Tendring Community Assets Full Final Report

28 7.1.2 Child and adolescent mental health and wellbeing are both hugely affected by environmental factors. It is important that they are able to build mental resilience in their early years of life and into adulthood. About 5% of primary and 9% of secondary pupils in Essex (about 16,000 people) have poor emotional wellbeing, likely affecting their emotional development and educational attainment. Children and young people report that their safety, especially from bullying, is their biggest concern. Being a carer can also adversely affect the wellbeing of both children and adults. 29 7.1.3 Stakeholders report that capacity appears to be an issue for charitable and statutory mental services aimed at children across the district. This was expressed as a particular concern when linked to a capacity gap in the provision of social support to children and availability of low cost activities in some areas. 7.1.4 Across Tendring there are many organised and supervised activities for young people, such as football and sports clubs, leisure centre sessions and longer term ventures such as the activity programmes provided by organisations like Lads Need Dads. The Only Cowards Carry charity runs a number of awareness sessions for young people, primarily aimed at reducing knife crime but also covering bullying and drugs and alcohol. Teen Talk has weekly drop in and coffee morning sessions in Harwich and Clacton where young people can meet, chat and seek confidential advice. Teen Talk also offers training for young volunteers, opening up a wider range of opportunities. Futures In Mind runs pop in sessions and coffee mornings for young people to socialise and seek support, including for those with drug or alcohol problems. 7.1.5 The Tendring Youth Network offers support and advice and provides a single source of information online for what is available to young people across the spectrum of issues affecting them, such as housing, money management, pregnancy, etc. A consultation carried out at the time of Essex data collection found that young people and parents wanted to raise awareness of what is available. Parents particularly wanted easy access to services through schools, GPs or direct access although this was of less concern to young people. Both groups felt that having trust in the service and feeling in a safe and comfortable environment is of great importance 30 . 7.1.6 Many community providers are of the view that from a community and developmental perspective it is the children and young people who are not involved in organised activities who are most in need of support. Whilst it is unsurprising that the range of activities available to all age groups are concentrated in towns and areas of greatest known need there still appear to be gaps in accessibility for some people - this could be for any number of reasons including awareness, proximity or cost. 7.1.7 Stakeholders report that a few years ago it was children aged 12yrs and over where this gap was most noticeable, with a dwindling number of more informal youth clubs and indoor activities. However, community leads in some areas say that the need is now for those aged 8yrs and upwards, with many children wandering through towns in groups unable to find anywhere to go. This social drift means they become vulnerable to social disconnection and the resulting longer term impacts, such as poor employment prospects or being recruited into crime. 31 29 Essex Joint Strategic Needs Assessment 2017 30 Essex CC Research and Analysis Unit: Essex Needs Assessment for Schools, Children and Families 2013 31 Arts and Humanities Research Council; Youth and Community: Connections and Disconnections R Cavalcanti et al; 2015