Children's mental health plans ‘fail to recognise childhood abuse'

A third of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have failed to acknowledge that childhood abuse and neglect leads to a high risk of going on to develop mental health problems, analysis by the charity has found.

Of the 117 plans the NSPCC reviewed, 39 did not mention the links between childhood abuse and mental health, while many of the remaining 78 plans failed to give a detailed analysis of local need or available support.

Only 14 per cent of all plans contained both relevant data, such as the number of children on protection plans, and a recognition that the prevalence of child abuse and neglect was generally larger than what is known to services.

The report states that sexual abuse in childhood has been attributed to 11 per cent of all common mental disorders in England, 7 per cent of alcohol dependence disorders, 10 per cent of drug dependence disorders, 15 per cent of eating disorders and 17 per cent of post-traumatic stress disorders.

CCGs, which are responsible for commissioning child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), were required to produce Local Transformation Plans by the end of last year to outline how they would spend their share of the £1.4bn Future in Mind funding package announced by government to improve children's mental health services by 2020.

According to NHS guidance, Local Transformation Plans must cover "the full spectrum of interventions".

But many plans lacked detailed information on investment into supporting children who have been abused, according to the report, Transforming Mental Health Services for Children Who Have Experienced Abuse.

It states: "Experiencing abuse, exploitation or neglect has a major impact on the developing child and is linked to long-term chronic problems into adulthood.

"The commissioning of mental health and therapeutic support services must take into account that the trauma of abuse or neglect is often the underlying cause of poor psychological wellbeing in many young people."

There are five remaining CCGs yet to publish their plans.