Page 19 - OCF Oxfordshire Uncovered

No matter what a child is suffering – sexual abuse, domestic violence, physical or emotional abuse, or neglect – and no matter what their race, religion or age, deprivation appears to be a common characteristic. Sadly the consequences of all these forms of abuse tend to perpetuate a vicious circle: the abused suffer mental health problems, are more likely to misuse drugs or alcohol, struggle or fail in education, and so continue to live life in deprivation. Children of the abused are far more likely to be abused in turn – not necessarily by their parents, but due to their inherent vulnerability.
Referrals of abuse and support of the victims are provided by the public sector at schools, through the health service and social services, at children’s centres and at early intervention hubs. However, government spending on some of these services is likely to be cut in the coming months and years.
YOUNG CARERS
Young carers are children under
18 years of age who often take on practical and/or emotional caring responsibilities that would normally be expected of an adult.
These responsibilities can include:
• Helping to give someone their medicine
• Physical care, such as helping someone out of bed
• Personal care, such as helping someone to dress or wash
• Managing the family budget and collecting prescriptions
• Practical tasks, such as cooking, housework and shopping.
Reasons for people being cared for in Oxfordshire
Children and families
4% 1%
17%
41%
37%
Mental health and learning disabilities
Physical disability Multiple conditions Substance misuse Domestic abuse
Source: Carers Trust
COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS
Children’s Centres consultation
Due to signi cant budget cuts, Oxfordshire County Council recently voted to withdraw nancial support for Children’s Centres that offer universal services for families. These services are accepted as essential to reducing the number of children and families whose cases are escalated to statutory social services, requiring long-term, complex and costly support.
During the consultation process, Oxfordshire Community Foundation engaged with stakeholders across the county, including county commissioners; health and social care providers; voluntary sector service delivery partners; service users; and centre managers and staff. OCF will continue to build these partnerships.
We will support community-based solutions that: preserve universal, preventative services; avoid loss of contact with vulnerable families; and protect the physical spaces in which these services are delivered.
This can be achieved by identifying and sharing good practice; involving community and voluntary organisations in the running of family centres; and accessing funding streams not available to the public sector, such as trusts and foundations and private philanthropy.
In Oxfordshire there were 2,272 identi ed young carers in March 2015. This number has increased by 63% since March 2012. Estimates based on census data reveal that there may be as many as 12,000 further, unidenti ed young carers in Oxfordshire.
Among young carers in Oxfordshire, there is a prevalence for children to come from an economically deprived family (46%), or an ethnic minority background (16%).
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While there are over 2,000 young carers on record, only one in three of these has bene ted from statutory support in the past year – leaving a huge list of children awaiting support