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Our response

• The RCPCH welcomes this inquiry to scrutinise the scope and implementation of the on transforming children and young people's mental health.
• Our State of Child Health Report 2017 demonstrated that half of adult mental health problems start before the age of 14. Early recognition and intervention are crucial in ensuring young people can reach their potential, and we believe the green paper should be founded on the principle that we all have mental health and that promoting good mental health and wellbeing is as important as interventions for those who need help. 
• To effectively link up the specialist services available in each local area, we believe the leadership of mental health support teams should be consistent around the country and ideally be led by CCGs (Clinical Commissioning Groups) or local authorities.
• We are pleased the green paper is advocating for building an evidence-base for change, and we are supportive of an evidence-based approach to piloting the proposals. However we feel the green paper doesn’t go far enough in prescribing the implementation of the proposals, and this risks there being regional variation in how they are interpreted.

Our recommendations

• We recommend careful management of mental health support teams to ensure they are supportive in addition to that already provided by CAHMS (child and adolescent mental health services) and paediatric services. They will need clear guidance, with commissioning and governance included to ensure they are effective, and should be fully integrated in the local CAHMS system.
• These services should also be available to all children, not just those attending mainstream school. 
• Support should be person focused, and a high importance placed on early intervention. We recommend training for all child health professionals to be confident in dealing with children and young people who present with mental health problems in non-mental health settings.
• We would like to see clearer advice on how to support vulnerable groups, such as looked after children and children who have been exposed to ACEs (adverse childhood experiences). We would also like to see a broader scope to the paper, in terms of the inclusion of the children and young people who present in acute setting (Emergency Departments and outpatient appointments) who are presenting with mental and emotional health problems.

You can also see our consultation response to the green paper. 

We respond to a wide range of consultations to ensure that the College’s position, and ultimately children’s health, is represented. Members can get involved in current consultations by contacting the Health Policy team: health.policy@rcpch.ac.uk.