Children’s Mental Health

Lloyd Russell-Moyle Excerpts

Tuesday 8th February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Brighton, Kemptown) (Lab/Co-op)]

Mental health is at a crisis, but those on the other side of the House who stand up and say that it is because of covid, I am afraid, have their head in the sand, and those on the other side who say that it is because of family break-ups are looking in the wrong direction, because actually the problem is not covid.

The 369 people, most of them young people, who committed suicide between 2016 and 2020 in my NHS trust did not do it because of family break-ups or because of covid. I actually find it repulsive that those on the other side suggest that. They did it because of a failure of the last 10 years, with a destruction of youth work, a destruction of Sure Start and a destruction of counsellors in schools. Those on the other side praise themselves that they are reintroducing counsellors in schools, but let us be clear that it is a reintroduction, because under Labour last time we had those things that stopped the crisis of young people committing suicide in such large numbers. Of course it was not perfect—nothing is—but it was a hell of a lot better than what we have now, and to suggest otherwise is sickening.

I have constituents affected—hundreds of them—but I will mention three now. One who was diagnosed with autism in year 6 had to wait until year 8 at school before he got any support. That contributed to a mental health breakdown, and there was no psychiatrist in the local CAMHS to support him—a three-year wait and still no needed support. I have a constituent whose son is 13 and has been out of education for two years because of suicidal tendencies—a four-year wait for a proper assessment, including 16 months with no education, health and care plan put in place. Then, at the last moment, he was told he has another wait of 24 months, despite his parents having to take time off work in order to look after him around the clock. The son of another constituent was diagnosed in early 2019, and the first assessment was only in December 2020—three and a half years later he is still waiting for the final assessment and support.

The testimony I have had from an NHS nurse in a neighbouring trust says that there are 3,500 children waiting for an initial assessment, they have no CAMHS beds available, and routinely they have 10-plus children stuck in A&E. This is not covid or family breakdowns; this is a lack of funding and Government failure.