Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Results ‘encouraging’
Women on scheme report major improvements in life
EARLY results of a social work scheme g iv i ng women targeted support on the condition they use contraception has been hailed by council chiefs as “especially encouraging”.
Pause Dundee was once criticised as “incompatible with universal healthcare” for its operating model, which targets women who have had a two or more children removed from their care by local authorities.
Many of those who have children removed have complex needs and may be particularly vulnerable, such as survivors of domestic abuse.
The programme, inspired by similar initiatives in England, gives women personalised long-term support for issues such as substance misuse and finding work, on the condition they don’t fall pregnant.
Following an “initial engagement period” of up to four months the women are given a choice to continue on their own or to continue with a more in-depth programme, for which they are required to submit to contraceptive treatment.
Dundee children and family services chief Paul Clancy says those who have engaged with Pause have given “positive feedback”.
In a report being presented at committee on Monday, he wrote: “In the interim, six months into the programme, women who have commenced on the programme have reported major improvements in various aspects of their lives.
“(These include) better engagement with services such as health services, social work, benefits and housing; re-establishing contact with children who have previously been removed from their care; improvement in the quality of contact with their children (and) improved selfesteem and a sense of hope.”
In all, 32 women have been involved in the programme so far. Mr Clancy’s report does not detail how many of those women have agreed to contraceptive treatment.
The scheme has been administered by Tayside Council on Alcohol in partnership with other local bodies such as Dundee City Council and will run until around this time next year.