Source: Family Rights Group
Date: 04 April 2022
The Family Rights Group have published the results of a study into the success of the programme ‘Lifelong Links’ that aimed to improve the mental health and wellbeing of children in care in England. Lifelong Links co-ordinators worked with children in care to build a positive support network around the child, which the local authorities then monitored to encourage healthy and sustainable relationships. Findings include: children experienced more home stability (average number of placements per child dropped from 1.99 to 1.31), and mental health (recorded with Strength and Difficulties Questionnaires) improved.
Read the press release: Make not break: new study finds ‘Lifelong Links’ improves children in care’s mental health and wellbeing
Read the report: Lifelong Links
Source: The Guardian, stem4
Date: 03 April 2022
The Guardian has written an article on the state of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in the UK. The article uses results from youth mental health charity stem4’s survey of 1,001 GPs’ opinions on how CAMHS is functioning. The article highlights some of the survey results, including: 46% of surveyed GPs said that CAHMS services are in crisis, 49% said they are inadequate, and 58% had seen patients’ symptoms worsen during waiting times.
Read the news story: Swamped NHS mental health services turning away children, say GPs
Read the report: NHS mental health services turning away children, survey finds
Source: Department of Health
Date: March 2022
The Department for Education has published the findings of a study of adolescents in two schools, one conducted pre-Covid and therefore providing a control group for comparison with the other group who were studied pre- and during Covid. The report concludes that the pandemic led to increased adolescent depressive symptoms and decreased life satisfaction.
- If the COVID-19 pandemic had not occurred, estimates suggest that we would observe 6% fewer adolescents with high depressive symptoms which is a difference of 1.6% in prevalence (27.1% to 25.4%)
- There was no overall effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent externalising difficulties
- Girls’ mental health may have been more negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic than boys
Read the report: The impact of the pandemic on adolescent mental health
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