The Officer presented the report that provided Members with an update on progress made with the development and performance of this new service with a specific focus on support for Children Looked After. That mental health services were on a significant transformation journey that would take time and that the transfer from four providers across Thurrock, Southend and Essex into one had been complex. The Officer stated that the new components were now in place and had already seen a doubling of young people being supported. Communications with stakeholders was ongoing and the service had been presented to a number of partnerships.

The Officer stated that the “Open Up, Reach Out” had key ambitions for the first stage of the transformation, these were:

·         Improving access and equality

·         Building capacity and capability in the system

·         Building resilience in the community

The Officer briefly updated members on the performance and waiting time targets.

The Chair thanked the Officer for the report and the achievements made so far.

The Chair asked Officers what reassurance could be given that waiting times would be met based on the increased demand. The Officer stated that providers delivered evidence based therapies over a shorter period of time with a wraparound support package working in partnership with health, social care and education to ensure those children in the system got well and left the system. A risk register would be developed for those individuals where concern had been identified and to bring them back into the system if necessary.

Councillor Redsell asked how many schools were being trained. The Officer stated that a bespoke training pilot will be undertaken with Tilbury Pioneer School and evaluated and then offered to all schools. The number will depend on how many of the schools take up the training.

Councillor Redsell asked for clarification on where the contact details can be found for the children’s crisis teams. The Officer stated that this number was openly available and through the NELFT service. The Officer confirmed that based on the referrals coming to Thurrock it was evident that this number was known.

Councillor Watkins asked whether the numbers being recorded with mental health problems that had frequently been unnoticed or ignored had now decreased based on the work that had been undertaken. The Officer stated that a lot of work was being undertaken with schools to ensure that early identification was in place.

Councillor Watkins asked Officers what process would be in place to teach parents about social media apps. The Officer stated that this was beyond the scope of this report and that the local safeguarding children board would concentrate on this but would be dependent on parental up take.

The Officer stated that training sessions on “Walk the Line” for children and “Stranger Danger” for adults were available, alongside the digital safety magazine for foster carers.

Paula Gregory asked Officers if there had been any increase in the number of referrals for Children Looked After. The Officer confirmed there was no significant increase and this was a compliment to work undertaken by foster carers.

Councillor Kerin stated that he was pleased with the training being undertaken in schools but asked Officers what steps could be taken to be ahead of the game with social media apps. The Officer stated that this was beyond the scope of this report but the monitoring of apps would continue and training materials would continually be updated.

The Officer stated the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board ran annual workshops that were presented by experienced Police Officers who had updated knowledge of key social media apps and websites. The Officer agreed to send dates for “Stranger Danger” training to all Members.

Councillor Redsell stated that focus should be on those children that would be transitioning from primary to secondary school. The Officer stated that this was already in the work stream to reach out to those vulnerable children and offer support.

RESOLVED

That the members request a presentation from the new provider on the specific needs of looked after children and the impact the service has had on the wellbeing of children in care.

Paula McCullough left the committee room at 8.15 pm.