On 31 Aug 2023 we learnt that a new minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing had been appointed, David Johnston OBE.
Co-chairs Tina Emery and Sarah Clarke had an introductory meeting with the minister on 5 September.
The meeting went very well, giving Tina and Sarah a chance to highlight the importance of parent carer forums as well as the value that coproduction brings when working with parent carers who have lived experience.
They spoke about various subjects which included:
- how vital it is to recognise the value of early intervention and the early identification of needs,
- that behavioural and uniform policies, and the way they are implemented, often has a disproportionate impact on our children
- the value of good inclusive school cultures
- the ordinarily available offers that some schools already implement
The minister then asked our co-chairs to name one change that could make the biggest impact. This was a great opportunity to quote our school attendance case studies, where 81% of respondents had stated that the reason for their children not being able to attend school on a regular basis was, that their child’s needs were not being met. A further 89% of respondents felt if their school had recognised those needs and met them promptly it would have made a huge positive difference to their child’s life.
The meeting ending with an invitation for the new minister to attend a NNPCF steering group meeting, to meet with our parent carer forums from around the country, in their own regions, as well as an open invite to attend our next conference.
We look forward to working with David Johnston OBE, the new Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing.
Below you will find our introduction letter to the minister , and his reply.