Select committee: Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 5
Eighth Report - Children and young people’s mental health
Published 9 Dec 2021
Paragraph 35
Addressed to Department of Health and Social Care
Health and Social Care Committee Children and young people's mental health All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The Department of Health and Social Care—in partnership with the Department for Education and all other relevant Government departments—must take radical steps to shift the focus in mental health provision towards early intervention and prevention. This must ensure that all children and young people under the age of 25 can receive mental health support as early as possible and no young person is turned away from mental health support for not being ill enough. The Department must focus its attention on: Children and young people’s mental health 55 a) the faster roll out of Mental Health Support Teams, as detailed in Chapter 3 of this report; b) a network of community hubs based on the Youth Information Advice and Counselling service model detailed in Chapter 4 of this report and; c) digital support, as detailed in Chapter 4 of this report.
From: Health and Social Care Committee, Eighth Report - Children and young people’s mental health (HC 17), paragraph 35, 9 December 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 18 March 2022 (deadline 9 February 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government welcomes the Committee's report and says it has "considered the recommendations", with responses that accept some in part, accept a few in full, and are considering others.
- On a cabinet sub-committee (Recommendation 1), it accepts in part, saying "the portfolios of ministers and cabinet committees are the prerogative of the Prime Minister", and it retains a cross-government Ministerial group.
- On 100% access to specialist support (Recommendation 4), "the government is considering" it, adding that plans beyond current commitments "are contingent on future funding settlements".
- It agrees the gap between mental health surveys was too long and commits to "a comprehensive national survey every 7 years", with the next in 2024, rather than the Committee's 3-year cycle.
- It accepts the recommendation on expanding Independent Mental Health Advocates to informal patients, but says this is "subject to future funding decisions".