There are some very busy people working on behalf of parents and families, and Vanessa Brown is certainly one of them. As the Cabinet Member for Children's Services, Vanessa is also the Deputy Leader of the Council, and just in case this wasn't enough, Vanessa somehow also finds time to chair the Children and Young People's Trust board.

Despite all of this, she very kindly agreed to talk to the Parents Forum about her work. Andrew Jeffrey, Chair of the Parents Forum, managed to meet up with her over lunch.

AJ:       Vanessa, thanks for sparing the time to talk to us - how on earth do you fit it all in, and what exactly does the job entail?

VB:      It's certainly a busy role! My job is to oversee the raft of services for Children and Young People across Brighton and Hove, including health, education, social services and family services.

AJ:       So how does a typical day get filled?

VB:      There are no typical ones! There are always too many important meetings to attend, but I try to get out and about to talk with young people as often as possible, which involves accepting several invitations to visit schools, award ceremonies and so on, (and recently Carol Services, which is one of the more pleasurable aspects of the role!). I think my record is 6 schools in one week!

AJ:       What is your background? Have you always been a politician or did you stumble into it?

VB:      I started as a Primary School teacher in Shoreham, and then decided to give it a go as a member of Hove Council, before we became a unitary authority. Teaching and Politics was too much to fit in, so in 1995 I decided to become a full-time councillor. I've been here ever since.

AJ:       I'd like to ask you about the Children and Young People's Plan for the city. How do you suggest that parents get involved with that?

VB:      Definitely by engaging with the Parents Forum. One of the things I  would love to see is an increasing number of parents using the Parents Forum to feed back to the CYPT, so that we can get a sense of how well different services are working. Good consultation with parents is vital, and the Parents Forum is well-placed to play that role - I am always keen to listen to parents.

AJ:       What would you say were the key challenges facing parents in the city, and by implication the board itself?

VB:      I think parents have a really hard job - when you and I were growing up there wasn't the same amount of drug and alcohol abuse as there is now, for example, and the rate of teenage pregnancy is still unacceptably high in the city. I am pleased that there are initiatives trying to tackle these things, but they remain real issues for parents.

AJ:       On a more positive note, what do you feel the CYPT has achieved since its creation?

VB:      The most important thing is that services are far more integrated now; no longer is there a need for families who need help to have several assessments. A great example is the Seaside View on the old Hospital site which we opened in August 2007; now families with disabled children can go there as a ‘one-stop-shop' and get all the information and support they need about local services available to them. This is the ideal that I would love to see happening all across the city. I think also that the quality of support for children in care (we currently use the wording ‘looked after children') has improved greatly as well.

AJ:       As both you and I came from an education background originally, I'm particularly interested to hear how you feel schools are faring across Brighton and Hove?

VB:      We would never rest on our laurels, of course, but we have far more ‘good' and ‘outstanding' schools than ever before, and according to OFSTED, despite having over 70 schools citywide, we now have no failing schools or those on ‘notice to improve'. I'm very proud of our local schools. We fare very well indeed compared to similar authorities.

AJ:       Well said! Now, I almost hesitate to ask this, given your schedule, but are you still open to the idea of answering written questions put to you by parents, possibly on our website?

VB: Absolutely!

AJ:       Thanks Vanessa - we will definitely be in touch about that! You have been in the press recently talking about the possibility of a city-wide free school meals trial. As a busy parent I would be interested in exploring the idea, but I see you have your reservations...

VB:      We will be applying to the government for a grant, as the council has voted democratically to do. My reservations involve costs; the government would only partially fund the trial, and we would have to find an extra £5 million at a time when other council services are tightening their belts. Of course in an ideal world it would be easier, but this could mean another 5% on council tax, not something I would like to see put upon families during a credit crunch.

AJ: So much comes down to money, I guess. Most people will understand that there is only so much money to cover everything.

VB: Absolutely, and I am more than happy that we continue to pay towards free school meals for those in genuine need, and we already pay a small amount towards every school meal served across the city anyway.

AJ: (Noticing that an hour has passed in a flash) I'd better leave you to your work - thanks for talking to us.