Praise for looked after children in Milton Keynes after successful lockdown

A meeting on Wednesday was told that they had recorded a great set of exam results in the summer with some heading for universities and college education.

MK Council is officially the ‘corporate parent’ of something like 400 young people who have been taken into their care.

“Without having the daily battle of going to school the lockdown period has worked well for our foster carers,” said Dr Mac Heath, the council’s director of children’s services.

“They showed resilience at a challenging time.”

He added that some young people preferred to have virtual meetings rather than face to face.

But virtual meetings with birth parents had proved difficult “especially with those who cannot sit still!”

Different age groups saw different issues, with the older age group “struggling at times” to follow stringent social distancing guidelines, he said.

But the council worked with police to take a “measured approach” to issues when they arose.

As far as the return to school for the majority of pupils, he said it has been a “positive and good return, including for our special schools.”

Members of the corporate parenting panel were told that the year 11 cohort of looked after children had recorded ‘really positive’ exam results.

And other children had inspired with their lockdown fundraising efforts.

A seven-year-old, inspired by Captain Tom, had raised £400 from a garage sale, and a four year old was so interested in space videos he drew all the planets.

The council has around 400 looked after children on its books, and the new head of the council’s “virtual school”, Rhian Williams, said 47 per cent of the 17 children who took exams achieved results. This was up from 27 per cent last year.

The “virtual school” coordinates the education of all the looked after children, wherever they are educated.

Three young people told the committee of their experiences, with two saying that their relationship with their social worker could have been better.

“It was going in one ear and out the other,” said one.

Another said his relationship with his social worker was “rocky”.

Committee chairman Cllr Marie Bradburn (Lib Dem, Bradwell) said she wanted that issue followed up.

She’s also called the young people “inspiring” and “brave” for speaking up at the meeting and for a covid secure celebration event to mark exam successes.