Liverpool takes step closer to becoming Unicef Child Friendly City

LIVERPOOL has reached a milestone in its ambition to become the 1st Unicef Child Friendly City in the North West. In November 2018, following work with partner agencies and young people, the City Council submitted a bid to the global children's organisation which cemented its intentions to put young people at the heart of everything it does. Unicef UK has officially accepted the bid.  This kick starts a 3 to 5 year partnership which will see politicians, Council staff and other Liverpool stakeholders, such as the:- Universities, health providers and Merseyside Police, work with Unicef UK, to receive expert training and support in order to make sure children's rights are reflected in policies, programmes and budgets. As set out in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, children and young people will have a say on Council decisions; ranging from major policies and decisions around the care they receive right though to getting involved in designing new spaces in the City or introducing new services.

To launch the partnership, a series of events will take place. The City will literally fly the flag for the new initiative as young people from Liverpool's Schools Parliament will join:- UNICEF UK's Child Friendly Cities and Communities Programme Director Naomi Danquah, and Cabinet Member for Children's Services Councillor Barry Kushner as they raise the Unicef UK flag from the roof of Liverpool Town Hall. Following this, around 70 young people will gather in the Council chamber to find out what this means for them and how they will be involved moving forward. They will be representing groups such as the Schools Parliament, Children Care in Council, Liverpool Arabic Centre, Barnado's Young Carers, Merseyside Youth Association, Young People's Advisory Service and Champions for Young Disabled People.

In the afternoon, more than 50 primary School pupils from Faith Primary and Holy Cross Primary Schools will head to Liverpool Central Library's Discovery area for a special storytelling session as part of World Book Day. On hand to read some of their favourite children's books to the youngsters with Unicef UK will be Cllr Kushner and Superintendent Mark Wiggins from Merseyside Police, as well as representatives from the University of Liverpool, Liverpool Charity and Voluntary Services, Liverpool Learning Partnership, Merseyside Community Rehabilitation Company and the Reader Organisation.

Following the launch, Liverpool will embark on the:- 'Discovery Phase' of the programme; this will see the City Council and its partners work with local children and young people to identify 3 areas, or 'badges,' that should be prioritised in order to make the City more child friendly. For example:- safety, education, staying healthy or employment. 3 other badges will be set by Unicef UK.

Liverpool will be assessed on a regular basis throughout the programme, which will culminate in the City Council submitting evidence that positive changes have been implemented, alongside testimonials by children and young people. If Liverpool is successful, it will be internationally recognised as a Unicef Child Friendly City, joining Cities and communities in 40 countries which are taking part in this global programme.

Mayor Anderson, said:- "Our vision for the future of Liverpool is to build a strong and growing City based on fairness. Everyone, of every generation, has an important part to play in making that happen, but co-designing the future of our City with children is an important step forward. Children will be at the heart of decision making. Working with an organisation such as Unicef UK means we are working with the very best when it comes to improving the lives of future generations and opening up the best possible opportunities for them. This is very much the start of a long and ambitious journey towards receiving international recognition, however we already have many child friendly processes and initiatives in place, so it's a case of building on these and making sure we give a voice to as many young people as possible."

Naomi Danquah, said:- "We are delighted to welcome Liverpool City Council to the Child Friendly Cities and Communities Programme. These are challenging times for Local Authorities, but this partnership represents a bold commitment from the City Council and their partners to put children's rights at the heart of everything they do; from early conversations around children's spaces and services in Liverpool, to the day to day running of those services. We're excited to see this partnership make a real and lasting difference to children's lives in Liverpool."

Councillor Kushner, said:- "It's a real coup to have Unicef UK partner with the Council to enable positive change across the City.  This process means we can ensure meeting children's needs is not just a priority for the Council, but a priority for the City as a whole. We will bring together partners from across Liverpool to look at how we can all embed children's rights in our work with and for young people. We already have a clear vision when it comes to children; for example, we are committed to keeping all our Children's Centres open and making care leavers exempt from Council Tax. However this will really focus our, and our stakeholder's, approach to initiating meaningful conversations with young people to make a real difference."

Big Book of Best Practice up for big healthcare award

A communications initiative aiming to share best practice across local NHS services and beyond has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award. Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust's (CWP) 'Big Book of Best Practice,' an annual publication highlighting examples of gold standard clinical practice within the fields of mental health, physical health and learning disability services' has been nominated in the Communications Initiative category of the Health Service Journal (HSJ) Value Awards.

Sheena Cumiskey, CWP chief executive, said:- "I'm delighted our 'Big Book of Best Practice' has been shortlisted for a HSJ Value Award. Much more than simply recognition of achievement, the book is a way for us to share these successes not just across our footprint of Cheshire and Wirral, but also with colleagues across the wider NHS and beyond. It encourages us all to break down organisational and geographical barriers and embrace a meaningful, universal culture of learning."

HSJ Value Awards seek to recognise and reward outstanding efficiency, improvements in patient care and reduction in unwarranted variation. CWP's 'Big Book of Best Practice' enables colleagues from across a large geographical footprint share ideas and implement best practice approaches inspired by other colleagues.  Since publication in October, the 2018/19 edition has been downloaded over 4000 times, with 500 physical copies being shared among local healthcare staff, people accessing services, their carers and families.

Examples of best practice featured in this year's book include:-

► The introduction of Lived Experience Connectors across Cheshire and Wirral to support person centred development in Trainee Nursing Associates.

► The creation of a Wirral Child and Adolescent Mental Health advice line open to anyone in the community who would like support regarding a child or young person's mental health.

► Improved access to adult autism assessments in Wirral and West Cheshire through a redesigned pathway.

Sheena continued:- "Within this book there are many examples of pioneering service delivery that have the potential to improve people's experiences up and down the country; we now just need to get it into the right hands."

Describing the Big Book of Best Practice, Shadow Health Minister MP Justin Madders added:- "The Big Book is an extremely important innovation, which enables best practice to be shared within the organisation and with the wider NHS. It is clear how staff have embraced it as a way of sharing their innovative work and improvements."

CWP provides mental health, learning disability and community physical health services throughout Cheshire and Wirral. These services are provided in partnership with commissioners, Local Authorities, voluntary and independent organisations, people who use services and their carers. The Trust also provides specialist services within Liverpool, Sefton, Bolton, Warrington, Halton and Trafford.

You can now find out more about the above examples and to read the:- 'Big Book of Best Practice 2018/19,' in full, via visiting:- CWP.NHS.UK