Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 29 Nov 2024 to Question 15640 on Mental Health Services: Schools, whether the plan to introduce access to a specialist mental health professional in every school differs from the plan to introduce Mental Health Support Teams.

The Department of Health and Social Care is working with the Department for Education to consider how to deliver our commitment of providing access to a specialist mental health professional in every school. We need to ensure that any support meets the needs of young people, teachers, parents, and carers. This includes considering the role of existing programmes of support with evidence of a positive impact, such as the Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges.