New report lays foundations for stronger joint action to improve children’s outcomes in Lambeth and Southwark
A new report published by Act Early South London sets out a clear picture of the health and wellbeing of children and young people in Lambeth and Southwark, and the inequalities shaping their lives, providing a shared evidence base to support future action.
The Outcomes Report brings together data from across health, care and local partners to describe key issues and trends affecting children and families. It highlights significant variation in child health and wellbeing outcomes across Lambeth and Southwark, and brings into focus wider contexts such as housing, education and income in documenting the scale of the challenge across local government, the NHS, voluntary and community sector and other stakeholders to achieve meaningful change.
Act Early South London is a new partnership that brings together the NHS, local authorities and the voluntary and community sector to improve outcomes for children and young people. It takes a population health approach, recognising that children’s life chances are strongly influenced by wider determinants such as poverty, environment and access to services.
The report marks an important discovery stage in the programme’s “learning health system” approach. It draws on existing data, Joint Strategic Needs Assessments and partner insight to identify and prioritise key inequalities and opportunities for improvement. Partner organisations are encouraged to use the findings to inform local plans, shape future services and strengthen collective action.
Act Early builds on long-standing collaboration between Lambeth and Southwark, including the Children and Young People’s Health Partnership and the development of integrated child health teams across both boroughs through the CHILDS framework. It represents the next step in joined-up approaches to complex challenges in child health, with a focus on prevention, early intervention and system-wide change.
By shifting attention from symptoms to addressing root causes, the programme aims to improve outcomes over the long term, reduce pressure on services and support a healthier, fairer future for all children and young people.
The report was developed in partnership with health intelligence teams in Lambeth and Southwark councils, and was supported by Partnership Southwark’s Start Well programme and the Lambeth Together Children and Young People Alliance, as well as specialists from South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, Evelina Community Paediatric teams and NHS South East London’s Business Intelligence team.
Dr. Raj Mitra, Clinical and Care Professional Lead with Lambeth Together’s Children and Young People Alliance, said:
“The work that Act Early South London have done to look in detail at the different health inequalities affecting children and young people across Lambeth and Southwark has been extremely valuable. Their most recent outcomes report has helped shape our neighbourhood working, strengthen our understanding of local need, and inform the priorities we need to focus on moving forward. It is helping us think more clearly about how services and partners can work together in a way that is of real benefit to children, young people and families across Lambeth.”
Dr Rob Davidson, Clinical Lead for Start Well, Partnership Southwark, said:
“This report sets out a clear and evidence‑based overview of current performance and future priorities, highlighting both progress made and areas requiring further focus. It reinforces our commitment to delivering safe, high‑quality and responsive services, while working collaboratively with partners to drive continuous improvement for the communities we serve through INT work and continued commitment to hyper-local population health management”.
Geetika Singh, System Delivery Lead for Partnership Southwark’s Start Well Programme, said:
“This report gives us a much deeper understanding of the needs of children and young people across Southwark. It is already helping to shape our Children and Young People’s Integrated Neighbourhood Teams (INT), particularly our work on Emotional Wellbeing, by enabling us to identify priority cohorts and co-design support alongside families, ensuring services are more joined-up, preventative and focused on what matters most to young people.”