On 18 November 2016, Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust’s 0-19 Children’s Community Health Services in County Durham took part in the Children’s Commissioner for England Takeover Challenge. 
Thirteen young people from The Hermitage Academy in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, engaged in this event, alongside eight staff covering a range of roles within the 0-19 Children’s Community Health Service, plus a One Point Personal Adviser (as hopefully these young people will consider careers in health in the future).
And from the fabulous work they did on the day, they would be excellent candidates for health professions!
The young people were all lower and upper sixth form students, studying Health and Social Care, and had all expressed a keen interest to be involved.
They took over staff roles as health professionals and planned how to progress and deliver on two of the service’s priority health initiatives:
- Development of community drop-ins for young people age 5-19
- Improving breastfeeding rates across County Durham
After a day of very hard work, looking at where, when, how, barriers, and most importantly young peoples’ perspectives on these issues, three actions for each initiative were agreed and the 0-19 service will now action plan, take these forward and feedback to the group of young people on progress and outcomes over the coming 12 months.
Evaluations from the day demonstrated it was a valuable learning experience for all involved, with the service allowing young people to voice their opinions and know that they are listened to, and these young people want to make a positive contribution and have an impact on health services in County Durham.
Overall it was a fun, engaging and productive activity and the Trust’s services are looking forward to taking part on an annual basis.
