50 signatures reached
To: All Local governments.
Childrens mental health
Provide better mental health support in schools by:
1. Making mental heath training a compulsory part of teacher training.
2. Having clearer pathways to services before children reach crisis point.
3. Ensuring that every school in the UK has an on site counsellor as standard practice.
Why is this important?
Since the pandemic there has been a significant rise in children suffering with mental health. 1 in 9 leapt to 1in 6. With a 33% rise in educational settings putting in referrals to CAMHS, who have a minimum waiting period of 12 weeks in some areas.
(The average child is rejected sometimes up to 3 times before they even make it on to the waiting list.) children just aren't getting the support they need to engage with their education.
Teachers in mainstream educational setting are ill equipped to know how to recognise early signs and are unsure what steps to take if they are concerned because the guidelines are not clear enough or local services are over stretched and can't accept more referrals.
On school site counsellors would help avoid crisis point in some of the most vulnerable children giving them the opportunity to build resilience and emotional maturity.
With 75% of adult mental health issues beginning before the age of 18. We need to be doing more!
