Shadow Board

Shadow Boards were developed for:
• Children and Young People
• Parents and Carers
• Diversity
• The Voluntary Sector

Their role is to scrutinise the work and decisions of the Executive group as well as making recommendations through a link officer.

Membership of the Shadow Boards has been drawn from:
• Fathers
• BME Parents of children who are overrepresented in terms of educational underachievement
• Parents of Children with Disabilities
• Parents who had experienced domestic abuse
• Parents misusing or affected by drug and alcohol misuse
• Parents with mental health difficulties
• Teenage Parents
• Parents whose children have entered the criminal justice system
• Parents affected by poverty and social deprivation
• Asylum seekers and refugees

Key Benefits:

• The Shadow Board has now begun to influence the decisions around the refresh of the Children and Young People's plan.
• Influencing CYPP decisions, for example when it was proposed that tackling drug and alcohol misuse be removed as a priority, the Shadow Board proposed that it remain and this was subsequently ratified by the executive group.
• Identifying and overcoming barriers facing Parents and Carers in decision-making which include: lack of confidence; lack of knowledge of the processes; jargon and practical difficulties such as transport and childcare

Presentation

An overview presentation can be downloaded here.