Issue - meetings

The Community and Wellbeing Committee agreed in its work plan for 2016/17 to set up a number of task groups to review important areas of policy, including a task group to evaluate the provision and development of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in Brent. The purpose of the scrutiny task group was to review the effectiveness of the CAMHS model in providing support to young people in Brent at present, and how the model could be adapted to better meet needs in the future. This report sets out the recommendations developed by members.

RESOLVED that:

6.1       The recommendations and contents of the task group’s report, as they were agreed by Community and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee on 19 July, be noted.

               Councillor Ahmad Shahzad OBE, Chair of task group, thanked the Cabinet for the opportunity to present this task group report.

               Councillor Shahzad informed members of Cabinet that the purpose of the scrutiny task group was to review the effectiveness of the CAMHS model in providing support to young people in Brent at present, and how the model could be adapted to better meet needs in the future. He stated that this included looking at the transformation plans being developed.

               Councillor Shahzad stated that the focus of the task group in gathering evidence was on qualitative evidence from face-to-face discussions with NHS and health providers, Brent Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), school and further education representatives, and community representatives.

               Councillor Shahzad informed Cabinet that the other members of the task group were Councillor Ruth Moher, Councillor Neil Nerva and Dr Jeff Levison, a co-opted committee member. He stated that Hamza King was co-opted to represent Brent Youth Parliament.

              Councillor Shahzad presented the task group’s full recommendations:

Brent Clinical Commissioning Group:

1.    Increase investment in mental health support with Brent’s schools to ensure all schools can access Targeted Mental Health in Schools (TaMHS), Place2Be or an equivalent mental health support programme for schoolchildren.

2.    Improve pathways to young people receiving CAMHS support by emphasising to head teachers that they can refer directly to CAMHS and increasing the CCG’s information and communication to schools about what support is available.

3.    Offer a programme of peer and staff support in schools and further education to strengthen awareness of emotional health and wellbeing and signpost them to effective support.

4.    Organise a network of community champions to promote good mental health and wellbeing among children and young people in their community and signpost young people to effective support.

Brent Clinical Commissioning Group and Brent Council:

5.    Organise a one-off event for parents modelled on ‘It’s Time to Talk’ to develop community-led solutions to improving children and young people’s emotional wellbeing and mental health in Brent, and strengthen partnership working between the CCG, local authority, schools, voluntary sector, faith and community groups, youth organisations, and further education colleges on this issue.

               Councillor Mili Patel, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, thanked Councillor Shahzad for his work leading the task group and welcomed the group’s recommendations.

               RESOLVED that:

6.1       The recommendations and contents of the task group’s report, as they were agreed by Community and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee on 19 July, be noted.