Recommendations & Conclusions
13 items
8
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
We recommend that NHS England & Improvement set out a clear action plan including key milestones, deadlines, and funding for how they will meet their target set out in the NHS Long Term Plan of 100% access to specialist support for all children and young people aged 0–25 by 2029, …
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We recommend that NHS England & Improvement set out a clear action plan including key milestones, deadlines, and funding for how they will meet their target set out in the NHS Long Term Plan of 100% access to specialist support for all children and young people aged 0–25 by 2029, without raising the already high thresholds for accessing support.
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Government response AI summary
The government states it is considering the recommendation but then primarily discusses initiatives focused on the mental health and wellbeing of NHS and social care staff, including funding for mental health hubs, rather than detailing a plan for 100% access for children and young people.
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Department of Health and Social Care
9
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
We further recommend that NHS England & Improvement hold Clinical Commissioning Groups, which have consistently failed to meet national expectations, to account on key measures such as expenditure, waiting times and access rates. National ambitions should be raised in line with the best performing areas so that best practice becomes …
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We further recommend that NHS England & Improvement hold Clinical Commissioning Groups, which have consistently failed to meet national expectations, to account on key measures such as expenditure, waiting times and access rates. National ambitions should be raised in line with the best performing areas so that best practice becomes universal practice. This is essential to ensuring that provision of children and young people’s mental health services does not remain a ‘postcode lottery’.
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Government response AI summary
The government accepts the recommendation in part but responds by detailing the transformation and growth of the mental health workforce led by Health Education England, rather than addressing how NHS England & Improvement will hold Clinical Commissioning Groups accountable for specific performance measures like waiting …
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Department of Health and Social Care
13
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
One of the largest barriers to increasing access to mental health provision for children and young people remains the size of the mental health workforce. We have seen that children and young people’s mental health practitioners face staff shortages, increasing demand and high levels of work-related stress which in turn …
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One of the largest barriers to increasing access to mental health provision for children and young people remains the size of the mental health workforce. We have seen that children and young people’s mental health practitioners face staff shortages, increasing demand and high levels of work-related stress which in turn leads to more part-time work and increased early retirement. We have already made recommendations to the Department on providing mental health and wellbeing support to NHS staff in our previous Report into workforce burnout and resilience in the NHS and Social Care. In particular, we are clear that: • Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) must be required to facilitate access to wellbeing support for NHS and social care workers across their systems, and that they are accountable for the accessibility and take-up of those services. (Workforce burnout and resilience in the NHS and Social Care, Second Report of Session 2021–2022, Paragraph 39); and • the level of resources allocated to mental health support for health and care staff must be maintained as and when the NHS and social care return to ‘business as usual’ after the pandemic; and that the adequacy of resources allocated to that support be monitored on a regular basis. (Workforce burnout and resilience in the NHS and Social Care, Second Report of Session 2021–2022, Paragraph 40).
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Government response AI summary
The government's response states it accepts the recommendation in part, then details initiatives to support schools in adopting whole-school approaches to mental wellbeing and providing training and resources for education staff. This response does not address the original recommendation concerning mental health workforce shortages and …
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Department of Health and Social Care
14
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
In addition, it is paramount that a plan is implemented to increase the size and wellbeing of the children and young people’s mental health workforce based on independently verified estimates of the number of people needed in different disciplines and the training places required to deliver them. The strategy should …
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In addition, it is paramount that a plan is implemented to increase the size and wellbeing of the children and young people’s mental health workforce based on independently verified estimates of the number of people needed in different disciplines and the training places required to deliver them. The strategy should include an assessment of how the skill mix of the workforce can be developed to include other expert professionals such as speech and language therapists, social workers, youth workers and the importance of a diverse workforce in improving outcomes for minority ethnic groups. The Department of Health and Social Care should work with Health Education England to develop this plan to build on the steps already taken to expand the workforce and enhance the skills of the wider workforce. (Paragraph 68) Mental health support in schools
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Government response AI summary
The government's response refers the reader to the response to recommendation 3, thus not directly addressing this recommendation within the provided text.
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Department of Health and Social Care
15
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
We have seen that Mental Health Support Teams, where they have been rolled out, are well-placed to facilitate early intervention for children and young people as part Children and young people’s mental health 57 of a whole school approach. They appear to have delivered positive outcomes for children and young …
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We have seen that Mental Health Support Teams, where they have been rolled out, are well-placed to facilitate early intervention for children and young people as part Children and young people’s mental health 57 of a whole school approach. They appear to have delivered positive outcomes for children and young people where they are up and running. We welcome the fact that under the current trajectory the commitment of 20% to 25% coverage will be delivered a year ahead of schedule and we welcome the commitment that the Government and NHS England & Improvement have shown to deliver this roll out. But reaching only around half of children by the end of this Parliament shows the original ambition is too low and it should be increased, at a minimum, to reaching two thirds of schools by the end of the Parliament if we are to reduce referrals for severe conditions by as much as needed.
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Government response AI summary
The government states it is considering the recommendation, but the response primarily outlines significant investments and reforms in adult social care and local government funding. This does not address the specific call to increase Mental Health Support Team coverage to two-thirds of schools by the …
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Department of Health and Social Care
17
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
Furthermore, in light of the rise in both prevalence and severity of children and young people’s mental health difficulties, the training of Education Mental Health Practitioners should be reviewed to integrate their skills into a new psychological professions structure. This must include training experienced practitioners in more sophisticated psychological therapy …
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Furthermore, in light of the rise in both prevalence and severity of children and young people’s mental health difficulties, the training of Education Mental Health Practitioners should be reviewed to integrate their skills into a new psychological professions structure. This must include training experienced practitioners in more sophisticated psychological therapy so that they can work with more complex cases such as eating disorders and self-harm.
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Government response AI summary
The government's response states it accepts the recommendation in part, but then discusses reforms to the Mental Health Act regarding detention periods for patients, specific rights for under-18s, and further work on the Trieste model of care. This response does not address the original recommendation …
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Department of Health and Social Care
18
Conclusion
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
A whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing should include the promotion of good mental health as well as the early identification of those who are at risk of mental health difficulties. Designated Senior Leads for mental health can have an extremely important role in overseeing and leading this …
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A whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing should include the promotion of good mental health as well as the early identification of those who are at risk of mental health difficulties. Designated Senior Leads for mental health can have an extremely important role in overseeing and leading this whole school approach but they need to be adequately trained, particularly in how to identify and intervene in emerging cases of mental health problems. Given the worrying signs that more children and young people are turning to self-harm as a coping mechanism and more are struggling with eating disorders, it is extremely concerning that training for Designated Senior Leads appears to have been paused and has not yet been rolled out four years after the Green Paper committed to do so.
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Government response AI summary
The government states it accepts the recommendation but provides a lengthy and irrelevant response detailing commitments to children and young people's crisis care, including 24/7 access and single points of contact, failing to address training for Designated Senior Leads in schools.
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Department of Health and Social Care
19
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
It is vital that the Department rolls out the training for Designated Senior Leads to all schools urgently with a commitment to completing the roll out before the end of the current Parliament. Moreover, given the worrying trends in self-harm and eating difficulties among children and young people, it is …
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It is vital that the Department rolls out the training for Designated Senior Leads to all schools urgently with a commitment to completing the roll out before the end of the current Parliament. Moreover, given the worrying trends in self-harm and eating difficulties among children and young people, it is essential that this training includes sufficient training specifically for the early identification of self-harm and eating disorders as well as mild to moderate mental health problems generally. We expect a comprehensive update on work towards this ambition by the end of December 2021.
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Government response AI summary
The government states it is considering the recommendation but then provides an extensive, irrelevant response focused on improving the quality of inpatient care, alternatives to admission, and support for people with learning disabilities and autistic people, failing to address training for Designated Senior Leads.
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Department of Health and Social Care
20
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
Whilst Mental Health Support Teams and Designated Senior Lead training is being rolled out, the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Education should work closely together with all schools to ensure that they have the support they need in order to offer a whole school approach, …
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Whilst Mental Health Support Teams and Designated Senior Lead training is being rolled out, the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Education should work closely together with all schools to ensure that they have the support they need in order to offer a whole school approach, including: access to digital self-help support; school counselling for every child who needs it; and good guidance on best practice for staff on how to provide the most appropriate support in schools. (Paragraph 93) 58 Children and young people’s mental health Importance of community-based and digital mental health support
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Government response AI summary
The government's response states it accepts the recommendation and plans to expand Independent Mental Health Advocate services for informal patients as part of Mental Health Act reforms, subject to future funding decisions. This response does not address the original recommendation concerning whole-school mental health support.
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Department of Health and Social Care
21
Conclusion
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
For some children and young people where schools are not their preferred place to access support, drop-in hubs that operate on an open access, self-referral basis provide a valuable alternative opportunity to access help. We have heard that the large-scale roll out of a similar style system has improved outcomes …
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For some children and young people where schools are not their preferred place to access support, drop-in hubs that operate on an open access, self-referral basis provide a valuable alternative opportunity to access help. We have heard that the large-scale roll out of a similar style system has improved outcomes for children and young people in Australia. Where these hubs already exist in the UK, based on the Youth Information Advice and Counselling model, they fill a vital gap in the health system and are perceived as accessible to young people. They are also capable of reaching those who may be less able to access traditional services. However, while these have been rolled out in some areas of the country, we have heard that this is subject to local funding priorities and is far from a standard provision. Access to these drop-in services should not be dependent on where a young person lives but should be available nationally.
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Government response AI summary
The government states it is considering the recommendation but then provides a lengthy and irrelevant response about programmes of work to reduce restrictive practices and details from the Mental Health Act.
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Department of Health and Social Care
22
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
We recommend that the Department of Health and Social Care fund and roll out open access models to every area across the country so that there is a consistent, comprehensive community offer to complement available school-based and clinical support across England. The hubs should also offer outreach support to vulnerable …
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We recommend that the Department of Health and Social Care fund and roll out open access models to every area across the country so that there is a consistent, comprehensive community offer to complement available school-based and clinical support across England. The hubs should also offer outreach support to vulnerable groups and should be integrated with specialist children and young people’s mental health services with a clear step down/step up relationship. National standards for the provision of support should be published so hubs adhere to clinical standards.
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Government response AI summary
The government states it accepts the recommendation but then discusses a single data set that collects information from NHS and private services, which does not address the core request to fund and roll out open access models or publish national standards.
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Department of Health and Social Care
23
Conclusion
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
The social care sector is essential to the provision of mental health services to children and young people and it is essential that it is funded to do so as part of the forthcoming social care white paper.
Government response AI summary
The government states it accepts the recommendation in part but then focuses entirely on the accelerated roll-out and funding of Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) in education settings, rather than the social care sector's funding for mental health services.
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Department of Health and Social Care
24
Recommendation
Eighth Report - Children and young peop…
Not Addressed
Equally vital is the role of the new Integrated Care Systems and it is essential they publish detailed plans with timescales as to how community provision for the mental health needs of children and young people will be improved working jointly with the local social care system.
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Equally vital is the role of the new Integrated Care Systems and it is essential they publish detailed plans with timescales as to how community provision for the mental health needs of children and young people will be improved working jointly with the local social care system.
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Government response AI summary
The government's response refers the reader to the response to recommendation 3, thus not directly addressing this recommendation within the provided text.
Read full response →
Department of Health and Social Care