Child mental health needs more focus and attention

According to the international education league table PISA, pupils across the UK have among the lowest levels of life satisfaction and the highest levels of stress and anxiety.

Children who have been excluded from school are ten times more likely than their peers to suffer a recognised mental health issue.

With mental health issues on the rise, schools are reporting that they are often unable to make referrals for urgent therapeutic support services and long waiting lists are leaving children in crisis.

The London Assembly has agreed a motion today calling for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) to be adequately funded by the Government and for the Mayor of London to work with Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) and local boroughs to give schools the ability to refer young people with mental health issues to mental health services directly.



Jennette Arnold OBE AM, who proposed the motion said:

“We cannot ignore the fact that our education system is placing unprecedented pressures on our children, leading to increased levels of stress and anxiety in the classroom. It is also unacceptable that too many young people who have been excluded from school are developing mental health problems, with little support to fall back on.

“The stark reality is that teachers, who stand on the frontline of this issue, are not adequately resourced or trained to help their most vulnerable pupils. Beyond this, underfunded and overstretched children’s mental health services in London offer a postcode lottery when it comes to care standards and waiting times for treatment.

“I welcome City Hall’s Thrive LDN initiative, but it could go further by working more closely with CCGs, local authorities and schools when it comes levelling up children’s mental health care provision across the capital.

“And let’s be clear where the buck stops. Underpinning all of this, is the need for Central Government to put its money where its mouth is when it comes to ensuring parity of esteem for mental health. It could start by using next week’s Budget to row back on a decade of austerity and finally fund health services and schools properly”.

The full text of the motion is:

“This Assembly notes:  That according to the international education league table PISA, UK pupils have among the lowest levels of life satisfaction and the highest levels of stress and anxiety globally. The UK also has one of the highest gender gaps with girls experiencing significantly worse mental health outcomes than boys;  Children who have been excluded from school are ten times more likely than their peers to suffer a recognised mental health problem;  With mental health issues and complex needs on the rise, schools are reporting that they often can’t make referrals for urgent therapeutic support services and that long waiting lists are leaving children in crisis;  The most recent report of the Children’s Commissioner shows London’s child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) are still leaving young people and their families to suffer alone, without the support from public services they expect and deserve;  Schools are often on the front line of recognising and responding to mental health issues, but half of teachers say they do not feel adequately trained in supporting pupils with mental health problems, which contributes to serious stress among teachers and school staff;

Sixteen CCGs spend less than 1% of their budgets on CAMHS, and the top five CCGs spend more than double the percentage of their budgets than the worst performing five do;  Not a single clinical commissioning group (CCG) area in London scored in the top 20% for all five areas of service; the average wait time for services was 59 days; and the percentage of patients who have their case closed before actually receiving any treatment varies from 7% to 52%;  All this leaves Londoners with a postcode lottery that exposes the hollowness of the Government’s pledge to give mental health parity of esteem; and  The Mayor of London has shown leadership through the Thrive LDN programme, providing mental health first aid training in schools, and by supporting the expansion of Good Thinking mental health digital support service, as well as by prioritising staff and students’ mental health through Healthy Schools London and Healthy Early Years London. This Assembly believes:  Children and young people with mental health problems need support rather than punitive punishments such as being excluded from school;  Protecting the mental health of children and young people pays dividends throughout life; half of mental illnesses manifest by age 14, so support and therapy for the young in society can shape their health in later years;  Warm words about mental health are no substitute for cash, staffing, and appropriate prioritisation;  Improving CAMHS is a necessary condition to support the mental health of young people, but it is not sufficient. Broad change to reduce the pressures of exam focused schooling, punitive exclusions, social media, and the uncertain futures many young people feel they face, is also needed; and  Schools are often on the front-line of recognising and responding to mental health issues, but do not feel able to refer young people to CAMHS directly. This results in a poorer referral as the information is indirect and related through the parents to the GP.

This Assembly resolves to:  Ask the Mayor to raise the unequal levels of CAMHS with health partners at the London Health Board and with Sir David Sloman, NHS London region chief;  Ask the Mayor’s health team to work with CCGs and boroughs to level up CAMHS and provide schools with the ability and knowledge to refer young people to CAMHS directly;  Ask the Mayor’s education team to level up the support provided to London’s teachers in prioritising inclusion when responding to mental health challenges in the classroom;  Call on the Government to properly fund CAMHS in its forthcoming budget and provide CCGs with clear input and output targets; and Call on the Government to increase significantly resources for teachers and school staff dealing with students’ and their own mental health issues.