Transforming Young People’s Mental Health Provision
Improving children and young people’s mental health provision is a priority for the Government, tackling a profound injustice that holds people back from achieving their true potential. This drive is backed by unprecedented levels of funding to support real change and while much progress is already being made, the publication this week of a Green Paper on the topic marks a stepping up of our ambition.
We know around half of all mental illness starts before the age of 14 so it is vital children get support as soon as they need it. Around 850,000 children – one in ten – have a diagnosed mental health condition, such as anxiety, depression or eating disorders. Thankfully, so much has changed in how we think about mental illness in recent years due to the brilliant work of extraordinary campaigners across the country. But now we need hard action to ensure our young people get the support they need to stay well and help them achieve their true potential.
Progress to date has been encouraging. A record £11.6 billion a year is now spent on mental health, with further increases planned. Last year NHS investment in frontline mental health services rose by over £575 million and this new plan, worth £300 million, will mean even further improvements.
The new Green Paper sets out proposals to intervene earlier, in particular through closer working between the NHS and our schools. It also contains a number of other proposals to improve support for young people’s mental health, including work on keeping young people safe online. Every school will have a designated, senior person responsible for co-ordinating counselling services and other forms of support.
The plan will see the recruitment of thousands of professionals to form new mental health support teams, which will dramatically expand the range of treatments that can be offered in or near schools and colleges. We will also be piloting a new waiting time standard in some areas for children to be seen within four weeks by a psychiatrist or other mental health professional if they need it. Overall an encouraging, package but lots more to do.