The new ‘State of the Nation’ report is the first from the CentreForum Commission on Children and Young People’s Mental Health, and sets out the latest available data on prevalence and trends in CAMHS over the last five years. The report highlights a significant treatment gap, where children are unable to get the help they need, have to wait for long periods for treatment or cannot find appropriate treatment in their area.
The report found that on average, children and young people’s services are turning away nearly a quarter of those referred to them for help by their GPs, teachers or others. Unable to prioritise early intervention, many patients are told that their conditions are not acute enough and turned away. Those who are accepted into services may face a long wait for treatment with wide variation between providers in many parts of the country.
The report’s key findings include:
- Nearly 23% of children and young people referred to CAMHS are turned away
- Maximum wait times for those accepted into services varied from four weeks to more than two years
- The average of the longest waiting times was nearly ten months between referral and start of treatment
- There was significant variation in average waiting times between providers
- ‘Hidden waits’ are concealed by average wait time statistics; the median of the maximum wait times for all providers was 26 weeks (6 months) for a first appointment and nearly 42 weeks (ten months) for the start of treatment
- The regional expenditure on mental health reveals a north/south divide with northern regions spending more on services while capacity problems exist in the south
“This research confirms the true extent of problems in children and young people’s mental health services,” said Rt Hon Norman Lamb MP, chair of the Commission. “Far too often our children are turned away from help or forced to wait for months for treatment. This goes against what we all know – intervening early can prevent a condition reaching crisis point.”
Central to the report is a recommendation for progress to be made on clear and consistent data collection, and for the introduction of waiting time standards to ensure that children and their families know how long they can expect to wait for treatment.
The Commission will publish future reports looking at government policy on children’s mental health and analysing progress towards the vision of Future in Mind.
Download the report in full here
