Islington Council’s independent think tank on the best way to develop Children’s Services begun its work this week. The new Children’s Commission was formally established at yesterdays's council meeting (05 Jan 2005) and has been set up to advise the Council on how to fulfill its obligations to the borough’s children and young people. The Commission will also make suggestions on how Islington can implement its ambitious vision for children where all children’s organizations work together to provide easily accessible, excellent services. The Commission, made up of eight independent experts, was set up as a direct result of the Children’s Bill 2004 which called for major changes in the way local authorities provide services to children and young people. Commission Chair, Marion Lowe said; “By establishing the Children’s Commission Islington has made an exciting decision to create the best possible future for their young people and I’m delighted to be part of that process. The commission is made up of individuals with both a variety of skills and strong ties to the borough ensuring a sound commitment to producing excellent results. We are all looking forward to the challenge and want to encourage any individual or organisation who may have ideas about what changes could be made to Children services to contact us.” “Islington recently became one of the first councils in the country to appoint a Director of Children’s services. We are delighted to have secured such an eminent and experienced group of people to advise us as we continue to develop and integrate our children’s services,” commented Councillor James Kempton, executive member for children. “We have an ambitious vision for the future of Islington’s children’s service and creating an integrated approach is another step forward for Islington’s young people. They are our future and we want to make sure that our services give them the best possible start in life, I’m delighted that the Commission will be helping us to deliver that and look forward to their report in the summer.” Among other areas, the Commission will be looking at how the Council can respond to the challenges of diversity and deprivation to narrow the gap between disadvantaged children and their peers. It will also ask how the Council can ensure that the whole community is involved in promoting the health, well-being and achievement of Islington’s children and young people. It will consider how parents, children and young people can be involved in choosing and evaluating what kinds of services are on offer. Islington is aiming to be a borough where all our children and young people are healthy and confident, feel safe everywhere, live in decent homes, have their voices heard, have good relationships, make a positive contribution, enjoy their education and achieve their ambitions. ENDS
Page Last Updated: 29 July 2008