Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thank you very much. We have seen a huge increase in the number of people who did take an interest in learning Welsh, and that didn't just happen through the National Centre for Learning Welsh. You will be aware that Duolingo and Say Something in Welsh and many other services have seen these increases, and these are all things that we welcome, of course. The question, as you said, is whether...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Well, as you'll be aware, Suzy, we have been trying to do a great deal of work in this area. We do have targets in place, and to be honest, we're having difficulty in delivering those targets when it comes to increasing the number of teachers, particularly in secondary schools. That is why we have provided an additional £5,000 to people who are training to teach through the medium of Welsh,...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Well, I have been looking at those ideas and I've been looking at what's happening in New Zealand. I think there are lessons to be learnt, but also, we must be careful that those centres don't become places where people don't want to be seen and therefore, stigma is something that we need to be aware of in this area. There are hubs available in some areas across Wales already, and our...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: One thing that I have learnt over the past few months is that there are many people who perhaps don't need medical intervention, but they do need a great deal of support, and the best people to provide that support are people within their communities, people they see regularly—their teachers or members of the community. So, the idea with the model that's working particularly well in the...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: I recognise that we must intervene at an early stage, because from my understanding, 80 per cent of mental health problems begin to occur when people are children or young people. Therefore, it makes sense for us to focus any additional funding in that area, and that's exactly what we're doing. We are ensuring that £9.4 million of additional funding is provided directly to assist young...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: I have been looking at the responses to the survey. I've been following that, and I must say I was surprised to see the figures quite so high in not seeing follow-up services, and that's something that worried me a great deal. That's why we are going to provide additional funding so that health boards can reach those standards that are expected. Within those standards, there is an...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Can I start by saying, Laura, that you look amazing for someone with a one-year-old, I must say? I don't know you manage it. One of the things that we've tried to make sure is available is that childcare provision, because we recognise that that is important for so many people. Just in terms of support bubbles for new parents, obviously at alert level 4, we had to suspend the ability to form...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thanks very much, Lynne. Certainly, you'll be aware that we've refreshed our 'Together for Mental Health' delivery plan, and within that we have made sure that perinatal services are absolutely central to what we need to focus on. One of the key things we're trying to do is to make sure that we get all the health authorities to meet the standards that are set out by the Royal College of...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Perinatal services have been positioned, as you know, as an essential service during the pandemic. Community teams have worked hard to ensure that that support has remained accessible, including through digital and telephone-based support. We're continuing to monitor the evidence to inform our approach, for instance with the 'Babies in Lockdown' report and the Born in Wales study.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thanks very much. We're very aware that we need to keep an eye on this, which is why we're not waiting until we get the inquests from the coroners, which can take up to a year. We need to get a better real-time sense of what's going on on the ground, which is why we're working with the police. We've got a range of services working together to make sure that we analyse the real-time data and...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thanks very much, Janet, and we're particularly concerned about older people who are living in isolation, who've been on their own for a long time now, who are fearful of going out even to the shops, and we're very concerned about these people, which is why we have put some projects in place to make sure that we can stand by these people. So, one of the projects we've put in place is called...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Diolch, Jack, and I'm really sorry to hear about your constituents. They are not on their own. I am really concerned about the pressure people are under. Anxiety levels have certainly increased. People are feeling very isolated, they're lonely, they're very concerned about losing their jobs, and a lot of people are concerned about family members. And, of course, we are concerned that we may...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Diolch, Jack. We continue to monitor the impact of the pandemic on mental health and well-being through a range of surveys and other evidence. Overall, levels of anxiety remain higher than pre-pandemic levels due to a range of concerns, including personal health, the health of loved ones, and of course finances.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: The capacity of our two CAMHS in patient units is monitored routinely. The NHS has strengthened these arrangements during the pandemic to continue to meet patients’ needs if access is restricted, for instance, due to reduced staffing or outbreak control measures.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Welsh Government is committed to improving perinatal mental health services and this is a priority area for action within the Together for Mental Health Delivery Plan 2019-2022. The National Clinical Lead for Perinatal Mental Health is leading the national network in developing a fully integrated care pathway for perinatal mental health and all health boards are working towards achieving...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: There is a wide range of information available to the public to support their mental health needs through the 111 website. Schools have been issued with guidance to support learner and teacher wellbeing. All health boards have now included new information on their website to help people find the most appropriate mental health support for their needs.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thank you very much. I'd like to thank the committee for their report. The recommendations are useful, and I will be responding fully and formally to them in the new year, as today's debate is very close to the publication date. So, may I apologise that I haven't had time to respond fully and formally by today? But I just want to say that I do look forward to doing so very soon. I understand...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: On tier 4, we've introduced a bed management panel, which meets on a weekly basis, managing the flow of patients between community and in-patient care. A review of age-appropriate beds is also under way to help us understand usage and how we can improve discharge pathways. The NHS quality assurance and improvement team provides intensive support to our two CAMHS units to improve patient flow...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: The 'Mind over matter: two years on' report gives us a perfect opportunity to take stock of the progress that's been made. I'm pleased that the committee has recognised the action that has been taken by Government, key partners and stakeholders. Implementing the recommendations agreed continues to be a key priority for this Government, and my appointment highlights our commitment and provides...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thank you very much. I'd like to thank members of the Children, Young People and Education Committee for their ongoing focus on improving the mental health of children and young people. I'd like to pay particular tribute to the Chair, Lynne Neagle, for her personal ongoing commitment to this issue. We know that most mental health issues begin before people turn 18 years of age, which...
