Childhood trauma

There is a growing recognition in Blackburn with Darwen that early intervention and collaborative working are essential to reducing the impact of ACEs. The Specialist Public Health Team at Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council has worked closely with stakeholders to raise the awareness and understanding of ACEs amongst professionals, communities, families, children and young people. The vision of the Borough is to reduce the number of adversities experienced by people in Blackburn with Darwen and to build resilience of those who have already experienced ACEs.

There have been a number of approaches and initiatives that have been developed across the borough:

• Raising awareness of ACEs is deeply embedded within our Children's Partnership Board (a sub-group of the Health and Wellbeing Board).
• We have written the reporting and recording of ACEs into specific public health contracts (such as those for sexual health and substance misuse).
• We have worked with Lancashire Constabulary to bring ACEs into the Early Action Programme.
• We have worked with Lancashire Care Foundation Trust to train staff to be able to routinely enquire about ACEs, through the REACh (Routine Enquiry in Adverse Childhood Experiences) initiative.
• We have worked with a local secondary school to be ACE-Aware and ACE-informed, through the EmBRACE (Emotional and Brain Resilience in Adverse Childhood Experiences) initiative.
• We have been in discussions with various stakeholders to raise the awareness of ACEs and have presented at local, regional, national and international conferences.
• We have started to create an environment to support social movements around ACEs.
• We have developed an animation on ACES in collaboration with Public Health Wales.

If you would like to know more about ACEs, the work of the Specialist Public Health Team, or be involved, please contact us (publichealthadmin@blackburn.gov.uk | 01254 585345)