Listening to the Havens – One Year On
In July, 27 people attended the Healthwatch ‘one year on’ event for the Havens Listening Tour. We heard that mental health services for young people are to receive a significant boost with all senior schools in East Sussex now engaged with a programme supporting young people.
A new i-Rock project is about to launch on Denton Island offering young people aged 14 – 25 a drop in service three days a week for advice and support on emotional and mental wellbeing, jobs, education and housing.
We also heard that there is a Sussex wide independent review of emotional health and wellbeing support for children and young people until end of September 2019.
There are continuing concerns for vulnerable residents placed by Brighton & Hove City Council living at Kendal Court in Newhaven. Local support services are not being planned and co-ordinated as well as they could be and a meeting was held to discuss this between East Sussex and Brighton agencies on 17th July, including ESCC, HWLH CCG, SCDA and Healthwatch.
Local people and agencies have been informed that some issues have been partially addressed in the short term, including a welfare worker attending once a week and a mobile laundry service in place. However new tenants are still not being issued with bedding in some cases.
Concern around GP appointments in Newhaven and Peacehaven have not gone away, including the potential impact of new housing. Some appointments are available evenings/weekends but on the telephone residents are sometimes told that none are available.
Some residents are waiting outside the doctors from 08:00 to try and get an appointment as it is so hard to get through on the phone, and if you do, there are no appointments available.
