HELENSBURGH’S Bairns’ Hoose facility has gone “from strength to strength” with the opening of its second wing, the area’s chief health officer has reported.
The facility, which assists with trauma-informed recovery and support for children, opened its newly-renovated premises in May 2025, with a second area six months later.
The newer part of the building includes a counselling room along with meeting and family facilities, enabling young people to be supported after interviews.
Evan Beswick, chief officer of Argyll and Bute Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP), also reported that liaison with a neighbouring local authority had enabled further partnership working.
The details feature in a report to go before the HSCP’s integration joint board (IJB) at its meeting on Wednesday, March 25.
Mr Beswick said: “Since opening our Bairns’ Hoose in Helensburgh last summer we have interviewed 45 children and young people, and received very positive feedback from users and our professional interviewers.
“With the increase in our interviewing capacity now embedded we are able to interview more of our children using the Scottish Child Interview Model (SCIM). This model is more child centred and trauma informed and when captured in Bairns’ Hoose should provide better quality evidence.
“In November 2025 we opened a second wing which provides spaces for children and young people to receive support post interview.
“This includes a counselling room, small office, health space, meeting room and family room. It has a separate entrance and will offer our children and young people a safe therapeutic space to meet with the staff supporting them.
He added: “We are entering into some partnership working with the interview team in West Dunbartonshire with whom we share a Police division.
“This working partnership means that between both local authorities and Police, we share our interviewer resource and allow West Dunbartonshire to conduct their interviews in our Bairns’ Hoose.
“This means we can build greater resilience in our team of interviewers in covering for holidays and sickness, as we look forward to increasing the numbers of interviews conducted using the SCIM model.
“West Dunbartonshire bring a commissioned third sector organisation to support children and young people post interview, this small service will be available to children within Argyll and Bute.”
