There has been a worrying rise calls for vital support for children and young people in West Dunbartonshire - says a senior council official.
Laura Mason, West Dunbartonshire Council’s head of education, told councillors that child protection and online sex abuse cases are among those being flagged.
Ms Mason was speaking at the West Dunbartonshire community planning management board meeting last Thursday in which she detailed support systems which are in place.
The Lennox Herald has reported before on long waiting list for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and Ms Mason told how there was also a new scheme called Let’s Introduce Anxiety Management (LIAM).
This is available to young people who do not fit the criteria for CAMHS but who are still requiring support.
It is a Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) approach and has been successfully delivered virtually but will move to face-to-face sessions in due course.
She said: “That’s really important at this time with so many of the struggles that we are seeing for our children and families.
“The numbers of children and young people experiencing difficulties is rising, there’s a real increase in our initial referral discussions.
“In a lot of children protection cases, we are seeing a lot of children coming through earlier.
“There’s a real need for joined up intervention at that point.
“There’s a working group being put together for all of the online sexual abuse cases we are seeing.”
The education chief also told how some school buildings may be used for children’s hearings sessions if required.
And she also thanked all parties involved in delivering the council’s summer extravaganza programme.
This was made up of a series of fun-filled events for children of all ages over the summer break.
Some £276,000 was invested in the programme with the council saying it was in response to the pressure on families and young people during lockdown.
Ms Mason said: “The summer extravaganza programme has gone very well. We had additional targeted funding and our partners have really stepped up and worked alongside the council to put programmes in place. Everybody has pulled together and put on a terrific programme over the summer.”
