Date: Tue, 22 Jul 2008 08:38:25 +0100
Subject: RE: Draft update on UASC costs negotiations - confidential
From: "Donaldson, John" <[email address]>
To: [email address]

Emma,

Many thanks for update and the work you and John R have put in
over this issue. Enjoy your Hols and hopefully this will have moved on
by your return. In Scotland I'm meeting with the Scottish Government
about leaving care issues and expect we should reach agreement over
funding fairly quickly which should have us ready to engage with HO over
next stage of reform package.

Regards John

_____

From: [email address] [mailto:[email address]]
Sent: 18 July 2008 16:05
To: Donaldson, John; [email address]; [email address];
[email address]; [email address]
Subject: Draft update on UASC costs negotiations - confidential



Just waiting for approval on this but this is the paper that should go
to the ADASS/ADCS Task Force on Monday.



Funding

I promised I'd keep in touch re the progress on the funding negotiations
in relation to your involvement in the UASC reform programme. We haven't
formally concluded the negotiations but we're very close to it - we're
just waiting for more information from UKBA on grants to individual
local authorities before signing off the deal and hope to be able to
inform LAs next week of this. This will include a one-off payment for
leaving care which LAs will have to bid for and an increase in Special
Circumstances payments for 06/07.



UASC reform

We had a meeting with the UASC reform team this afternoon as they are
keen to get local authority - and LGA and ADCS - engagment in the next
stage of the process.



They want to have regional roadshows to get engagement in UASC reform.
LAs will be then invited to bid on a UKBA template to become specialist
LAs in November/December, with a view to these starting in April 09,
with LAs coming on stream in a 1 - 2 year programme. We persuaded them
to move these from the proposed Sept to Oct and to hold them in local
government regions rather than UKBA regions. We also pointed out that
this needed cross-LA engagement, including politicians. We did say we
may be able to offer an LGA presence at these events, which will
probably be regional representatives, given its in everyone's interest
for reform to take place. And we did point out we only covered England!



They are also looking at the ADCS starting the working group on UASC
reform to look at key issues that are blocking the move to reform. ADCS
have already agreed that should include signatories of our joint UASC
response, plus representatives from LAs. Hopefully UKBA will move on
this shortly and we'll await news from ADCS on progress.



They are also looking at support for post 18s that cannot be removed (ie
those NRPF) as a blockage to LAs becoming specialist Authorities. A
possible solution identified by UKBA would be removing the need leaving
care support via legislative means and placing people on S4 type
support. We pointed out the conflict with child care legislation still
remains



Mmm think that's it. I'm on leave until 4 August - hope the weather
improves for us all.



Cheers,



Emma







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