Issue - meetings

27.1.      The Board considered a report on the multi-agency arrangements in place to safeguard children in East Sussex.

27.2.      The Board asked whether the number of sexual offences against children was high compared to other counties.

27.3.      Reg Hooke, East Sussex Safeguarding Children Partnership Independent Chair, said that when the Police figures on the number of crimes reported have been scrutinised, they are similar to the national average. Stuart Gallimore, Director of Children’s Services, said East Sussex County Council works with colleagues in the NHS, Probation services and the Police to identify early young people who are at risk and act proactively to try and help them. This can be made more difficult where the young person does not perceive what is happening as abuse and sides with the abuser. He added that a paper recently went to the Youth Justice Board seeking ways that additional money can be obtained to focus more on this area of work.

27.4.      The Board asked what was being done to improve the transition period between children’s and adult services, for example, for Type 1 Diabetes.

27.5.      Reg Hooke said that the Partnership undertook a discussion about whether there should be a focus on transition and discussed it with the Adults Safeguarding Board. Whilst it is not a specific priority, there is an ongoing piece of work between the Partnership and the Board about transition services. Nationally, Research in Practice has published national research on the challenges of transition services and what can best be done to reduce them.

27.6.      The Board RESOLVED to note the East Sussex Safeguarding Children Partnership Annual Report for 2019-2020.