The Cabinet is asked to note any announcements made by Members of the Cabinet.
Minutes:
Roll out of Mental Health Well-being Hubs in Schools across the District
The Portfolio Holder for Partnerships (Councillor McWilliams) was very pleased to announce that twenty-one schools in Tendring and Colchester were opening up new Wellbeing Hubs after a successful pilot scheme at Great Bentley Primary School. That School, working in partnership with Tendring District Council (TDC), had first launched its wellbeing hub in April 2017 in order to provide a focus on its pupils’ wellbeing and help them to thrive, initially running as a six month trial. Following that pilot and its evaluation, which had shown that it had been successful, the North East Essex Health & Wellbeing Alliance (the Alliance) had granted £245,000 from its Investment Fund in order to roll-out the scheme across the District to 21 more schools. Delayed by Covid, all of the relevant training was now in place and baseline data collected, and the 21 school hubs had officially opened. A ribbon cutting ceremony had been held at Great Bentley Primary School on Monday 21 June to mark the transition from pilot to permanent initiative.
Councillor McWilliams stated that she had been very impressed by the scheme and informed Cabinet that the Great Bentley hub was an after school facility, where children with mild to moderate mental health issues were supported in group activity around the themes of play, art, construction, and science, gaining a “rucksack of skills” to help them understand self and learn skills to take them forward into secondary school and beyond. She reported that feedback from the children had included: “I have someone to talk to now – so my worry seems smaller”; “I understand that anxiety is normal but it doesn’t stay for ever and I have ways to work with it”; “Learning how to use my breath has really helped”; and “Just knowing someone cares and is there for me makes things a whole lot better”.
Councillor McWilliams also informed Cabinet that, in addition, the hub also offered information sessions for parents and carers covering topics such as sleep, nutrition and behaviour management. She further reported that Tracey Caffull, the Executive Head Teacher at Great Bentley Primary School, had stated the hub had made such a positive impact on young people’s lives by both supporting pupils with tailored sessions that had helped them develop an awareness of self, the skills to gain confidence and strategies to support but also engaging with parents to ensure children received enough sleep, a good diet and consistent responses from the adults around them.
Councillor McWilliams then responded to a question asked by Councillor I J Henderson in relation to waiting times for children to see a counsellor after the initial assessment of their mental health issues by confirming that he would receive a written response.
Octopus Ahoy!
The Portfolio Holder for Leisure & Tourism (Councillor Porter) informed Cabinet that the “Octopus Ahoy!” street art trail had officially gone ‘live’ that morning. There was an ‘app’ available to download which included sites across the District for children to find and win prizes.