As part of Every Child Matters and the Children Act 2004, local authorities must create an overarching plan for local children.

- Not another children's plan? The latest bits of the Every Child Matters/Children Act 2004 puzzle are the draft guidance and regulations on the new, strategic, overarching Children and Young People's Plan (CYPP) as they will apply in England.

The master plan? It's supposed to replace a number of existing plans including the Behaviour Support Plan, Children's Services Plan, Early Years Development and Childcare Plan, Education Development Plan, Area Child Protection Committee Business Plan, Teenage Pregnancy Strategy, and Youth Service Plan.

Well, that's a move I can support. Plan rationalisation is a good thing then. The CYPP is a statutory requirement linked to the duty to co-operate in the Children Act 2004. In other words, this is the planning tool for the local children's trust, and the first plan should be in place by 1 April 2006. It must cover services for children and young people from birth to 19 in the local area, as well as those over 19 who are care leavers or have learning difficulties. Unless, of course, the plan is referring to youth justice services, in which case the cut-off age is 17.

Isn't this meant to simplify things? It's never that easy, is it? For instance, other plans that are set to continue include the accessibility strategy required under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, the Special Educational Needs Policy, and Building Schools for the Future. But the CYPP is the local authority plan for children's services, so deals with early years and childcare, education, the youth service, play, and children's social services. Local planning and regeneration, housing and leisure become part of the mechanism because they affect children. Relevant services outside local government should also be represented in the plan. And there seems to be yet another layer of outsiders looking in; the Youth Justice Plan, Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership Strategy, and School Development Plan are meant be aligned with this plan, but separate from it.

See what I mean - planning congestion. Let's get into the detail then.

The CYPP should set out the improvements that the local authority intends to make to meet the five outcomes for children and young people. It's to be framed around a vision statement, basing its proposals on a needs assessment of the local child population, outlining actions that need to be taken and budgetary contributions from the different agencies, and relate each of these to the five outcomes. Considerations about the local workforce are to be included, again linked to improving services and meeting needs. The guidance insists this is a plan of action. It should be published on a three-year rolling cycle, though that point is not specified in the regulations. Unless of course you happen to live in a local authority rated as excellent - in which case, your local authority is exempt from these obligations.

Where is the child's voice in all of this? Consultation during the preparation of the plan is a requirement. The plan must be published, and copies sent to or available for children, their families, and the wider public across the authority.

So they publish it on the internet? Yes. And it has to be reviewed every year as part of the annual performance assessment of children's services.

This review should include some consultation with service users. The final regulations and guidance are due to be published in the summer.

FACT BOX

- Sections 17 and 26 of the Children Act 2004 introduce a new children and young people's plan to apply respectively to England and Wales

- The children and young people's plan: consultation on regulations and guidance is available at www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/conDetails.cfm?consultationId=1294

- Responses are due by 6 June 2005.