It has long been known that mental health services for young people need improvement. With lack of investment and priority, the services available have long waiting lists, and lack the capacity to effectively treat and work with young patients. According to the Care Quality Commission, some children are waiting up to 18 months to be seen by a therapist. This needs to be addressed, especially considering that 50% of mental health problems start by the age of 14.

The problem of ineffective support for young people struggling with mental health stretches across three main areas.

GP Training in Youth Mental Health

The first is GP training. A survey by YoungMinds revealed that confidence of GP’s in mental health referrals for children is shockingly low:

• In fact, on 19% of GPs felt they had received sufficient training on young people and children’s mental health

The GP is often the first port of call when a child or young person is struggling. If they are not equipped sufficiently, the chance to change this young person’s outlook and health falls at the first hurdle – when it needs to be caught as soon as possible.

The days of recommending fresh air, socialising, and adjusting your mindset are long over – it’s time to start providing our young people with proper advice and knowledge, to help them understand how they’re feeling.

Improving Mental Health Services Available

Additionally, we need to start improving the mental health services available. CAMHS is stretched, both in it’s lack of funding, and lack of capacity. It therefore struggles to see patients, and treat them effectively and impactfully, to the extent that doctors have little faith in it:

Only 10% of GPs surveyed felt confident that a referral to CAMHS would result in treatment.

With mental health in teens being higher than ever, we need a fully functional and broadly reaching system to help them, accessible to all, and that all parties believe in.

School intervention policies

Thirdly, schools cannot underestimate their role as support for children with mental health struggles. School is where young people spend most of their time, and also the environment that will have fairly consistent levels of stress, pressure and nerves.

Children who feel supported and encouraged in school thrive. Therefore, cultivating an environment in school where young people feel safe, and can access a variety of helpful services and resources is crucial for their wellbeing. Having a department or office devoted to this normalises stress, anxiety, and reaching out – in turn beating the stigma around mental health.
For optimal impact, this should ideally be combined with in-lesson workshops, resources and discussions around wellbeing and managing stress and anxiety.

But how do we tackle these three problem areas?

The key issue is funding. A 2021 report from the Children’s Commissioner has revealed that on average,

Clinical Commissioning Groups spend less than 1% of their overall budget on children’s mental health services, and 14 times more on adult mental health services than on services for children.

Our young people deserve to have more than 1% of budgets spent on their wellbeing.

With the recent injection of £40m for mental health services for children and young people whose mental health has been impacted by COVID-19, we are making progress. However, this spending needs to have young people at its heart. Investing in charities, organisations and programmes that give young people the support and resources to improve their mental health is crucial.

We can’t rely on temporary initiatives; these changes need to be permanent.

What are we doing to help provide support in schools?

mdeducational Foundation places qualified mental health professionals into secondary schools, supporting young people through tailored intervention strategies designed to give them the tools they need to thrive.

We’re advancing a study into the impact of mental health on young people. Understanding the pressures teenagers face and the impact this can have on their lives, is key to building a way to support them. Our programs are pioneering a future where young people are empowered, no matter what their challenges.

We’re giving schools the opportunity to register for a grant that will place a mental health professional in their school for up to 3 years. While this will be for mental wellbeing purposes, the role of this person can also include advising on systemic changes the school could make to improve the overall well being of their students.

Interested in working with us to support your young people in their wellbeing? Contact us