Yvette Stanley introduced the report noting that there are a range of issues that fall under the category of vulnerabilities faced by girls and that responding to such issues is not managed or led solely by the Children, Schools and Families department. This work was also undertaken previously by Safer Merton and by our safeguarding board partner agencies.  A recent DV Strategic Needs Assessment recommended strengthening governance arrangements around delivery of these services and a broader brief for the council is to now bring together partners to look at the issues as outlined in this report.

Councillor Marsie Skeete asked if all schools have procedures in place to report concerns when girls from certain cultures are taken on holiday to certain places by families where the child is potentially at risk.  Yvette Stanley confirmed that all schools do have a procedure and report this to the council. Further to this a designated teachers group meets every six weeks to discuss issues. The council also works in line with pan London protocols and undertake the relevant assessments to determine any risks to the child. There is however still a lot of work to do in the health economy as referrals made previously were not coming through to the council. This has provided the local authority with some challenges. Furthermore, there is a need to develop an understanding amongst families of these issues.

Councillor Charlie Chirico asked what counselling services were offered to young girls and women that had experienced FGM. Paul Angeli explained that there isn’t a significant provision nationally or locally in this area at present but that a number of specialist teams operate out of hospitals which provide support. The Afuka charity also offer support to young people and adults.

Councillor Katy Neep asked what provision or funding was in place to support those with mental health problems resulting from these experiences, as provision was found to be quite poor nationally, what emotional well being support the council offered to young girls and what preventative work was undertaken in schools.

Paul Ballatt explained that mental health service provision is split between three tiers ranging from universal (tiers 1 and 2) to specialist provision (tier 3). At tiers 1 and 2, many schools have commissioned targeted mental health provision to ensure there is a counselling service available within the school.  Access to this service can be through self referral or through teaching staff recognising when students have problems or may benefit from counselling. At Tier 3, more specialist services are akin to the traditional CAMHS model. This includes training for non specialist staff to equip them with the skills to provide an initial level of intervention and support to students. Practioners follow national standards and national service frameworks in this area, yet there is a degree of specialism practioners possess which means that services provided can often be less connected to strategic need identified and more to their interests and area of expertise. 

Paul Ballatt added that the council can refer cases to CAMHS for assessment or intervention. The council is also responsible for influencing NHS commissioning of CAMHS services and can use council funding to commission the relevant services.

Peter Connellan asked if this provision was only made available to the secondary sector. Paul Ballatt confirmed that services are available to both primary and secondary schools.

Councillor Linda Taylor asked what training teachers and social workers receive to ensure they are aware of the issues girls and young women face and are able to identify them. Yvette Stanley explained that support is made available to teachers however; the PGCE they undertake does not equip them to deal with such issues. The work to be undertaken to raise awareness amongst teachers can be coordinated through the safeguarding board and through the designated teacher’s networks to ensure this is on their radar.

Councillor Linda Taylor asked if specialists have face to face contact with teachers to brief them on these issues. Paul Ballatt explained that tier 3 CAMHS specialists are commissioned to train teachers so that they are able to recognise and respond to issues. Paul Ballatt added that awareness raising with schools was also likely to result in an increase in referrals.

Councillor Linda Taylor asked if a progress report could be brought to a future meeting of the Panel giving more detail on what Merton are doing in this area and on performance. Yvette Stanley confirmed that this could be included in the Panels regular Update Report.

Yvette Stanley wished to commend young people for their work on FGM which was providing peer support to young people.

Councillor Joan Henry thanked officers for their support and work in this area.

RESOLVED: Panel noted the report and thanked officers for their work.