Mental health crisis in children, says tsar

THE children’s Commissioner for England has warned of a children’s mental health crisis after the young spent the pandemic “isolated and indoors”.

Dame Rachel de Souza said children are waiting “far too long” to access mental health support. It comes after her research found more than 270,000 children and young people referred to children’s mental health services in 2022-23 were still waiting for support at the end of that period.

Figures sourced from NHS England reveal 949,200 children and young people were referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services in 2022-23, the equivalent of eight per cent of the 11.9 million children in England. This figure is more than double the number of referrals recorded prior to the pandemic.

Of the referrals made last year, 28 per cent were still waiting for support, while 39 per cent had their referral closed before accessing support.

Dame Rachel said there is “a growing group of children who are struggling with their mental health” since lockdown. “This generation of children has experienced uniquely uncertain and challenging times,” she said.

“Some have spent some of their most formative years isolated and indoors, fearful they or their loved ones may catch a deadly virus.

“[They] are exposed to the harmful impact of social media, cyber bullying, and online exploitation. It is not surprising we continue to see the number of children experiencing poor mental health at persistently high levels.”

An NHS England spokesman said: “We know there is more to do which is why plans are also in place to ensure more than one in two pupils in schools and colleges have access to an NHS mental health support team by spring 2025.”