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NHS mental health services turn away 150 vulnerable children a day

NSPCC warns this could be an underestimate as one in five trusts failed to provide full figures

Alex Matthews-King

Health Correspondent

Friday 10 November 2017 11:29 GMT

( Newscast Online)

At least 150 children a day are being turned away by overstretched NHS mental health services as services head towards “crisis point”, the NSPCC children’s charity has warned.

More than 100,000 children referred to NHS child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) have had their referrals rejected in the past two years, figures released under the Freedom of Information act show.

It means one sixth of the 650,000 young people, referred for psychological support to prevent their conditions deteriorating, were not seen.

The NSPCC said this total could be "significantly higher" as one in five trusts who responded to its Freedom of Information request failed to disclose the number of rejected referrals.

It also shows the significant disparities in how long patients are forced to wait to access the CAMHS service, which provides talking therapies with a therapist specialised in counselling young people's mental health.

Some areas provide access in just two days, while other areas young people are made to wait five-and-a-half months.

NHS watchdog, the Care Quality Commission has nonetheless flagged waits as long as 18 months in some areas.

Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

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1/6Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

The elderly

“We acknowledge that there are pressures on the health service, there are always extra pressures on the NHS in the winter, but we have the added pressures of the ageing population and the growing complex needs of the population,” Theresa May has said. Waits of over 12 hours in A&E among elderly people have more than doubled in two years, according to figures from NHS Digital.

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Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

Patients going to A&E instead of seeing their GPs

Jeremy Hunt has called for a “honest discussion with the public about the purpose of A&E departments”, saying that around a third of A&E patients were in hospital unnecessarily. Mr Hunt told Radio 4’s Today programme the NHS now had more doctors, nurses and funding than ever, but explained what he called “very serious problems at some hospitals” by suggesting pressures were increasing in part because people are going to A&Es when they should not. He urged patients to visit their GP for non-emergency illnesses, outlined plans to release time for family doctors to support urgent care work, and said the NHS will soon be able to deliver seven-day access to a GP from 8am to 8pm. But doctors struggling amid a GP recruitment crisis said Mr Hunt’s plans were unrealistic and demanded the Government commit to investing in all areas of the overstretched health service.

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Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

Simon Stevens, head of NHS England

Reports that “key members” of Ms May’s team used internal meetings to accuse Simon Stevens, head of NHS England, of being unenthusiastic and unresponsive have been rejected by Downing Street. Mr Stevens had allegedly rejected claims made by Ms May that the NHS had been given more funding than required.

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Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

Previous health policy, not funding

In an interview with Sky News’s Sophy Ridge, Ms May acknowledged the NHS faced pressures but said it was a problem that had been “ducked by government over the years”. She refuted the claim that hospitals were tackling a “humanitarian crisis” and said health funding was at record levels. “We asked the NHS a while back to set out what it needed over the next five years in terms of its plan for the future and the funding that it would need,” said the Prime Minister. “They did that, we gave them that funding, in fact we gave them more funding than they required… Funding is now at record levels for the NHS, more money has been going in.” But doctors accused Ms May of being “in denial” about how the lack of additional funding provided for health and social care were behind a spiralling crisis in NHS hospitals.

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Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

Target to treat all A&E patients within four hours

Mr Hunt was accused of watering down the flagship target to treat all A&E patients within four hours. The Health Secretary told MPs the promise – introduced by Tony Blair’s government in 2000 – should only be for “those who actually need it”. Amid jeers in the Commons, Mr Hunt said only four other countries pledged to treat all patients within a similar timeframe and all had “less stringent” rules. But Ms May has now said the Government will stand by the four-hour target for A&E, which says 95 per cent of patients must be dealt with within that time frame.

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Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis – except themselves

No one

Mr Hunt was accused of “hiding” from the public eye following news of the Red Cross’s comments and didn’t make an official statement for two days. He was also filmed refusing to answer questions from journalists who pursued him down the street yesterday to ask whether he planned to scrap the four-hour A&E waiting time target. Sky News reporter Beth Rigby pressed the Health Secretary on his position on the matter, saying “the public will want to know, Mr Hunt”. “Sorry Beth, I’ve answered questions about this already,” replied Mr Hunt. “But you didn’t answer questions on this. You said it was over-interpreted in the House of Commons and you didn’t want to water it down. Is that what you’re saying?” said Ms Rigby. “It’s very difficult, because how are we going to explain to the public what your intention is, when you change your position and then won’t answer the question, Mr Hunt”. But the Health Secretary maintained his silence until he reached his car and got in.

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As a result the NSPCC has called on the Government to focus on early intervention services, like CAMHS, to prevent the system reaching crisis point and leaving children to suffer in silence.

Sixty-six NHS trusts reported a total of 652,023 cases referred to their CAMHS services between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2017.

Of these 109,613 children were turned away. However, not all the trusts provided figures.

Another analysis, of the NHS’s local Clinical Commissioning Groups’ plans for children’s mental health services, found that 84 per cent had not made sufficient plans for supporting children who had been sexually abused or neglected.

A 14-year-old girl, who did not wish to be named, said the long waiting times made managing a mental illness even harder.

"I have been having some problems with eating," she said. "I have always hated my body and felt fat from a very young age. I have been to CAMHS 3 or 4 times but there is such a waiting list in between, every time I go its for another assessment. It is so frustrating and I am finding it hard to cope."

Peter Wanless, NSPCC chief executive, said: “It is desperately sad to see so many young people facing distress around mental health issues being forced to wait months for assessment by CAMHS, many of whom are then rejected for treatment altogether. This risks leaving them in limbo while their condition potentially reaches crisis point.

“We recognise the hard work of mental health professionals in trying to help young people get their lives back on track. However, too many children who need help are struggling access support and treatment which can help them to recover. The Government’s upcoming Green Paper on mental health must urgently evaluate the early support systems available to young people to ensure that no child is left to suffer in silence.”

A Department of Health spokesperson said: "Mental health is a priority for this Government and we are determined to transform services for young people — that's why we are putting a record £1.4 billion into children and young people's mental health.

"Decisions on access to any health services are made on the basis of clinical need, but we know there is more to do, which is why the forthcoming Green Paper on children and young people's mental health will set out plans to boost early intervention and help ensure that no one is turned away from services they need.”

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