Parental Mental Health and Child Welfare Network - Policy

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Healthcare Commission review of maternity services

In January 2008 the Healthcare Commission published the findings of its review of maternity services across England and Wales. Commenting on the review, Vicky Nicholls of PMHCWN said:

"The prevalence of mental distress during and after pregnancy is common and well known, and the availability of specialist support of various forms is crucial to prevent problems from worsening and support recovery. The finding that nearly half of health trusts do not even have access to a specialist mental health service is bad news for mothers.

We heartily back the Mental Health Foundation's call for any programme of investment or reform of maternity services to include mental health as an urgent priority. This is an area where mental health cannot continue to be brushed under the carpet, the consequences are too serious"

Full findings of the review
Mental Health Foundation's comments

Staying Safe Action Plan

The government has now published its 'Staying Safe' Action Plan, following the consultation period which closed on 31 October 2007. The Action Plan outlines the key commitments the government will be taking forward over the next three years to improve children and young people's safety.

So what is in the Plan? It sets out principles underpinning all work, how we can help children and young people to be safer, how we can support vulnerable children and young people and how to respond when a child or young person has been harmed.

At the time of the consultation, PMHCWN wrote:
The paper links mental illness, domestic violence and substance misuse as factors impairing parenting capacity. This is not only in relation to abuse and neglect, but also accidental deaths where children of parents who have never worked or are long term unemployed are 13 times more likely to die from unintentional injury than those from managerial or professional families.

The failure to separate out findings on mental illness is worrying as it can further reinforce stigma, for instance, 'children of parents with alcohol or drug problems, mental illness or domestic violence issues can have an inability to concentrate at school, perform below expected ability and miss school often to look after parents or siblings' (page 22)

More welcome is the responsibility placed on adult mental health and substance misuse services to recognise the links between service users who are parents and safeguard children against risks to their safety. One of the consultation questions is 'what problems do professionals face in trying to address the needs of both the adults and children in the family?'

£13m of additional funding is promised between 2008 - 11 to support the development of pathfinder projects to deliver intensive and tailored support for families with multiple severe problems. These will build on family intervention projects and the Social Exclusion Task Force Families at Risk Review.

The paper also contains suggestions for better social work training to work in the new Integrated Children's System and strengthening Local Safeguarding Children's Boards.

PMHCWN will be analysing the full strategy for these pages.

Download a copy of the Staying Safe Action Plan

Department for Children. Schools and Families

The Department for Children, Schools and Families is now responsible for improving the focus on all aspects of policy affecting children and young people, as part of the Government's aim to deliver educational excellence.

Full information about the work of the Department

Reaching Out: Think Family

Hilary Armstrong, Minister for Cabinet Office and Social Exclusion has launched Reaching Out: Think Family, which is the first stage of the Social Exclusion Task Force’s Families At Risk Review. This sets out interim analysis and themes on the multiple problems faced by some of the most excluded families in society.

The report focuses on public services and asks what more can be done to improve the outcomes of the small minority of families who continue to experience multiple problems in their lives. In particular, it poses questions to adults' services about the extent to which they treat their clients as parents and family members. The report suggests that there are opportunities to build on the logic of integration from Every Child Matters to better coordinate all services (including adults' services) so that they can tackle the root causes of families' disadvantage.

The Social Exclusion Task Force will now work with stakeholders and other government departments to develop policy proposals to be published in the autumn.

Click here for more details and the full report on the Cabinet Office website.

The Director of the Social Exclusion Task Force is Naomi Eisenstadt, based at the Cabinet Office.
Website: http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/social_exclusion_task_force/
Email: setaskforce@cabinet-office.x.gsi.gov.uk

Improving Life Chances: The Early Years

The Family Nurse Partnership is the latest in a string of initiatives designed to improve the life chances of children living in vulnerable families. Unlike Surestart and the Children's Fund this really is early intervention targeted at pregnant mothers expecting their first child but living with serious social problems- alcohol or drug misuse, mental illness, homelessness, domestic violence etc.

The scheme has been launched in 10 pilot areas provides nurses to support the parent during pregnancy and in the first year of the child's life. It is intended to build on the work of the health visiting service but to provide more intensive support.

The project which is backed by the Government's Social Exclusion programme is based on successful trials of this approach in the USA . Dr David Olds spoke a special meeting at the Royal Society of Arts to launch the scheme and was able to cite a number of successful randomised controlled trials from different parts of the USA with positive results. Trials have shown improved prenatal health of mother and baby, fewer childhood injuries, fewer subsequent pregnancies and longer breaks between births, increased maternal employment and greater readiness for school. Cost savings came from reduction in criminal activity, lower welfare costs and increased tax revenue from higher levels of employment in the target group.

Of course there are potential pitfalls. Will the service end up stigmatising the recipients rather than liberating them? How will it relate to the existing structures of pre school support? Will resources for this targeted scheme be at the expense of current services? But the project is building on success and its approach is to build on strengths so it deserves a fair trial.

More information
Read more about the Nurse and Family Partnership Programme.