This week, the government has
published proposals to improve mental health support for children and young
people in England. Over £300 million has been made available. Planned measures
include encouraging every school and college to have a ‘designated senior
mental health lead’, setting up mental health support teams working with
schools to give children and young people earlier access to services, and
piloting a 4-week waiting time for NHS children and young people’s mental
health services
Last year saw the announcement
that a new mental health unit will open in Cornwall in the summer of 2019. The
purpose-built 12 bed unit will open in Bodmin. This is a much needed facility
in Cornwall, that will help young people. All too often, young people have had
to travel out of county, as far afield as Cheshire and Norwich, in order to
access treatment.
In recent years, the number of
young people affected by mental health problems has increased. Maybe it’s the
pressure to fit in and to belong - a sentiment that always existed - but seems
to have been heightened by social media in the digital age which is relentless
and immediate but often impersonal and sometimes offensive.
Some good work is done by the
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) service, which helps
children and young people deal with emotional, behavioural or mental health
issues. There are also some good charities out there which help provide the
support needed. A great example is the Invictus Trust, a small charity which
aims to support and offer services to local teenagers who are suffering from
mental health problems and associated issues. But all agree that this is a
challenge of our age.
