The Lewisham Council Corporate Parenting Group met to discuss the upcoming Corporate Parenting Strategy for 2025-2027, receive updates on corporate parenting activities, and review reports related to looked after children. The group also discussed a missing annual report and received an update from health leads.

Corporate Parenting Strategy 2025-2027

The group discussed the upcoming Corporate Parenting Strategy 25-27 (Planning), which is currently in the planning phase. The strategy outlines how the council aims to support children in care and care leavers¹.

Corporate Parenting Report

The Corporate Parenting Report was presented to the group, providing an overview of the council's activities and performance in fulfilling its corporate parenting responsibilities. The report covered various aspects of care, including:

• Education: Support for the education of children in care, including the work of the Virtual School. Patrick Ward, Head Teacher at the Virtual School, and Kate Smith, the clinical service lead for the CAMS[^3] team that works within the virtual school, were present to provide updates and answer questions. [^3]: CAMS stands for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. In Lewisham, Amanda Waldman is consultant clinical psychologist and lead clinician for Lewisham CAMS, and Claude Jocelyne is Deputy Director for CAMS in SLAM (South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust) across the four boroughs, including Lewisham.
• Health: Access to health services for children in care. Margaret Mansfield, the designated nurse for safeguarding children for the ICB[^4] Lewisham Place, attended on behalf of Christian Nietzsche and Rachel Lanukun. [^4]: ICB stands for Integrated Care Board, which are statutory bodies that bring together NHS organisations and local authorities to plan and deliver joined up health and care services to improve the health of the population.
• Leaving Care: Support for young people transitioning out of care. Sharon Chambers, the group manager for the Leaving Care Service, provided an update on the services available to care leavers. Paige, a care leaver and student at university, and Lujain Ben-Khalifa, also a care leaver, student, and intern at a law firm, were present to share their experiences and perspectives.

Missing Annual Report

The group discussed a Missing Report (Annual). The details of the report were not specified in the provided transcript.

Health Leads Report Update

The group received a Health Leads Report Update. The details of the update were not specified in the provided transcript.