HUNDREDS of youngsters were referred to the Barnsley Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Services in just a year, the Chronicle can reveal.
Staff at BSARCS, based in the town centre, were on hand to help 316 young people in 2023/24 with wellbeing support and formal therapy.
According to a report, a fifth had resorted to self-harm and 17 per cent used substances such as drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism.
The matter will be discussed by a panel of scrutiny councillors on Tuesday.
A report said: “The BSARCS children’s service has received referrals for 316 children and young people in 2023/24, to offer wellbeing support and formal therapy alongside the Children’s Independent Sexual Violence Advocate (CISVA) provision.
“Of the 316 children and young people, ten per cent were looked after children.
“Themes included self-harm, substance use as a coping mechanism and describing thoughts of suicide.
“BSARCS children’s workers also carry out substantial advocacy with schools, seeking responses to young people’s behaviour which are trauma informed rather than sanction based.
“From service evaluation forms, findings were also positive as all felt listened to, with 93 per cent experiencing an improvement in emotional wellbeing, feeling more able to cope with every day life and feeling more empowered to make their own choices.”
The amount of youngsters on a child protection plan made when someone is judged to be at risk of significant harm has grown by 16 per cent in the last year.
An out-of-hours emergency duty team was formed in May, which sees staff take calls and alert social workers if required.
“Ofsted assessed the new provision to be an effective service to children, families partner agencies,” the report added.
“The new dedicated call centre means that calls are answered in good time and social workers are alerted, with greater accountability and consistency, via clear pathways.
“Planned requests for support and out-of-hours visits take place in quieter periods.
“It has allowed us to be more available so that the service offers greater support to children. S
“Swifter response to police colleagues has strengthened professional relationships.
“The trajectory since 2021 shows an annual increase of the number of children in Barnsley who are subject to child protection planning,” the report added.
“Barnsley remains in line with their statistical neighbours for the percentage of children subject to child protection planning and is above the national average.
“Our aim is to deliver the right service at the right time to help children to thrive.
“The council agreed an additional financial commitment of £13.5m in 2022/23, to enable the service to respond to the findings and improve outcomes for children in need of help and protection.”
