that is?:New Existing Being reviewed Being reviewed as a result of budget constraints x x 1 Describe the area you are impact assessing and, where appropriate, the changes you are proposing? Since 2009, Salford City Council has been commissioning group based activities for disabled children. This was undertaken initially under the Aiming High for Disabled Children programme. From 2011, when the Aiming High Programme ended, services have been commissioned under the Short Breaks for Disabled Children Programme. The provision of these services enables the Local Authority to meet the requirements of the Short Breaks Duty as laid out in the Breaks for Carers Regulations 2011. These require the Local Authority to provide a range of educational or leisure activities for disabled children outside their homes. Information from Salford Area Needs Assessment February 2012 indicates that there are 2,579 children with a full Statement of Special Educational Needs. Of this cohort of children there are; 89 autistic spectrum disorder as the Primary Condition 14 children with Complex health/ severe medical conditions 46 children with profound and multiple learning disability 228 children with severe learning disability This gives an outline indication of the number of children with more complex levels of disability (377) These children may be at risk of exclusion from activities, and have fewer opportunities to enjoy and achieve, in comparison with their non- disabled peers. Group based activities provide disabled children with opportunities to socialise, participate in their communities, and develop new skills. In addition they give parents a break from caring. Access to these services In Salford is available without the need for an assessment. Parents can approach services directly without having to go via a Social Worker. It is up to individual organisations to manage the numbers using their projects. This will vary depending on whether the service is targeted towards children with higher level needs, or whether it is a less specialist service, that can be accessed by children whose needs are less complex. This means that there is a breadth of provision across the city. It also means that provision is not necessarily targeted at children with the most complex needs. Some services will be accessed by children with lower levels of disability. There have been 13 organisations commissioned to provide group based activities for disabled children. (This includes Barnardos and the Manchester Federation of Jewish services, who have separate / individual contractual arrangements) 2 The contracts for eleven of these services came into force in July 2011, and expired on 31st March 2013. A five month extension was agreed on these contracts to 31st August 2013. This extension was awarded to ensure continuity of provision, particularly over the school summer holidays a time when demand for these services increases. The contract for Barnardos was extended to 31st March 2014. The contract for the Federation of Jewish Services was extended to 30th September 2013. All short break care services for disabled children are now commissioned under Salford’s Family Poverty Framework. Providers of group activities for disabled children were informed of and advised about the process for admission to this Framework, and invited to submit applications. All providers were informed of the need to be on the Framework to be able to bid for any future contracts. This was undertaken through information sharing events, and regular communication via email. However; There are three organisations that did not submit applications for admission to the Framework One organisation bid under the CVS consortium and is therefore unable to submit tenders in its own right A fifth organisation submitted an application, but was not accepted to deliver services under the relevant Framework Outcomes for disabled children’s services. A new service specification for group based activities for disabled children was developed, and put out to tender in July 2013. All current providers of these services, who are on the Family Poverty Framework, were invited to tender. This included Barnardos and the Federation of Jewish Services. The four organisations that are not on the Family Poverty Framework did not receive an invitation to tender so their funding has ended. The organisation that is on the Family Poverty Framework under the CVS consortium did not receive an invitation to tender. This was sent to the CVS consortium. However, no bid was submitted via the consortium. This means that the funding for this organisation has ended. 3 Two providers were unsuccessful in their bids so their funding has also ended. The ending of funding for these seven providers may result in services ending and may have an impact on the following groups; Disabled children, particularly those with more complex disabilities who have difficulties accessing mainstream services. Disabled children from BME communities. Families of disabled children on low income, who may have difficulties accessing services that are not provided in their locality. This Community Impact Assessment is being undertaken in order to: Examine the impact of these changes to services Identify whether these can be addressed through contractual arrangements with the newly commissioned providers Assess whether there needs to be a further commissioning exercise to ensure all service users can access suitable provision. 4 Section B – Is a Community Impact Assessment required (Screening)? Consider what you are impact assessing and mark “x” for all the statement(s) below which apply Service or policy that people use or which apply to people (this could include staff) x Discretion is exercised or there is potential for people to experience different outcomes. For example, planning applications and whether applications are approved or not Concerns at local, regional or national level of discrimination/inequalities x Major change, such as closure, reduction, removal or transfer x Community, regeneration and planning strategies, organisational or directorate partnership strategies/plans Employment policy – where discretion is not exercised Employment policy – where discretion is exercised. For example, recruitment or disciplinary process If none of the areas above apply to your proposals, you will not be required to undertake a full CIA. Please summarise below why a full CIA is not required and send this form to your directorate equality link officer. If you have identified one or more of the above areas, you should conduct a full CIA and complete this form. Equality Areas 5 Indicate with an “x” which equality areas are likely to be affected, positively or negatively, by the proposals Age Religion and/or belief Disability x x Sexual Identity Gender (including pregnancy and maternity and marriage and civil partnership) People on a low income (socio-economic inequality) x Gender reassignment Other (please state below) (For example carers, ex offenders, refugees and asylum seekers, gypsies and travellers) x Race x Parent carers of disabled children will be affected. There may also be an effect on refugees and asylum seekers, gypsies and travellers If any of the equality areas above have been identified as being likely to be affected by the proposals, you will be required to undertake a CIA. You will need only to consider those areas which you have indicated are likely to be affected by the proposals 6 Section C – Monitoring information C1 Do you currently monitor by the following protected characteristics or equality areas? Age Yes (Y) or No (N) Disability Y Gender (including pregnancy and maternity and marriage and civil partnership) Y Gender Reassignment N Race Y Religion and/or belief N Sexual Identity N People on a low income (socio-economic inequality) N Y Y Other (please state) (For example carers, ex offenders, refugees and asylum seekers, gypsies and travellers) If no, please explain why and / or detail in the action plan at Section E how you will prioritise the gathering of this equality monitoring data. Work is ongoing to develop monitoring systems to monitor this protected characteristic Information is provided from services working with the Jewish community, but not for other services. Work is ongoing to develop monitoring systems to monitor this protected characteristic Work is ongoing to develop monitoring systems to monitor this protected characteristic Data is not collected on parents’ economic status. However it is acknowledged in service planning and commissioning that some families with disabled children are on a low income. All parents whose children use these services are Carers. Information is provided from some services if they work with families who are asylum seekers, gypsies and travellers. 7 Section C (continued) – Consultation C2 Are you intending to carry out consultation on your proposals? Yes If “no”, please explain your reason(s) why If “yes”, please give details of your consultation exercise and results below The following consultation has been undertaken; Face to face interviews with those service providers whose services are ending Group discussion with parents of disabled children who have used these services Questionnaire with parents of disabled children who have used these services. This has been undertaken by some of the provider organisations. The results of the consultation are as follows: Provider One This provider did not register on the Family Poverty Framework due to internal communication issues. This is an organisation that provides a service across the Greater Manchester area for young people with autism. It has been commissioned to support young people aged 10-18 who are “high functioning” autistic, and excluded from many mainstream activities. The organisation works in partnership with Salford Integrated Youth Support Service to support young people in attending a youth club. There are 19 young people who regularly attend these sessions. The service also provides a range of holiday activities from its base in Stretford, which young people from Salford are also able to attend. The numbers using this facility are lower, with only three young people regularly attending. 8 The organisation has received capital funding from Salford towards the purchase of a minibus. This has enabled them to provide transport to activities. Referrals to this service are mainly from the Children’s Disability Social work Team or CAMHS. The service is continuing at present using its own resources, but it is unlikely that it could continue beyond the October half term. The organisation receives funding from BBC Children in Need for its Stretford based service. This funding has been secured for three years. Parents have been informed that the service may end and that alternative funding for the provision is being sought. They are unhappy that the service could end due to lack of funding. The ending of the youth club would have an impact upon the young people’s opportunity to socialise as they are an isolated group with specific needs. Young people had not been informed about the service ending at the time that the interview took place. There would be no impact on staffing as staff would be moved to different projects within the organisation. Options to address the impact Consider re- commissioning a service for this group of disabled young people, via Written Quotations. This could be extended to providers who are not on the Family Poverty Framework. Advise the organisation to join the CVS consortium so that they have opportunities to bid for future funding. Consult with CVS exploring the options of a consortium bid which could include this provider. Provider Two This organisation did not apply for admission on to the Family Poverty Framework. This was due to a misunderstanding on their part of the need to do this. The project is delivered from one of Salford’s Special High Schools. It provides five after school groups a week for pupils, a Saturday club, and a weekend activity group. In addition it provides two weeks activity in the school summer holidays. There are around 40 children who regularly attend. 9 The young people who attend this project have a wide range of complex disabilities, including medical needs and complex autism. At the moment the provision is continuing with contributions from parents and additional top up funding from other resources. The school has applied for funding from BBC Children in Need and is awaiting the outcome of this application. At the time of the interview, neither parents nor young people had been informed that the project may be ending. Parents will be told after half term if there has been no response to the Children In Need bid at that stage. If the bid to Children In Need is unsuccessful, then the project will end. There would be no impact on staffing as school staff run the project as an extra curricular activity. However, the impact on the young people would be “massive” as the project provides the only opportunity for them to socialise. Options to address the impact Recommend that the organisation joins the CVS consortium to enable them to access future funding opportunities. Explore the potential for a commissioned provider to provide an alternative service for these young people Commission a service to provide school holiday activities for disabled children with complex physical needs and complex autism. This could be via Written Quotations with the option to open up to providers who are not on the Family Poverty Framework. Consult with CVS exploring the options of a consortium bid which could include this provider. Provider Three This provider is on the Family Poverty Framework and was invited to tender. However, they did not submit a bid due to internal communication problems. The organisation is the Arms Length provider of sports, leisure and arts activities in Salford. This is a universal service available to all children and young people in the city. Its offer includes an Active Ability Programme for disabled residents in Salford. The Short Breaks funding has contributed towards the advertised activities for disabled children. Without this funding the programme will end. The provision is for disabled children aged 5-18 years. Activities include swimming and dance on a weekly basis, gymnastics, multi- 10 sports, water sports and arts in the school holidays. Around 60 children and young people access these services every quarter. The most popular sessions are the weekly swimming sessions at Fit City Worsley, multi sports and arts during the school holidays. The organisation has been awarded a considerable amount of capital funding which includes; Contribution towards adaptations and hoist at Fit City Broughton Purchase of pontoons and adapted boats at the Water Sports Centre Purchase of hoist for use at Fit City Irlam Contribution towards sensory room at Fit City Ordsall. The organisation has started to inform parents that this provision may be ending. At the time of the interview they were unable to provide any feedback from parents, due to the range of activities provided across a number of venues. To date no feedback has been provided. The organisation has not informed children that provision may be ending. There will be no impact on staff within the organisation as they will be moved to provide other activities. There is a high risk that the capital equipment provided will not be used. It is likely that these services will end before the October half term holiday. The impact will be a reduction in these short break services for disabled children. Options to address the impact The organisation provides Open Access holiday activities across the city for children aged eight years and older. These will continue to run, and disabled children can attend these if this is their choice and they are able to participate. It is proposed that the organisation is funded to provide a programme of activities for disabled children for the October half term. Negotiations are taking place with the organisation for the future provision of a sports and activities programme for disabled children. Consideration will be give to charging parents for these activities. 11 Provider four This provider is on the Family Poverty Framework, but not under the relevant outcomes for services for disabled children. It was not therefore invited to submit a tender. The contract with Salford City Council ended on 31 st August 2013. The organisation is based in Eccles and provides a service specifically for the BME community. It was commissioned to provide twice weekly activity sessions for families, including those with disabled children. Work has been undertaken throughout the life of the project to promote the project to BME families with a disabled child. All activities provided from the Eccles centre are culturally appropriate, (for example Halal food and Islamic dress code). Most of the staff are bilingual. There have been eight disabled children attending the project with their families. The contract ending has had an impact on the organisation. Four staff have been made redundant, and the manager has had a cut to her hours. Two volunteers have left. The project provided an opportunity for families to gain advice and support, and also raised awareness of disability issues within the BME community. It has broken down some of the barriers that families can face within their own community. Parents are aware that there are issues with funding the projects as activities have not been taking place. Some of the children attend other groups such as school based after school clubs. However, BME families with disabled children can feel excluded from services, and there will be an impact on these families with the ending of a culturally appropriate and inclusive service, that provided support to parents and children. A further issue in relation to this provider is they have been difficult to contact in relation to the previous contract monitoring and they have not reached the appropriate safeguarding standards. Options to address the impact Re commission a service for disabled children from BME communities via Written Quotations. This could be opened to providers who are not on the Family Poverty Framework. 12 Advise the organisation to join the CVS consortium. Consult with CVS exploring the options of a consortium bid which could include this provider. Provider Five The organisation is on the Family Poverty Framework under the CVS consortium. It was not therefore invited to tender in its own right. The organisation did attempt to submit a bid via the CVS Consortium but this was refused as it was a single application, and as a number of organisations were interested in submitting their own bids the opportunity to create a partnership application was also not available. The organisation specialises in working with children with autistic spectrum disorder. It is commissioned to providetwo weekly groups, one for 6-11 year olds and the other for 12 year olds and older. A total of fifteen young people with autism have attended the service on a regular basis. Parents have been informed that the funding for the service has now ended; they have been advised that there will be other services commissioned by the local authority to take its place. Families were very upset that the service was ending as their children were part of an established service that they found invaluable as a source of support for them as a family but also as an opportunity for their children to access a community based group activity and to develop friendships and learn new skills. The children and young people have also been informed that the group would be ending, this has coincided with the venue at Inscape School closing and this has helped the children to understand the group would then close. The children are upset as the majority of them are regular attendees and had established friendships and relationships with each other as well as with the support staff. The impact for the organisation is the loss of opportunity to further develop services that meet the needs of those with the most complex disabilities, and a loss of opportunity to link closely with families or their professional networks. Options to address the impact Negotiate with a newly commissioned provider to provide a similar service for children with autism. Provider Six The organisation is registered on the Family Poverty Framework and submitted a bid under the new service specification. Its bid was 13 unsuccessful. The provider runs two weekly recreational activities for children and young people aged 5-18. It has used Aiming High and Short Breaks funding to extend this provision to include disabled children. It currently has 31 disabled children on its books. Siblings of disabled children also attend these groups. Activities are provided in the Irlam and Caddishead wards. This is of particular benefit to local families, who may encounter difficulties travelling to other parts of the city. The organisation has a minibus which is used to transport some children to the activities. The organisation made no contingency plans in the event of their bid being unsuccessful. Therefore these groups will end at the end of October. The managing director has organised a campaign against these groups ending. This includes a petition which has been signed by 171 parents. Parents and young people have also given their views on the impact of the groups ending. Comments from parents include; The project helps children to interact Children are safe in the groups The project provides an opportunity to make friends There is an impact on self esteem It’s the only project of its kind in the area There is an opportunity to gain independence. It treats disabled children as normal It makes children feel part of the community There is an opportunity for children to develop relationships outside of school. There are valuable opportunities for young people to act as mentors. There will be an impact on the organisation when the funding from Salford City Council ends. It will continue to function and some group 14 activities will be provided. There will be an impact on staff with a reduction in hours for those who currently work on this project. One post would have to be deleted. The post holder maybe eligible for transfer to another provider under TUPE regulations. Options to address the impact Negotiate with contracted providers to provide activities in the Irlam and Caddishead areas that will include siblings. Hold discussions with Salford Integrated Youth Support Services around extending their provision to include children with disabilities. Advise the organisation to work with CVS for advice on accessing other sources of funding. Provider Seven This is a national charity that promotes cycling for disabled children and adults. It does this through purchasing specially adapted bikes and running cycling sessions which can be accessed by both disabled and non disabled people. It has been working in Salford for several years, and successfully bid for funding from the Aiming High Programme in 2010. The organisation was also awarded capital funding of £1,700 towards the purchase of adapted bikes. It provides eight hours of cycling a week during term time, and ten hours a week during school holidays. Children need to be accompanied by a parent or other adult. Staff supervise the sessions, ensure health and safety, provide advice on riding, and carry out any repairs to the bikes as required. These sessions are extremely popular, with around 70 children attending over a quarter. Comments from parents about the service ending have included; “X has tried a number of activities but this project is the one that he settled on and finds most rewarding.” “X has shown an massive increase in confidence” “The service is beneficial to the whole community” “Y does not normally like exercise so it is impossible for him to engage in traditional sports activity.” “There has been a real step in Y’s behaviour and independence” “Since joining families at Cleveleys running track, Z has been doing great.” 15 The impact of the loss of funding will mean that the sessions for disabled children will end. The organisation can continue to run sessions for a few more weeks, but is not able to sustain these in the long term. There will be no impact on staffing. The organisation will continue to provide sessions for disabled adults in Salford so will maintain a presence in the city. Options to address the impact The organisation has been advised of other grants that it could apply for and it has been suggested they develop a charging policy Discussion and negotiation are ongoing around ways to sustain some specialist cycling provision for disabled children in Salford. Additional Information There are two further providers who need to be considered as part of this Impact Assessment. Provider Eight This is a Parent Support Group for parents of children with autism. It holds monthly meetings for parents at Winton Library, with a crèche provided for the children. The organisation has had a small amount of funding from the Aiming High and the Short Breaks programme to pay for the hire of a room at the library, and also the costs of the crèche. The service provided by the crèche has not been monitored as part of the commissioning monitoring process. The organisation did not submit a bid for admission to the Family Poverty Framework. The service provided does not meet the requirements of the new service specification. There have been around 17 children and their families attending the monthly groups. Contact has been made with the organisation for feedback from parents about the service ending. To date there has been no response. Options to address the impact The organisation could apply to a Community Committee for a grant, and/ or approach CVS for support with accessing alternative sources of funding. 16 Provider Nine This is a Special Needs School for children from the Orthodox Jewish community. It is based in Manchester, but is accessible to some families from the Salford Orthodox Jewish Community. The organisation has been funded through Aiming High and the Short Breaks programme to provide four after school sessions a week, and a Sunday session. The contract for this service ended on 31st March 2013. This was due to high unit costs, and the fact that the majority of the children and young people accessing the services lived outside of the Salford area. Following a discussion with parents from the Orthodox Jewish Community, it was agreed that Salford City Council would spot purchase places for Salford children at the after school club, up to the end of August 2013. The organisation is not on the Family Poverty Framework, so was not invited to bid under the new service specification. There may be an impact on families from the Orthodox Jewish Community if the after school club ends. However it is still running and the organisation is trying to raise funds from elsewhere. Options to address the impact Advise the organisation to approach other Local Authorities for short breaks funding Negotiate with a commissioned provider of group based activities to provide a culturally appropriate service for children from the Orthodox Jewish Community. 17 18 Section C (continued) – Analysis C3 What information has been analysed to inform the content of this CIA? What were the findings? Please include details of, for example, service or employee monitoring information, consultation findings, any national or local research, customer feedback, inspection reports, and any other information which will inform your CIA. Short Breaks for Disabled Children quarter four monitoring report 2012/2013 Short Breaks for Disabled Children quarter one monitoring report 2013/14 Salford Area Needs Assessment March 2011 Salford Area Needs Assessment February 2012. This includes results of a parents’ questionnaire. The above documents are existing documents, used by commissioners to monitor service provision and assist further planning and strategy Consultation notes from interviews with seven providers E. mail messages from parents on the impact of services ending Feedback from projects on parent and children’s responses to services ending.* *This is new information which was obtained as part of this assessment process. Please specify whether this was existing information or was obtained specifically in relation to this equality analysis and CIA process There were over 500 children who used group based activities for disabled children in 20122013.This includes 45 siblings. It also includes around 60 children and young people who are either over 18 years old, or who do not live within the Salford area. This gives a figure of around 400 disabled children. 80% of these children were white British, with a further 3% being other white background. Around 16% of children are from BME groups 71% of the children are male. Some of the projects are specifically targeted at children with more complex disabilities, for 19 example complex physical health needs, or complex autism. Other projects are less specialist and as a result are able to provide activities for a greater number of children. Feedback from parents in the past has indicated that the Aiming High programme has had a positive impact on disabled children and their families. Investment under this programme and the subsequent Short Breaks funding has resulted in a greater range of activities, and greater choice. Projects have reported on children achieving positive outcomes, including improved communication skills, better interaction with others, reduction in isolation, and achieving goals such as sports awards. There is no doubt that the ending of some services will have an adverse impact on some disabled children, including those from BME groups. The ending of funding for some of the more specialist projects, such as Organisations One, Two and Six will have an adverse impact on children with autistic spectrum disorder and children with complex physical needs / medical needs. Section D – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a differential impact relating to age equality Will people within certain age ranges not be getting the outcome they need? Will people within certain age ranges be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how Yes (Y) No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? N 20 will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of age? N Will the proposals mean that people within certain age ranges will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Are the proposals likely to impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a differential impact relating to disability equality Will people with a disability not be getting the outcome they need? Will people with a disability be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? Yes (Y) Y No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? There is a likelihood that some disabled children may not be getting the outcome they need. Data returns through project monitoring indicate that there are 330 children who attend the services that are ending. It is highly likely that many children attend more than on group activity, so the impact may be less than the above figures imply. Salford’s Area Needs Assessment March 2011 indicates that around a third of children were using more 21 If the impact is negative, how will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of disability? than one short break service. Monitoring returns indicate that there were approximately 310 disabled children accessing group based provision in quarter one 2013-14. This figure was determined following a data cleansing exercise, which included eliminating double counting. Data returns from all the commissioned projects indicates that the total number of disabled children supported across all the projects was 487, which implies that children attend more than one project. 202 child places were provided by Provider 3 and Provider 7, who provide sports and cycling activities respectively However, the reduction of the group based activity programme from thirteen providers to five is a major change to disabled children’s provision. Feedback from parents has indicated that that the former programme had a positive impact on children’s socialisation, confidence, and skills. The reduction in the programme will mean that disabled children will have fewer opportunities to continue to develop these skills and achieve positive outcomes. The negative impacts will be reduced or eliminated through; Negotiation with Providers 3 and 7 to enable continuity of sports programme and cycling activities Requirement that a providers recently awarded a contract target their services at children with complex disabilities and those with autism Hold a further commissioning exercise for services to support; Children with complex physical disabilities and children with complex autism Young people who are high functioning autistic who are isolated from services Disabled children from BME groups 22 Requirement that all services target children from BME communities Quarterly monitoring data from commissioned services will include data on nature of disability Will the proposals mean that people with a disability will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Y There will be positive outcomes for disabled children as the newly commissioned services between them will provide; Group activities for disabled children aged 5-18 years every evening and every Saturday Three groups every weekend for children with autism aged 8-18 Holiday play schemes for children aged 5-11 Specialist sports activities for young people aged 11-18 Weekly groups and holiday play schemes children aged 5-18 from the Jewish community. Are the proposals likely to impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance Y The proposals will include integrated services for both disabled and non disabled children and young people. There will therefore be opportunities to foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do 23 relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations not. Discussions are taking place with two providers and Salford Integrated Youth Services to ensure that there is continuity of provision in Irlam. Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a differential impact relating to gender equality (this includes pregnancy and maternity and marriage and civil partnership) Will men, women or boys and girls not be getting the outcome they need? Will men, women or boys and girls be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of gender? Yes (Y) Y No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? Disability affects more males than females across the whole population. Data returns indicate that 71% of the children using group based activities are boys. A reduction in the range of activities available could therefore have a greater impact upon males than females. The negative impact will be reduced or eliminated through; Negotiation with Providers 3 and 7 to enable continuity of sports programme and cycling activities Requirement that a providers recently awarded a contract target their services at children with complex disabilities and those with autism 24 Requirement that all services target children from BME communities Quarterly monitoring of new contracts will include data on gender of service users Will the proposals mean that men or women, boys or girls will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Y There will be positive outcomes for disabled children, both male and female, as the newly commissioned services between them will provide; Group activities for disabled children aged 5-18 years every evening and every Saturday Three groups every weekend for children with autism aged 8-18 Holiday play schemes for children aged 5-11 Specialist sports activities for young people aged 11-18 Weekly groups and holiday play schemes children aged 5-18 from the Jewish community. Are the proposals likely to impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations Quarterly monitoring returns from commissioned services will include data on gender The proposals will include integrated services for both disabled and non disabled children and young people. There will therefore be opportunities to foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. Y Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a differential impact relating to equality for people Yes (Y) No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? 25 planning, undergoing or who have undergone gender reassignment? Will people planning, undergoing or who have undergone gender reassignment not be getting the outcome they need? Will people planning, undergoing or who have undergone gender reassignment be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of gender reassignment? N N Will the proposals mean that people planning, undergoing or who have undergone gender reassignment will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Are the proposals likely to impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations N Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a differential impact relating to Yes (Y) No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? 26 race equality Will certain racial groups not be getting the outcome they need? Will certain racial groups be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of race? Y Monitoring data indicates that the following numbers of BME children who have been accessing group based activities 2012-2013 is as follows: Black African 23 Indian 3 Pakistani 18 Any other Asian background 17 White and black African 3 White and black Caribbean 4 White and Asian 3 Any other mixed background 1 Chinese 1 Any other 2 Not given 2 Quarter one data returns 2013-14 indicate that the projects whose funding has ended have supported a total of 52 children from BME groups. There may be some double counting as it is possible that children have attended more than one group. Provider four works exclusively with families and children from BME communities. There is likely to be a negative impact on children from BME communities with some services ending. The impact will be addressed through; Requiring commissioned services to target children from BME groups Holding a further commissioning exercise for a culturally appropriate service for disabled children from BME communities. 27 Will the proposals mean that people within certain racial groups will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Y There will be positive outcomes for disabled children, both male and female, as the newly commissioned services between them will provide; Group activities for disabled children aged 5-18 years every evening and every Saturday Three groups every weekend for children with autism aged 8-18 Holiday play schemes for children aged 5-11 Specialist sports activities for young people aged 11-18 Weekly groups and holiday play schemes children aged 5-18 from the Jewish community. Are the proposals likely to impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations Quarterly monitoring returns from commissioned services will include data on ethnicity. There is potential to foster good relations through the provision of activities that are accessible to disabled children of all ethnicities. Y Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a Yes (Y) differential impact relating to religion or belief equality Will people of certain religions or Y who have particular beliefs not No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? Provider four has provided a culturally appropriate service for eight disabled children of the Muslim faith. 28 be getting the outcome they need? Will people of certain religions or who have particular beliefs be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of religion or belief? Provider nine has provided a culturally appropriate service for seven Orthodox Jewish disabled children. The ending of funding for these services may have a negative impact on disabled children of certain religion or belief. The impacts can be addressed through; Requiring that the Manchester Federation of Jewish Services provides group activities for disabled children from the Orthodox Jewish community, including a group based in Higher Broughton Requiring all commissioned services to target children from BME communities and take cultural and religious needs of these children into account Hold a further commissioning exercise for a service for disabled children from the Muslim faith Quarterly monitoring returns to include data on religion and belief Will the proposals mean that people of certain religions or who have particular beliefs will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Y A Jewish Organisation has been commissioned to provide; Two after school groups a week One Sunday group a week Four holiday play schemes a year One group a week based in Broughton. This group will run throughout the year, and include siblings of disabled children. Are the proposals likely to Y There is potential to foster good relations through requiring that all commissioned 29 impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations services include children of all religions / beliefs. Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a differential impact relating to sexual identity equality Will gay, lesbian and/or bisexual people not be getting the outcome they need? Will gay, lesbian and/or bisexual people be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of sexual identity? Will the proposals mean that gay, lesbian and/or bi-sexual people will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Are the proposals likely to Yes (Y) No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? N N N 30 impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a differential impact on socio economic equality (people on a low income)? Will people on a low income not be getting the outcome they need? Will people on a low income be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory on the grounds of socio economic inequality? Yes (Y) Y No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? Ending services may have an impact on families on a low income. Feedback from parents’ consultation has demonstrated that some parents find it difficult to travel across the city if they have no access to transport. Proposals to implement charges for some services, including sports and cycling may have a disproportionate impact on families with a low income. These negative impacts can be addressed through ; Ensuing that there are services available for children in all wards of the city Negotiating with commissioned services and Integrated Youth Support Services to ensure that there is provision in Irlam Provision of transport by some commissioned services Consultation has indicated that there will be an impact on staff hours and staff income for Providers 4 and 6 This can be addressed through; 31 Advising providers to contact CVS for information on alternative sources of funding Y Will the proposals mean that people on a low income will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Are the proposals likely to impact on community cohesion? Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? Identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations Short Break services are not means tested, and the majority of services are provided free of charge. This means that disabled children from families on a low income will be able to access a wide ranging programme. Group based activities will continue to be provided on the basis of need and not on the basis of income. This provides and opportunity to enhance community cohesion between those children who share this protected characteristic and those who do not. Y Section D (continued) – Potential impacts and how these will be addressed Could your proposals have a Yes (Y) differential impact relating to any other equality groups, for example, carers, ex offenders, refugees and asylum seekers, gypsies and travellers)? Will people within any other Y groups not be getting the outcome they need? Will people within any other groups be disadvantaged as a result of your proposals? If the impact is negative, how No (N) Explain impact(s) and what evidence or data exists to support your analysis? Group based activities are open to children with disabilities including refugees, asylum seekers, gypsies and travellers. The ending of some services may have a negative impact on disabled children from other equality groups. This impact can be reduced through; 32 will it be reduced or eliminated? If you are unable to eliminate, reduce or mitigate negative impacts, are your proposals potentially discriminatory for people within any other groups? Information sharing and promotion of activities , particularly to Social Workers, Locality Teams, schools, and Salford’s Ethnic Minority and Traveller Achievement Service Requiring that commissioned services target these equality groups Quarterly monitoring returns will include data on numbers of disabled children from other equality groups. Will the proposals mean that people within any other groups will experience positive outcomes? Highlight any positive impacts Are the proposals likely to impact on community cohesion Y There is a range of activities available that disabled children can access Effective promotion and communication will enable disabled children from other equality groups to access these activities, which include; Group activities for disabled children aged 5-18 years every evening and every Saturday Three groups every weekend for children with autism aged 8-18 Holiday play schemes for children aged 5-11 Specialist sports activities for young people aged 11-18 Weekly groups and holiday play schemes children aged 5-18 from the Jewish community. Is there potential to enhance relationships between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not? identify areas where there is potential to foster good relations Y Integration of disabled children from other equality groups into these activities will provide an opportunity to foster good relations between those children who share these protected characteristics and those who do not. Section E – Action Plan and review 33 Detail in the plan below, actions that you have identified in your CIA, which will eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and/or foster good relations. If you are unable to eliminate or reduce negative impact on any of the equality areas, you should explain why Impact (positive or negative) identified Proposed action Person(s) responsible There will be a potential negative impact on disabled children from some BME groups, particularly those of Muslim faith and children from the Orthodox Jewish Community Take findings of Community Impact Assessment to Childrens Services Senior Leadership Team. Explore the commissioning options for culturally appropriate service to meet the needs of this group. Anne Hayton Ensure that the Contracted Jewish Service provides additional group activity in Higher Broughton, that targets children from Orthodox Jewish Community Ensure that all Steve Titley Steve Titley 34 Where will action Target date be monitored? (e.g., Directorate Business Plan, Service Plan, Equality Action Plan) Service Plan 31st October 2013 Required outcome Prevent reduction of group based activities for disabled children from BME communities Increased provision 31st December in Salford for 2013 Disabled children from Orthodox Jewish community Increase in the commissioned services target disabled children from BME communities number of disabled children from BME communities accessing activities There is a potential negative impact on disabled children with complex physical health needs, and complex autism, due to an after school provision coming to an end Take findings of Community Impact Assessment to Children’s Services Senior Leadership Team. Explore the commissioning options for a school holiday service for children with complex disabilities. Anne Hayton Service Plan 31st October 2013 Increase in the number of children with complex physical needs and complex autism accessing activities There is a potential negative impact on disabled children who are high functioning autistic, who are often excluded from mainstream community activities. Take findings of Community Impact Assessment to Children’s Services Senior Leadership Team. Explore commissioning options for a service for disabled children from this group. Anne Hayton Service Plan 31st October 2013 Increase in the number of high functioning autistic children accessing services Meet with Mangers from Salford CVS to discuss potential for a Consortium bid to provide additional Debbie Fallon Service Plan 31st October 2013 Increase in the number of disabled children accessing activities There is potential negative impact on disabled children and their communities due 35 to the reduction in the specialist services number and range of services provided Could making the changes in any of the above areas have a negative effect on other groups? Explain why and what you will do about this. No Review Your CIA should be reviewed at least every three years, less if it has a significant impact on people. Please enter the date your CIA will be reviewed 31st December 2013…………………..You should review progress on your CIA action plan annually. 36 Section F – Summary of your CIA As your CIA will be published on the council’s website and accessible to the general public, a summary of your CIA is required. Please provide a summary of your CIA in the box below. Summary of Community Impact Assessment Brief summary of proposal or what you are impact assessing The assessment has been undertaken to look at the impact on disabled children of changes in the provision of group based activities. The changes in provision have been due to new commissioning processes under Salford’s Family Poverty Framework, and as a result of a recent commissioning process under a new service specification. There has been a reduction in the number of providers from thirteen to five. The assessment has examined whether there are any groups of disabled children for whom the changes in provision may have a negative impact How did you approach the CIA and what did you find? The assessment was undertaken through; Consultation with providers whose contracts have now ended Consultation and feedback from parents of disabled children Analysis of information in Salford Area Needs Assessments 2011 and 2012 Monitoring returns from projects - quarter 4 2012-2013 The assessment has indicated that there will be an impact on disabled children though changes to service delivery. However, the impact can be reduced in most instances through newly commissioned services targeting specific groups of children or particular areas of the city. 37 In addition there is scope for continuity of the less specialist services through looking at implementing charges for parents for some sports and leisure activities. What are the main areas requiring further attention? There is likely to be a more significant impact on the following groups of children; Those with complex physical needs, and complex autism Disabled children from BME communities “ High functioning” young people with autistic spectrum disorder. These children require specialist or specific services, and it is unlikely that their diverse needs can be fully meet by the newly commissioned services. Summary of recommendations for improvement It is recommended that consideration is given to a further commissioning exercise for specialist and culturally appropriate services to provide group based activities for the above groups. 38 Section G – Next Steps Quality Assurance When you have completed your CIA, you should send it to your directorate Equality Link Officer who will arrange for it to be quality assured. Your CIA will be returned to you if further work is required. It is important that your CIA is robust and of good quality as it may be challenged “Sign off” within your directorate Your directorate Equality Link Officer will then arrange for your CIA to be “signed off” within your directorate (see below). Your directorate Equality Lead Officer or other senior manager within your directorate should “sign off” your CIA (below). Name Signature Date Senior Manager Lead CIA Officer Publishing When your CIA has been signed off within your directorate, your directorate Equality Link Officer will send it to Elaine Barber in the Equalities and Cohesion Team for publishing on the council’s website. Monitoring Your directorate Equality Link Officer will also send your CIA to your directorate Performance Officer where the actions identified within your CIA will be entered into Covalent, the council’s performance management monitoring software so that progress can be monitored as appropriate. 39