Community Support Model for Young People's Mental Health
Have you ever had moments where you feel you needed help with your mental health or wellbeing? Have these moments felt like a crisis? ‘Crisis’ means “a time of intense difficulty”.
The No Health Without Mental Health (NHWMH) government strategy defines mental health as the foundation for wellbeing and effective functioning both for individuals and for their communities. When we have mental wellbeing, we have “A positive state of mind and body, feeling safe and able to cope, with a sense of connection with people, communities and the wider environment.”
Unfortunately there are times when we may feel stressed, down, or scared. These moments can come and go quickly, and you feel better after a while. But when they stay and start to affect our lives, they may become mental health problems. The words ‘mental health problem’ are used to describe a range of diagnosable mental illnesses and disorders, which can be quite mild or really severe. We understand that such words might feel bad or have stigma attached to them. However, NHWMH emphasises that, at the moment, there is no universally acceptable terminology that can be used as an alternative.
We know that there are plans to give young people mental health support in schools, but what about outside of school? What help and support is available for young people’s mental health when they leave the school gates, or if are not receiving treatment from CAMHs? Is there somewhere young people can go to get information about mental wellbeing, taking care of their mental health, and support for if they are having problems with their mental health?
This survey is for you to share your views on mental health support for young people. This will give us a picture of whether there is a specific need for a wellbeing space or place in the community for young people and, if so, what that service might look like.
Everything you share in this survey will be kept anonymous – we won’t share your name, or any of your personal details. We will use your responses to help us write a report that we will share with the Wandsworth Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), to help them understand the type of support young people need.