The coronavirus pandemic appears to have placed more pressure on children and families – as well as on the professionals responsible for child protection and safeguarding.
But “far-reaching” covid restrictions made it harder for professionals working in Brighton and Hove to help children by carrying out their usual face-to-face duties, according to a new report.
The number of “initial contacts” from families went up from 16,181 in 2019-20 to 16,732 in 2020-21. But the number of “referrals” to children’s social care fell from 3,049 to 2,719.
And the number of “assessments” completed fell from 2,747 to 2,146 although it was not clear from the report whether the drop in numbers reflected a reduction in need.
At first glance, there were more than 1,000 instances of missing children, with concerns that some were exploited or trafficked.
But the figures were among a number of figures elements of the report that appeared to have been were copied unchanged from a previous report.
Not for the first time, councillors raised concerns that demand was growing for CAMHS – Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services – but children faced long waiting times for assessment and treatment.
In some cases, children’s mental health worsened as they went unseen or untreated.
The report said: “It was noted that the numbers of young people presenting to A&E with issues relating to mental health has dramatically increased.”
And three of the leading figures in children’s safeguarding in Brighton and Hove said in their foreword to the report: “The far-reaching restrictions imposed and in some instances the loss of loved ones as a direct result of the pandemic will inevitably have longer-term repercussions for our children, young people and their families.
“We are beginning to understand the implications of a global pandemic on our communities.
“Mental health and wellbeing, disrupted education and restricted mobility as well as the impact of hidden harms such as domestic abuse and criminal exploitation evince emerging pictures of acute need and concern.
“In Brighton and Hove we rapidly adapted our practice methods to provide targeted support for families and children most in need of help and protection.
“Brighton and Hove City Council co-ordinated multi-agency and organisational networks to focus on meeting immediate and intermediate needs.
“Our ‘new normal’ involved strengthening existing links and sharing real-time operational updates to make sure that we focused on our most vulnerable families, particularly during initial covid-19 ‘lockdown’ measures.
“Our frontline staff worked with tremendous resilience and selflessness as did our remarkable community and voluntary sector organisations.
