Officers from North East Lincolnshire Council’s Children’s Services visited the Houses of Parliament last week to talk to Ministers and MPs about a national report into support for children and young people.
The report, published by the Centre for Young Lives and led by former Children’s Commissioner for England, Baroness Anne Longfield CBE, makes recommendations to the Government on a new way to support the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people.
According to the report, one in five children aged 8 to 16, and one in four young adults now experience a diagnosable condition, and the Centre are campaigning for the Government to place more of a focus on the root causes of poor mental health and wellbeing by reforming structures.
In North East Lincolnshire, the Centre for Young Lives have worked closely with senior Council officers to explore the views and experiences of children and young people, including children who have experienced living in care. Officers have also worked closely with other organisations, including the Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) to consider how Government can learn from these shared experiences.
Speaking after the launch of the report in the House of Lords last week, Director of Children’s Services, Ann-Marie Matson, said:
“It was a privilege to be invited in 2024 to join the Centre for Young Lives and Humber and North Yorkshire ICB’s “Growing Up Well” programme – a national exemplar project.
“The project gave us the opportunity to reset our shared approach to children and young people’s wellbeing across our borough, and in December last year we launched the Growing Up Well Charter for North East Lincolnshire.
“This document sets out our promise to children and young people in our area, and is now being considered as a blueprint for other areas.
“Being given the opportunity to be involved in the early work to change and reform how systems work across the country has been fantastic, and it’s great to see that our area is being recognised in this report.”
Councillor Margaret Cracknell, portfolio holder for children and education at North East Lincolnshire Council, said:
“It’s fantastic to see that, following the incredible feedback from Ofsted inspectors last summer, our area being recognised as an exemplar and a test case for how systems and support structures should work for children and young people.
“Contributing to this report has given our services the chance to really reflect on the experiences of those in our care and living in our borough, and to consider how we can do things differently to support them most.
“We look forward to continuing to work closely with our partners in the Integrated Care Board and with the Centre for Young Lives and the Government to develop and strengthen national support for children and young people.”
Baroness Gillian Merron, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Women’s Health and Mental Health, also attended the launch of the report and outlined the Government’s ambitions for improving mental health, health and wellbeing of children and young people.
To read the Centre for Young Lives Growing Up Well Report in full, visit: https:ik.imagekit.io/centreforyounglives/Reports/Growing_Up_Well_2026/Full_Report.pdf?updatedAt=1769422060291.
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