Agenda item

This report shares work by Healthwatch York, in partnership with the Land, York Carers Centre, York Disability Rights Forum and Parent Carer Forum York, discussing local experiences of families of neurodivergent children and young people.

The York Healthwatch Manager presented the report; paying tribute to the families, organisations and partners who contributed. She emphasised that sharing stories was an important step to show families not alone and that parents expertise of their own children and family situation should be recognised.

[ The Director of Childrens and Education arrived at 4:45pm ]

[ Cllr Runciman arrived at 4:51pm ]

The Director of Public Health thanked the report authors as well as the public speaker and all involved in producing the report, noting that the Autism and ADHD strategy for the city was currently being written, and had been discussed at the Health Scrutiny committee, and as such this report could not be better timed. He agreed that there was a need to incorporate the voices of those with lived experience of neurodiversity, stating that the larger aspiration was to be a city with a better understanding of neurodiversity in areas such as education and transport, as well as pathways through diagnosis. He assured the board that the Neurodiversity and Mental Health working group for children, adults and those transitioning between services was being well briefed on this issue and hoped to have the strategy completed by May 2025. He added, while the report discussed professionals finding ways of saying “no” to things, this refusal was not due to it not being needed, rather it was due to lack of funding.

The York Place Director commented on the perceived “defensiveness” of the report discussed in public participation – she explained that the ICB had been invited to fact check, and there had a short turnaround of 10 days due to Healthwatch requesting the ICB comment over the Christmas period. She assured the board that York Teaching Hospitals now included a digital flag on their systems, where there were any doubts over accuracy of any points in a report, and she encouraged people to get in touch online via the ICB website regarding commissioning and support. She said that she had read the report with great personal and professional interest.

The Corporate Director of Children’s and Education commended the report, stating that there were good things ahead, although the school system needed to change. He said that the ICB had done good work regarding Trauma-Informed Practice but noted that children and adults who experience autism and ADHD experience “trauma” every day. He also discussed development of this strategy in York, with an additional £60,000 funding to authority, families, SENDIAS.

The Director of Adult Safeguarding said it was a difficult report to read but nothing compared to the difficulties faced every day by the families involved. He advised that a strategic, attitudinal, and trauma-informed workforce approach would help respond to concerns raised.

Board members asked whether the report would be presented to primary and secondary school networks, given the prominent discussion of neurodiversity in schools and the exclusion levels of neurodiverse children in the report. The Director of Childrens and Education answered that this was discussed at the Safeguarding Executive Board and would indeed be taken to schools.