Rising demand has thrown children’s mental health care into ‘crisis’ with one in 12 children referred for help last year, a damning report reveals.
Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner, said the challenges of modern life are taking an unprecedented toll on young people’s emotional well-being.
But she warned the NHS is ill-equipped to deal with the fallout caused by ‘harmful’ social media, a cost-of-living crisis and the pandemic.
This means that those in need are forced to wait ‘far too long’ for care, during which time their fragile mental state risks worsening.
Dame Rachel’s annual review says demand for children’s mental health services “continues to outstrip the availability of support”.
Many children are forced to wait for care with the demand for support outstripping the availability of help, the report warns (stock image)
It shows that almost one million children and young people – 949,200 – were referred to children and young people’s mental health services (CYPMHS) in 2022/23.
This corresponds to 8 percent of the 11.9 million children in England.
Of this, almost 305,000 were processed, but 270,300 were still waiting at the end of the year.
Furthermore, 372,800 (39 per cent) had their referrals closed before receiving any treatment at all, and 32,200 waited more than two years for their second contact from services.
Boys, younger children, and white children wait longer on average for mental health support.
The analysis also revealed geographical variations in waiting times across the country, from an average of 147 days in Sunderland to just four days in Southend.
The most common reason for a referral to mental health treatment is listed as anxiety.
Dame Rachel said this generation of children has experienced “uniquely uncertain and challenging times”, highlighting that increasing numbers are “exposed to the damaging impact of social media, cyberbullying and online exploitation”.
“I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to talk about a crisis in children’s mental health and the services that are needed to support them,” she said in the foreword to the report.
‘For children who need it, support should be in place quickly and locally: no child should be on a waiting list for months or years.’
The NHS estimates that 1 in 5 children and young people aged 8 to 25 in England have a probable mental disorder.
Dame Rachel said: ‘For children and young people, two years can be a significant part of their young lives, so the long waiting times experienced by some children in this report can feel agonizingly long.
‘Children are still waiting far too long to access the support they need and for far too many children the speed at which they can access support is still down to the luck of where they live.
‘With the right early support, many children would not need access to mental health services.
‘We need fresh, long-term thinking when it comes to children’s mental and emotional health and wellbeing. Children need environments – both online and offline – where they grow up feeling happy, safe and supported, and are not left feeling like second-class citizens when it comes to accessing mental health support.’
Commenting on the report, Olly Parker, head of external affairs at the charity Young Minds, said: ‘We are in a mental health emergency and it is heartbreaking that so many young people are struggling to get the support they need.
‘This generation has grown up experiencing a unique set of pressures.
The NHS estimates that 1 in 5 children and young people aged 8 to 25 in England have a probable mental health disorder (stock image)
‘When they reach out for help, young people face a system that is stretched to breaking point.
‘Many experience long waiting times or are rejected because they are told that they are not sick enough. The consequences of this can be devastating, with many becoming more ill.’
The Children’s Charities Coalition – Action for Children, Barnardo’s, NCB, NSPCC, The Children’s Society – added: ‘Too many children and young people are getting sicker and sicker while their names are on a waiting list.’
A spokesman for NHS England said: ‘Latest figures show that the NHS is treating more young people than ever before with 48 per cent more children and young people accessing support since 2019/20 and the health service is expanding this provision as quickly as possible before for current five-year funding arrangements to meet this increasing demand.
“But 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 team by spring 2025 – significantly ahead of the original target Goal.”