This report by the Education Policy Institute, commissioned by The Prudence Trust and in partnership with Youth Access, finds significant gaps in early mental health support for young people across England – and a rise in the number of young people reaching a crisis point.
According to NHS surveys, one in five young people in England are likely to have a mental illness; many are not accessing NHS mental healthcare, and amongst those accepted into treatment many wait months or years to begin.
Data from NHS England shows that hospital admissions for mental health reasons have increased by 20 per cent since 2017 for 11- to 25-year-olds – with around 150,000 young people visiting A&E for their mental health.
Given this, there is a clear need to know more about the existence of alternative, non-specialist services and the role they play in meeting need.
The research, using data collected from integrated care systems, local authorities and NHS trusts, shows substantial geographic variation in the range of non-specialist mental health support services for young people – with no clear link between the level of need and the range of support on offer.