Agenda item

RESOLVED that:

1.    the Scrutiny Manager arrange visits for the Committee to:

a.    Children’s A&E to better understand the care experience of Children and Young People during an acute mental health episode

b.    Schools

2.    Scrutiny Manager to ask the Chair of Healthier Communities Select Committee (HCSC) to invite CYP Select Committee to participate in their scrutiny of BLACHIR at the HCSC meeting on 7 September;

3.    An item on the cost of living crisis be scheduled for consideration at the 9 November meeting. In particular this item will look at best practice gained from visiting schools and other frontline settings;

4.    An information item providing an update on the youth service be scheduled for September;

5.    An information item providing information about holiday activities and food should be added to the work programme for July;

6.      An item on school places planning to be added to work programme for January;

7.    An item on amplifying the voices of young people to be added to work programme for March.

The Chair introduced the report and highlighted that some suggestions had been received but were yet to be incorporated into the draft work programme. These were school places planning, amplifying the voices of children and young people, and the Birmingham and Lewisham African Caribbean Health Inequalities Review (BLACHIR).

The following was noted in discussion:

·         School places planning would cover changes in demand and popularity of schools. The general trend was a downturn in primary pupil numbers and it was expected that that trend would continue. Meanwhile the secondary school population was increasing.

·         Members asked that it include information on church schools. It was explained that Lewisham did not hold that information, but the two diocesan co-opted members may be able to provide that information.

·         The item on school places planning should be added for consideration in January. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager to add school places planning to work programme for January

·         Amplifying voices of children and young people could be heard in March as a single, stand-alone item for in depth scrutiny. It should cover how best to engage young people in policy making and service design and delivery. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager to add “amplifying the voices of children and young people” to work programme in March

·         The Chair encouraged Members to make a greater effort to attend forums that are ‘owned’ by young people. Members were reminded that there would be a pizza evening with the Young Mayor and Advisors on 6 July at the Bank of Things in Lewisham Shopping Centre.

·         The Chair requested that a meeting with the Children in Care Council be arranged. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager to arrange

·         Councillor Ingleby suggested that the schools response to climate emergency could be incorporated into this item. Others felt it could be a great opportunity to engage children and young people in policy making.

·         The Committee was keen to scrutinise the Birmingham and Lewisham African Caribbean Health Inequalities Review. As Healthier Communities Select Committee was due to look at this on 7 September, the most efficient use of resources would be to seek an invitation from the HCSC Chair to enable CYP Select Committee members to fully participate in that discussion. The Committee could then decide whether to look at BLACHIR further, under the work programme item at its September meeting. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager to liaise with HCSC Chair.

·         One Member highlighted that not all schools were trauma informed and that mental health provision for children and young people needed to be looked at. They asked how many schools had gone through trauma informed training, how many have Place2Be and whether Place2Be therapists with representative of the children they work with.

·         One Member said there was a crisis in children and young people’s mental health provision. She said there was a shortage of young people’s beds, and the closest such available bed in the week prior to the meeting was in Weston-Super-Mare. She also said that vulnerable children were being brought into hospital in handcuffs by the police and predicted that the summer holidays would be challenging for mental health services due to a lack of activities for young people. She told the Committee that social workers were handing out McDonald’s vouchers to parents of children suffering from mental health issues to try to help them to re-engage with their children. She urged the Committee to visit children’s A&E to see the challenges facing children and young people’s acute mental health services for themselves. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager to arrange

·         Members of the Committee felt that the cost of living crisis was resulting in increased poverty affecting families. One Member was keen to visit schools to find out good practice on how schools are supporting families in poverty. The Education Strategy report on 13 September could include schools’ actions on poverty and the Schools White Paper. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager liaise with report author

·         Members asked for a briefing on what youth and food provision was in place over the summer holidays, as well as an update on Youth First. The summer holiday briefing would be circulated by the end of term. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager to add to work programme.

·         The Youth First update would be shared in time for the September meeting and should include how the new contract is going, where referrals are coming from, how staff are managing programmes, Riverside refurbishment. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager to add to work programme

·         The Overview and Scrutiny Committee would be looking at the cost of living crisis in September. There was consensus that the CYP Select Committee should look at the cost of living crisis on 9 November and schedule visits as part of its evidence gathering. ACTION: Scrutiny Manager add to work programme. The report could include how grant and other support funding was being utilised, taking a medium term view as the cost of living crisis was not likely to end soon.

·         The Cost of Living crisis was felt to be a good topic for a Task & Finish Group.

RESOLVED that:

1.    The Scrutiny Manager arrange visits for the Committee to:

a.    Children’s A&E to better understand the care experience of Children and Young People during an acute mental health episode

b.    Schools

2.    Scrutiny Manager to ask the Chair of Healthier Communities Select Committee (HCSC) to invite CYP Select Committee to participate in their scrutiny of BLACHIR at the HCSC meeting on 7 September;

3.    An item on the cost of living crisis be scheduled for consideration at the 9 November meeting. In particular this item will look at best practice gained from visiting schools and other frontline settings;

4.    An information item providing an update on the youth service be scheduled for September;

5.    An information item providing information about holiday activities and food should be added to the work programme for July;

6.    An item on school places planning to be added to work programme for January;

7.    An item on amplifying the voices of young people to be added to work programme for March.