Presentation of Children’s Services and Manchester Local Care Organisation (MLCO)

This presentation provides an update on the development of the Children’s Services Locality Model and partnership working with the MLCO.

The Committee received a presentation of Children’s Services and Manchester Local Care Organisation (MLCO) which provided an update on the development of the Children’s Services Locality Model and partnership working with the MLCO.

The main points and themes within the presentation included:

·         Update on the Children’s Services locality programme;

·         Partnership working with MLCO;

·         The Smoke Free Family pilot;

·         Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and the opportunity for a future partnership pilot in relation to this; and

·         Next steps.

Some of the key points and themes that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

·         To welcome the presentation and the work taking place;

·         Venues within the community which could be used to engage with people, including the role of Sure Start Centres and the benefits of the co-location of different services;

·         The role that schools and ward co-ordination could play in this work;

·         The impact of smoking on health;

·         That marijuana and shisha smoking were also issues of concern, not only tobacco smoking;

·         That it was important to focus on and review how successful the work was in accessing hard-to-reach groups; and

·         Smoking outside of hospitals, including hospitals providing facilities for smokers.

The Strategic Head of Early Help thanked Members for their comments, stating that they would be taken into account.  The Strategic Director of Children and Education Services described the three phase approach to this work, starting with work within the Council on Early Years and Early Help, then collaboration and partnerships and finally looking at leadership, governance and accountability arrangements, which he suggested the Committee might want to consider at a future meeting.  He also suggested that the appropriate scrutiny committee might want to look at the licensing issues relating to shisha smoking.

Katy Calvin-Thomas from the MLCO informed the Committee that Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust was working hard to prevent smoking on its sites and to encourage and support people to stop smoking.  She offered to provide further information on how the Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust was dealing with smoking around its hospital sites, to which the Chair agreed.  The Executive Member for Children and Schools advised Members that he would circulate a briefing note on work that was already taking place to address smoking in pregnancy.

Katy Calvin-Thomas reported that many adult health services were co-located with social care, mental health services and the Voluntary and Community Sector and that, as many parents were users of these services, they were looking into how this could be joined up with the work relating to children and families.

Decisions

1.            To request further information on how the Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust is dealing with smoking around its hospital sites and to note that the Executive Member for Children and Schools will circulate a briefing note on work that is already taking place to address smoking in pregnancy.

2.            To request an update in 12 months’ time on both the Smoke Free Family pilot project and how the wider work is being expanded.

3.            To encourage Members to discuss these issues through their Ward Co-ordination meetings.