Young London SOS: Invest in prevention rather than cure, say mental health charity leaders

In this time of pandemic, the mental health of the nation’s young people has never been more important
Matt Writtle
Evening Standard3 February 2021

This week marks the start of Children’s Mental Health Week, an annual event launched by Place2Be in 2015 to shine a spotlight on the importance of supporting emotional wellbeing from an early age.  

In this time of pandemic, the mental health of the nation’s young people has never been more important. All the evidence tells us that the problem is getting worse and is the worst it's ever been in our lifetimes.  

COVID is a stark reminder of the vital importance of planning and prevention, rather than relying on a cure. Half of lifetime mental illness starts by the age of 14. We know that providing effective support from an early age not only helps children cope with life’s challenges but can prevent problems from escalating and becoming more serious in adulthood. Schools, at the heart of our communities, provide the perfect setting to embed this supportive mindset and to ‘normalise’ discussions around mental health.    

In recent years, there’s been some progress in the creation of effective partnerships and working more collaboratively and creatively to support the mental health of children and families.  

Yet the UK’s children’s mental health system is in need of serious repair: On average local NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) spend less than 1% of their overall budget on children’s mental health and 14 times more on adult mental health services than on services for children. 

Now, as we start to look at what’s needed to recover and re-build post COVID, it’s time to find a long-term solution to the mental health needs of the nation. This is not about a quick fix to the crisis. It’s about all sectors – education, health, public, voluntary and private – working together to rethink priorities, rethink society and the investment needed to future-proof the wellbeing of the next generation.  We call on everyone to support the Evening Standard’s Young London SOS campaign to provide mental health support for more pupils in more schools. Our hope is the legacy of the pandemic can be a fundamental rethinking and reshaping of priorities towards the creation of a kinder and more inclusive society.  

The full list of signatories to the letter:  

Catherine Roche, Chief Executive, Place2Be

Richard Andrews, CEO, Healios

Tim Barker, CEO, Kooth

Julie Bentley, CEO, Samaritans

Simon Blake OBE, Chief Executive, Mental Health First Aid England

Béatrice Butsana-Sita, CEO, Greenhouse Sports

Sam Butters, Co-CEOs, Fair Education Alliance

Gina Cicerone, Co-CEOs, Fair Education Alliance

Brian Dow, Chief Executive, Mental Health UK

Sean Duggan, Chief Executive, Mental Health Network - NHS Confederation

Gavin Evans, Chief Executive, Future Youth Zone

Paul Farmer, Chief Executive, Mind

Laurence Guinness, Chief Executive, The Childhood Trust

Cassandra Harrison, Chief Executive, Youth Access

Victoria Hornby, CEO, Mental Health Innovations UK

Sarah Hughes, Chief Executive, Centre for Mental Health

Poppy Jaman OBE, CEO, City Mental Health Alliance

Dr Adrian James, President, Royal College of Psychiatrists

Chris Martin, Chief Executive, The Mix

Sinéad McBrearty, Chief Executive, Education Support

Bharat Mehta CBE, Chief Executive, Trust for London

Kathryn Morley, Chief Executive, Onside Youth Zones

Paula Ojok, CEO, Helplines Partnership

Matthew Purves, Chair of the Schools’ Wellbeing Partnership

Charlotte Rainer, Coalition Lead, Children and Young People’s Mental Health Coalition  

Kathy Roberts, Chief Executive, Association of Mental Health Providers

Mark Rowland, Chief Executive, Mental Health Foundation

Mark Russell, Chief Executive, The Children’s Society

Michael Samuel MBE, Chair, Anna Freud Centre

Clare Stafford, Chief Executive, Charlie Waller Trust

Emma Thomas, Chief Executive, YoungMinds

Jonathan Townsend, CEO, The Prince's Trust

Marjorie Wallace CBE, Chief Executive, SANE

Sir Peter Wanless, CEO, NSPCC and Childline

Matt Whittaker, Chief Executive, Pro Bono Economics

Mark Winstanley, CEO, Rethink Mental Illness

Donate today

You can support the Young London SOS campaign by donating to Place2Be HERE

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