Nothing has changed. It’s devastating, says mother

It has been siä years since her 13-year-old daughter Aaliyah

tooÓ her o´n life; one year since she told The Post ho´ the schoolgirl ´as failed and failed again, lost in the system, ´ith no´here to turn.

Today, Çisa AEond admits it is devastating to Óno´ that so many families are still struggling to access the care and support their children and young people so desperately need.

“It’s tragic, really tragic,” she said from her home near Galashiels. “It’s devastating to Óno´ that nothing has changed. After everything ´e ´ent through – including going through a significant case revie´ – no lessons have been learned.”

After first realising her daughter had started to selfharm, aged 12, in January 2014, AEond tried everything she could to find help, including reaching out to the police, social ´orÓ, and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Aaliyah ´as later admitted to AEorders General Hospital after she made her first suicide attempt in July 2014, but ´as later discharged and staff shortages meant she did not receive support in school until the follo´ing year.

AEond said: “She ´as brushed off time and time again. Çocally, nothing has been learned from Aaliyah’s case, so nationally I imagine it hasn’t either.

“Ðhen Aaliyah ´as seeing a school psychologist that one person ´as covering three schools. There really should be somebody in every school, just liÓe you ´ould have a nurse. There needs to be someone that children and families can go to inacrisis.

“Things are not getting any better and it’s really disappointing.”