Giving children and young people better mental health signposting and support

Children and young people across the region will have access to more mental health expertise thanks to a new project supported by the University of Northampton (UON).

UON academics will train the next generation of education mental health practitioners who will work in the schools within the East Midlands Academy Trust.

According to NHS England, an estimated one in five children and young people has a probable mental disorder.

Millions are not receiving the support they need due to under-resourced services, something that will now start to change.

Working with the Trust and Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT), two mental health practitioners a year will be trained by University Education academics, backed by their UON colleagues in Psychology and informed by their insights into mental health.

The education mental health practitioners will then go into schools to help pupils primarily affected by anxiety and depression.

They will conduct assessments and either provide low-intensity intervention or refer the child or young person to receive appropriate support. Once qualified, they will each support a rolling caseload of 20 pupils.

Associate Professor Dr Helen Caldwell is part of the University’s Education team. She says: “UON has long been a champion of mental health advice and support – we have had a dedicated counselling team for our students since 1997.

“Like the ever-changing landscape of mental health knowledge and needs, that service and the University have evolved since then, making this new project part of a natural progression.

“Working with EMAT and NHFT will have far-reaching effects and reflect a shared vision to roll out further access to good mental health advice and support, and the development of education professionals.”

EMAT chief executive Joshua Coleman adds: “This is a groundbreaking project we are undertaking with NHFT and the university to help build capacity in this vital area regionally. We know that nationally, no other school trust is funding and training their own mental health practitioners.

“Mental health is an issue affecting more children and young people, and it’s important for us to offer the very best support we can for any of our learners who may be struggling.

“By having these education mental health practitioners based within our schools, we can better identify any pupils who may be affected and get them the right support as quickly as possible.”

Rebecca Stevenson, Service and Clinical Lead for the Mental Health Support Team and Children’s Wellbeing Practitioners Pathway at NHFT, said: “It’s really exciting to be involved with such an innovative partnership project. Although our service already helps children and young people with their mental health and wellbeing in schools around the county, this is our first directly funded partnership with an academy trust to provide dedicated in-house support for their school community.

“We look forward to working with East Midlands Academy Trust on this important initiative and hope our partnership can set a benchmark for successful collaboration with schools in the future.”