Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a cross-government mental health strategy for children and young people.

The Government is committed to taking a cross-government strategic approach to children and young people’s mental health.

We are currently co-developing the NHS 10 Year Health Plan with the public, staff and patients. We continue to listen to emerging insights on children and young people’s mental health and are taking the concerns of participants seriously. The consultation process has provided invaluable feedback, and we are in the process of exploring how we best take this forward.

Whilst the National Health Service is responsible for evidence-based treatment of mental ill health, we recognise the levers to prevent mental ill health sit largely outside of the health system. That’s why we are using the cross-government missions as a strategic tool to tackle the socioeconomic determinants of mental ill health amongst children and young people.

We continue to work with the Department for Education to deliver our commitment of providing access to a specialist mental health professional in every school in England. We are also working across government and with NHS England to set up a network of community Young Futures hubs.