Longfield think-tank calls for expansion of school mental health support teams
Amrit Virdi
Monday, April 29, 2024
Former children's commissioner for England Anne Longfield has called for an expansion of mental health support offered in schools as data shows 1.4mn children in England now have a probable mental health condition.
Longfield has set out an evidence-based plan to improve the wellbeing of children which includes expanding government-funded mental health support offered through schools and educational settings, starting in the primary school years, to all schools.
“Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) are known to provide effective help to schools, but most schools still do not have access to them,” a new report by Longfield’s Centre for Young Lives and Child of the North finds.
“The government’s current plans mean that from 2025 half of England’s eight million school age children will still not have access to a MHST in their school, should they need it. The work of MHSTs should be widened so it is not just focused on only one-to-one support for children with moderate-to-severe mental health problems, but is also focussed on peer group support and school-wide prevention strategies, including mental health hubs,” it adds.
The report suggests that this can be achieved by involving the community and voluntary sector, alongside health and social care services.
The plans also suggests the creation of ‘one-stop-shop’ online hubs for families and local wellbeing surveys.
The hubs, based on the NHS Healthier Together model, would allow for mental health support for children, families and schools that is tailored to local services.
Some 32,000 children had been waiting over two years for mental health support at the end of 2022/23, according to the report.
Lack of sleep and loneliness were raised by young people as two detrimental factors to their mental health, which led to school absenteeism.
Teacher training to equip classroom staff with mental health knowledge, providing early support for neurodiverse children and using technology to roll out national school-based research surveys is also recommended.
Longfield, chair of the Centre for Young Lives, said: “As an anchor in children’s lives, schools have a crucial role to play in supporting children’s mental health and wellbeing. Yet half of the school age children in England – four million children – will not have access to mental health support teams under current plans. We need to rocket-boost support in schools if we hope to bring down the numbers of children who are struggling with mental health problems.
“We know already that children and young people with mental health conditions are more likely to be absent from school, and that poor mental health significantly impacts on school attendance and outcomes. There should be a cross-party ambition to reduce the prevalence of children’s mental health conditions by half over the next 10 years, and all politicians should agree that the current system is failing too many children and needs urgent attention.”
Meanwhile, a recent analysis of NHS figures found that 8% of children and young people in England were referred to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in 2022/23.
