Commenting on the report by the Education Policy Institute
‘Access to child and adolescent mental health services in 2019’,
Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and
College Leaders, said:
“This report confirms what schools know only too well –
that thresholds for children’s mental health services are often
too high and waiting lists too long. It is an appalling postcode
lottery which leaves schools struggling to secure the specialist
help needed by young people suffering from serious mental health
illnesses.
“The government has outlined plans for a four-week waiting
time for access to children’s mental health services, but the
findings of this report suggest this is a pipe dream without
significant additional investment.
“In the meantime, the government is also creating new
mental health teams to support counselling services in schools,
which is a welcome move but does not address the deficiency in
access to clinical treatment.
“School counselling services, however good, cannot possibly
provide the level of support which is required to treat young
people with clinical needs. It is imperative that the government
puts more focus into improving the availability of specialist NHS
care as a matter of urgency.”
