Daily roundup 19 February: Mental health, serious case review, and sexual abuse

The parents of children suffering from mental health problems in England will have more say on their care, the NHS has said. The BBC reports that NHS England will work with mental health charity Young Minds to improve parental involvement in the development of psychiatric services. A survey by YoungMinds found two-thirds of 377 parents believed they did not get enough support, with a quarter having to wait for more than a year for treatment for their child.


Child protection agencies in Southampton made "unacceptable" failures in the case of a seven-year-old boy who died of a head injury, a serious case review has concluded. The Portsmouth News reports that Blake Fowler suffered a severe head injury at his home in December 2011 from which he later died. Concerns around ill-treatment were first noted in November 2007 and he came into contact with health and social care services several times before his death.


Allegations of sexual abuse in Nottingham care homes were ignored by police because of children’s backgrounds, a former senior social worker has claimed. According to the BBC, the former social worker made complaints as recently as the early 2000s after children disclosed sexual abuse to her. Police and crime commissioner Paddy Tipping said that victims "haven't been listened to enough".


Service cuts are leaving thousands of disabled children waiting too long for vital treatment, the British Academy of Childhood Disability (BACD) has suggested. BACD claims some children are missing out on vital therapy and support, while others have been left waiting more than two years for a diagnosis. The BBC reports BACD chair Dr Karen Horridge described the assessment and diagnosis delays as “unacceptable”.