Children’s Mental Health

Debate between Rosena Allin-Khan and Edward Timpson

Tuesday 8th February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Dr Allin-Khan]

Do the right hon. Lady’s Government take any responsibility for the tens of thousands of children who are now bereaved as a result of losing their parents because of this Government’s shocking handling of the pandemic? We shall take no lectures from the right hon. Member and her party when it comes to protecting children’s mental health. I shall move on.

When children come to A&E—[Interruption.] Please feel free to intervene: I will take interventions.

[Edward Timpson (Eddisbury) (Con)]

The fact is that we are all in this debate this afternoon because we all care about the mental health of children right across the country. For me, this is an opportunity for us to use this precious time in the Chamber to try to find some common ground between us, so that we can move forward in a positive way and people watching can understand that there are things we can do to make their lives better. In that spirit, can I suggest to the hon. Lady that she look at my report on school exclusions, particularly at how we can ensure that teachers are better prepared at school, including with the mental health leads that the Government are bringing in, so that they understand issues such as trauma and insecure attachment and can enable children to get the support they need at the time they need it? That is the premise on which we should all move forward.

[Dr Allin-Khan]

The hon. Member highlights the point that mental health should not be a political football, which is why we hope that he will support the Opposition’s recommendations. I should be delighted if he sent me his report; I will read it with interest.

It is crucial that when a child comes to A&E or a hospital, doctors and nurses take the time to build trust with them as a patient so that they feel safe talking about their condition, but with waiting lists growing and the staffing crisis deepening, it is becoming all too difficult to find the time to build the trust and respect that every patient needs and deserves. That is the human cost of more than a decade of decline caused by under-resourcing and under-investment in our NHS and by the lack of a proper NHS workforce plan for the future.

The impact on entire families is crushing. Time out of school affects a child’s ability to learn and their later life choices and chances. Parents have to take time off work and sometimes leave their jobs as a result, and siblings are deeply affected. It should be a badge of shame for the Government that three quarters of children were not seen within four weeks of being referred to children’s mental health services.