Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill
Debate between Baroness Stedman-Scott and Baroness Blake of Leeds(4 days, 10 hours ago)
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Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
I will consider whether that is necessary when I get to the end of my speaking notes.
To continue, the corporate parenting responsibilities will also apply to bodies that exercise functions on behalf of the Secretary of State, such as the Prison and Probation Service. Of course, there should be real overlap between the different services in this regard. This will be explained in statutory guidance. So that it can be rolled out properly, it is absolutely crucial that, as it is written, the statutory guidance is co-produced and everyone has an opportunity to put money in.
Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con)
I have no desire to put pressure on the Minister, because I know what it is like to be there, responding to a debate. She is doing very well and giving us confidence. Can she tell the House when the statutory guidance might be available? Can she go back and talk to colleagues and see whether there is any clarification she could put in writing to add to the point that the noble Lord, Lord Addington, has just made and to the points in my contribution? Or could we have a cup of tea and talk about it? That might sound better to her; I see that she is smiling.
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
I am from Yorkshire. A cup of tea and perhaps a piece of cake or a biscuit would be absolutely great.
This is a very important point. We want to reassure the House of the level of detail that is going to go into this. I cannot give a guarantee of exact timing, but I am happy to keep the conversations going. While we are on the same page, I think the noble Lord, Lord Storey, made a valid point about the risk of increasing burdens, but I want to reassure him that the responsibilities do not require corporate parents to provide new services or to make specific policy changes that are not compatible with their wider priorities or affordable within their existing budgets. The broad duties can be implemented in a way that reflects the nature and circumstances of the individual corporate parent. I made the point earlier that it is the culture change—the different way of approaching this— that is critical to make sure that this is picked up across the board and drives its way through.
I turn to Amendments 146B and 147A, tabled by the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Manchester and brought to the House by the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Lincoln—I thank him for doing that and for the way that he got over the points that I know from previous experience that the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Manchester was concerned about. I have been involved in debates with him on these issues over the last few months and recognise his concern and passion for this area.
These amendments probe the extent to which the corporate parenting responsibilities will lead to action by corporate parents in removing or minimising the disadvantages suffered by looked-after children and care leavers, or in taking steps to avoid, reduce or otherwise mitigate any adverse impact of its policies and practices on them. I agree with the amendments’ intention, but I am satisfied that this is achieved through the duties set out in Clause 21 requiring corporate parents to be alert to matters which might negatively affect the well-being of looked-after children and care leavers, to assess the availability and accessibility of their services, and to seek to provide opportunities to participate in activities which enhance their well-being or employment prospects. The right reverend Prelate is quite right to highlight the rhetoric that can be so damaging, which means that these areas of work are still necessary.
There are plenty of examples of action taken to minimise the disadvantages that care leavers face in the labour market, including the NHS Universal Family Programme, which has supported almost 200 care leavers to find jobs, and the Civil Service Care Leavers Internship Scheme, which has enabled more than 1,000 care leavers to take up opportunities in the Civil Service. The corporate parenting duty will mean that such best practice is shared, creating incremental improvements to care leaver outcomes. It is beholden on everyone who works in this space—and of course it is not just the public sector; the private sector has in many areas stepped up to the plate—to be alert to the range or cocktail of circumstances that contribute to poor lifetime outcomes. Educational disadvantage, financial vulnerability, loneliness, isolation, poor mental health, and the higher risk of exploitation and harm are all factors that we need to take into account.
We cannot repeat enough that the most effective way for corporate parents to understand these challenges is to engage directly with the young people looked after, care leavers and their representatives. We will appoint an expert external organisation to support this engagement so that it is taken forward with the utmost seriousness. We will set out in statutory guidance the examples of best practice to show how the duty can apply to particular corporate parents. We will also set out ways for corporate parents to mitigate the negative impacts of their policies on looked-after children and care leavers.
International Women’s Day
Debate between Baroness Stedman-Scott and Baroness Blake of Leeds
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
The noble Lord raises an important point, though I am not sure I am fully qualified to answer the points he raises. However, I am always intrigued by translations of religious texts and how certain aspects have been accepted. There is a lot more debate to be had on this. I am proud particularly of the city where I come from, where our religious leaders work tirelessly together to come forward with common understanding and means to move forward and to achieve equality for all.
Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con)
My Lords, does the Minister agree that my noble friends Lady Owen of Alderley Edge and Lady Bertin have been leading the way with their campaigns and reports on deepfake images and pornography? Will the noble Baroness—and, indeed, the whole House—join me in congratulating them on their important work, and will she advise us when the Government will respond to the review of pornography?
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
I thank the noble Baroness for that timely question. We are struggling to see each other over the Dispatch Boxes—we have some equality issues that we need to address. But seriously, this has been such an important piece of work, and I absolutely commend all of those who have put so much time and energy in. The independent review is a very wide-ranging piece of work and we are looking forward to a Written Ministerial Statement. There will be a joint letter going out, and I honestly believe there needs to be a significant amount of time for assessing how we take this crucial piece of work forward.
Carer’s Allowance: Repayments
Debate between Baroness Stedman-Scott and Baroness Blake of Leeds
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
The noble and learned Baroness raises a pertinent point. The department is absolutely on this case, and work will be ongoing to give the maximum support that it possibly can, to make sure that people get the best access to information so that they can make decisions and keep the department informed if their circumstances change. We have to understand that some people are incredibly stretched with their caring responsibilities, and they need support and help to move forward.
Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con)
My Lords, Her Majesty’s Opposition join the noble Baroness in her ministerial capacity today in recognising the importance of the work of carers. I stood at that Dispatch Box many times and did just that, and we have not resiled from that at all. The last Government recognised that overpayments were happening and in fact increasing, and action was taken by gaining real-time information from HMRC so that carers who were in the position of beginning to overclaim could be contacted quickly and we could try to avoid it becoming a massive issue. We also helped those who found themselves in that position by either suspending their repayments until they were in a position to repay or indeed elongating the amount of time that would be given them to pay. Carers also receive an annual statement, and so they have an opportunity to make comments and representations to the DWP to talk about it. Can the noble Baroness say what we are going to continue to do to make sure that we get hold of the problem sooner rather than later, where it exists? On many occasions, I was lobbied and questioned in quite a lot of detail by people who asked whether the Government would write off these overpayments. I now take the opportunity, in the nicest spirit, to ask whether His Majesty’s Government will write off these repayments, and whether any provisions have been made in the accounts to do so.
Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)
I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Stedman-Scott, for her comments today and for the immense amount of work that she has done in this area over many years. The questions she asks are, of course, right at the heart of why the review is necessary. The fact that measures were brought in by the previous Government, I think in recognition that some carers had fallen through the net, is to be noted. We cannot pre-empt what the review will say, but we also have to be mindful that everything we do is in the spirit of fairness, sustainability and affordability, and that we have a culture which encourages everyone involved to be treated with respect and given the support that they need through what can be extremely difficult times in their lives.