Hackney Council is set to streamline young people's health services, aiming for a more integrated and effective model. The move comes as the council reviews and redesigns services commissioned from Young Hackney, with a focus on building capacity within schools to deliver high-quality Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education.
Public Health is leading the redesign, shifting away from direct delivery of PSHE in schools. Instead, the focus will be on empowering schools to deliver the education themselves, with targeted support for sensitive topics like Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) and substance use. The council aims to address variability in young people's experiences of sexual health and relationship education through several key initiatives. These include a regular clinic at the new Hackney Care Leavers Hub, a dedicated young people's sexual and reproductive health nurse, quarterly public health outreach to contingency hotels, and a year-long campaign promoting services like the condom distribution scheme, STI testing, and HealthSpot. A weekly clinic is also available at The Edge Youth Hub in Woodberry Down, in addition to the weekly clinic at HealthSpot.
The Children and Young People Scrutiny Commission discussed the changes at a meeting on Wednesday, 10 December 2025, where they reviewed sexual and reproductive health services for young people.
According to the Sexual & Reproductive Health Services for Young People report, feedback from schools, young people, and partners indicated that RSE and substance use are challenging topics for school staff. The new model will retain the option for direct delivery by external professionals with specialist training, ensuring schools can access expert-led sessions while building their own capacity.
To support teachers in addressing these challenges, Public Health is focusing on building capacity within schools to deliver high-quality PSHE themselves, while targeting additional support to schools on more sensitive topics, particularly around RSE and substance use. The redesigned offer will focus on several key areas that add value to existing teaching, including:
- Capacity building for teaching staff, supporting them to embed whole-school approaches to health and wellbeing and improve the quality of delivery in areas in which school staff finding teaching these areas most difficult;
- Direct engagement with children and young people
- Development and dissemination of high-quality teaching resources that align with local priorities and national guidance;
- Improved awareness of local support services
- Sharing of local data and intelligence
Cllr Anntoinette Bramble, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet member for Education, Young People and Children's Social Care, and Cllr Chris Kennedy, Cabinet Member for Health, Adult Social Care, Voluntary Sector and Culture, addressed the commission in a letter, emphasising the importance of good quality RSE in promoting lifelong health, wellbeing, and respectful relationships.
The Cabinet members' response clarified that schools are responsible for delivering statutory PSHE and RSE. The new integrated young people's service, delivered by Young Hackney, is designed to complement and enhance this provision, not duplicate or replace it.
To address potential concerns from parents or community members regarding the content and delivery of RSE in schools, the council has already consulted with schools, young people (through focus groups), and a wide range of partners to inform the development of the new service model for sexual and reproductive health. Looking ahead, the new service will embed ongoing consultation and co-production with young people as a core element of service design and delivery. This will enable the council to review quality and ensure that the offer remains relevant, responsive, and reflective of the lived experiences and needs of Hackney's diverse youth population.
The council also plans to re-establish a borough-wide Healthy Schools Community Network, co-chaired by Hackney Education, Public Health, and Young Hackney, to support schools in their delivery of statutory and supplementary provision.
