6. Welsh Conservatives Debate: Adverse childhood experiences

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:35 pm on 2 February 2022.

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Photo of Julie Morgan Julie Morgan Labour 4:35, 2 February 2022

Diolch. Welsh Ministers are committed to protecting and supporting the health and well-being of all children and young people in Wales. Wales has led the way on tackling adverse childhood experiences. Public Health Wales's findings about their prevalence and impact showed us the personal, social and economic impact that ACEs could have on individuals, their families and society as a whole. However, the findings also showed us that ACEs were not inevitable and didn't always lead to poorer outcomes or distress. The evidence also demonstrated the potential benefits of preventing adverse childhood experiences and informed our decision to prioritise tackling them in 2016, led by our colleague, Carl Sargeant. And we are very grateful for all that he did then. 

We have made significant progress. This includes establishing the adverse childhood experience support hub, a centre of expertise supporting organisations to become more trauma informed. And I'm also delighted that we have supported so many valuable community-based projects this year, helping to tackle childhood adversity and trauma, and mitigating their impact. But I absolutely recognise there is more to do, and I recognise that in the contributions that have been made here today.