The dangers facing children in Hartlepool - and how everyone can help

Craig Blundred, deputy director of public health at Hartlepool Borough Council, noted children in the town faced high levels of deprivation and issues such as obesity.

He also noted the reported states modern life in general is having an impact on children with increased and varied risks which other generations would not have faced.

Mr Blundred said: “We know Hartlepool has very high levels of deprivation.

“We’ve got some of the highest rates of obesity and overweight children in the country which is quite concerning for us. We are looking at putting work in place to deal with that, but there is more we can do with that.”

He added: “We’ve got a number of various increased risks, things such as knife crime, digital dangers and sexual exploitation that all feed into that, it’s a wider issue but we do need to tackle that.

“All of these things are combining to give us a really big challenge to help our children.”

Mr Blundred was speaking to the Health and Wellbeing Board about a recent policy paper from the Association of Directors of Children’s Services on producing ‘a health care system that works for all children’.

Coun Shane Moore, council leader, said he was pleased to see the questions being asked to allow all organisations to work together to address them.

He said: “It sounds like for the first time in many years we do have the opportunity to actually engage with people we wouldn’t have previously.”

Police representatives on the board stressed the importance of research into adverse childhood experiences in the town as a measure to help address the issues.

Danielle Swainston, assistant director of joint commissioning on the council, said everyone must work together.

She added: “There is always an assumption children’s services can solve things for children.

“Actually it’s not, it’s adults in the system, adult services and the bigger systems, substance misuse, mental health, employment, poverty, all of that plays out and impacts on the child.

“We can’t look at it as a whole system if we’re not all sat around the table.”