Agenda item

The Chair welcomed Ruksana Sardar-Akram, Interim Public Health Consultant,
Karen Gosling, Senior Public Health Practitioner, and Chris Lee, Public Health Specialist (Behaviour Change) from Lancashire County Council to provide the committee with a Public Health update on children's health and wellbeing and to highlight inequalities and areas of concern.

The pandemic has had a huge impact on the health and wellbeing of children and young people. The demand on Public Health to manage COVID-19 within education settings continues to be a challenge, which also impacts on the delivery and commissioning of services for children and young people. This inevitably has some impact on the outcomes for children and young people and their families.

The report provided an overview in relation to Coronavirus in children, as well as an update on child health outcomes based on national indicators and child health profiles. The true extent of inequality is not yet known.

Members thanked Ruksana, Karen and Chris for the report.

Comments and queries were raised by the committee as follows:

·  In terms of delivering education to reduce obesity rates, it was noted that as part of the National Child Measurement Program, each child in Reception and year 10 is assessed by the school nursing team. There is also a program being developed in conjunction with district councils to promote physical activity and healthy nutrition. Personal, Social, Health and Economic resources from the Office of Health Improvement and Disparities are also shared with schools. Members expressed that they would like to see more nutrition advice for young people and their families.

·  It was noted that as part of the Oral Health Strategy, advice is being provided along with free toothbrushes and toothpaste and supervised brushing in schools.

·  Regarding the use of social media and mental health and self-harm resources in colleges, it was explained that there has been a focus on colleges and Lancashire County Council have commissioned a program of work called Emotional Health and Wellbeing in Schools and Colleges from a team of clinical psychologists based in Lancaster University. They provide structured support and build the skill level and resilience of staff working in education settings. There is also a range of programs available online. The Public Health team also work with other authorities in Lancashire to ensure they are not duplicating training and with the Child Death Overview Panel to develop a contagion protocol to look at a range of interventions. Colleges also have access to a named school nurse and a service is commissioned to provide an app library to young people as part of early self-care.

·  Members requested for the source of data for children killed on the roads in Lancashire to be shared with the committee and to be able to breakdown the data.

·  It was clarified that the school nursing team are available to young people suffering with mental and emotional health issues. As part of the
Healthy Lifestyle questionnaires offered to children in years 6 and 9, the school nurses have access to the individual responses to be able to triage. The questionnaire also provides an anonymised summary which goes to the school to be able to understand health needs at a local level.

·  In response to queries on attainment, it was understood that school readiness is the key factor to ensure young people are prepared for school. There is the Best Start in Life subgroup which focusses on this topic and looks if targeted support is needed in specific areas.

·  In regard to Health Visitors following up on the two and a half year old review, any issues should be signposted to the relevant service. With support from the Office of Health Improvement and Disparities, the health visitor and nursery nurse team have been trained in Early Language Identification Measure, a new best practice tool. Some children go down the referral pathway, whilst others will receive a follow-up from the nursery nurse to check for improvements in their development.

·  It was confirmed that Lancashire County Council do have a relationship with UCLAN dental clinic, who deliver the dental epidemiology survey contract on behalf of the county council every year.

·  The committee asked for an action plan to come back at a future meeting, which demonstrates how to achieve more statistical equity across Lancashire for health improvements. 

·  In answer to concerns about the youth justice system, it was clarified that data shows this is improving. There is commissioned targeted youth alcohol and drugs services that received extra funding from the Office of Health Improvement and Disparities. Lancashire County Council also works with the Violence Reduction Network led by the police.

The Chair thanked Ruksana, Karen and Chris for their time.

Actions:

·  Action plan to be fedback to the committee to demonstrate how the county council aims to achieve statistical equity for health improvements across Lancashire.

Resolved: That the update and areas of concern be acknowledged.

In addition, the following county councillors be appointed as 'rapporteurs':

  i.  County Councillors Hind and Sutcliffe to work with the Public Health service to further explore healthy eating with a view to reporting findings back to the committee

  ii.  County Councillors Cheetham and Jones to work with the Public Health services to further explore healthy teeth with a view to reporting findings back to the committee; and

  iii.  County Councillors Berry, Woollam and Swarbrick to further explore information behind the data on children seriously injured or killed on Lancashire roads to report back at the March meeting of the committee.