Asked by: Baroness Redfern (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of integrated strategies which connect mental health services and skills training to employment support for young people.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The integration of services for young people is a key Government priority. We continue to assess how best to strengthen links between employment support, skills provision and mental health services. That is why we have announced the expansion of Youth Hubs to every area of Great Britian.
Youth Hubs are community‑based spaces where DWP Work Coaches work alongside local partners, such as colleges, local authorities, employers, youth organisations, and mental health providers, to deliver joined‑up support for 16–24-year-olds in one location outside of the job centre. We have also announced that all Youth Hubs will operate to a national minimum service blueprint, which sets out the core offer every young person should be able to access. This includes employment and skills support, links to wider training, mental health and wellbeing provision, housing and homelessness support, and strong employer engagement. The blueprint ensures consistency while allowing flexibility to tailor services to local needs
Asked by: Baroness Maclean of Redditch (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to understand the factors contributing to the doubling in the number of children with education, health and care plans for social, emotional and mental health needs since 2016.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Every child deserves an education that meets their needs, is academically stretching, where they feel like they belong, and that sets them up for life and work
As part of the government’s Plan for Change, we are determined to fix the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system and restore the trust of parents. We will do this by ensuring schools have the tools to better identify and support children before issues escalate.
The department has improved data by disaggregating the SEN2 data collection from 2023. This change enabled more detailed, pupil level analysis of education health and care (EHC) plans and the processes associated with it, providing deeper insights into specific patterns and trends to support decision-making. The annual EHC plan statistics report provides information on the numbers of children and young people with an EHC plan
International evidence indicates that the number of children and young people with SEN is also increasing in comparable countries. Although definitions and systems vary considerably between countries, the key drivers include improved understanding and diagnosis of need, as well as social and medical factors.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is Taking with the Secretary of State for Education, to provide mental health and wellbeing support to young carers in Eastleigh constituency.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to boost mental health support across the country, including children and young people’s mental health services.
As prioritised in our Medium-Term Planning Framework, we are taking action to reduce the longest waits for specialist mental health support, tackling regional disparities, and expanding access, thereby making services more productive so children and young people spend less time waiting for the treatment they need.
We are also accelerating the rollout of Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges to reach full national coverage by 2029. As part of this, we are investing an additional £13 million to pilot enhanced training for staff so that they can offer more effective support to young people with complex needs, such as trauma, neurodivergence, and disordered eating. An additional 900,000 children and young people will have access by this spring, and this means that 60% of all pupils will have access to this early support at school, up from 44% in Spring 2024.
More widely, we are, rolling out Young Futures Hubs. The Government’s first 50 Young Futures Hubs will bring together services at a local level to support children and young people, helping to ensure that young people can access early advice and wellbeing intervention. We will work to ensure there is no wrong door for young people who need support with their mental health.
Through measures in the 10-Year Health Plan, we are equipping and supporting carers by making them more visible, empowering their voices in care planning, joining up services, and streamlining their caring tasks by introducing a new ‘MyCarer’ section to the NHS App.
NHS England is supporting the identification of young carers and has recently published guidance for general practitioners. NHS England is also utilising data to help support greater join-up between health, education, and social care.
Asked by: Baroness Maclean of Redditch (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what safeguards are in place to prevent the risk of overdiagnosing mental health conditions in children and young people.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises rising demand for children and young people’s mental health services.
Through the Plan for Change and our 10-Year Health Plan, we are transforming the mental health system to strengthen clinical pathways and improve access to early support, while reducing the longest waits for specialist care and tackling regional disparities.
The independent review into mental health conditions, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and autism is examining the drivers of rising prevalence and demand, to ensure people receive the right support, at the right time, and in the right place.
More widely, we are accelerating the rollout of mental health support teams in schools and colleges, with national coverage expected by 2029. By this spring, approximately 60% of pupils will have access to early mental health support, up from 44% in spring 2024.
Asked by: Lord Bird (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what analysis they have undertaken of the relationship between socioeconomic disadvantage and the prevalence of mental health conditions, particularly among children and young people.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department commissions research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Research recently completed and funded by the NIHR Oxford Health Biomedical Research Centre has found that socioeconomic inequalities in children’s mental health are evident by age five and persist throughout childhood and adolescence. Further information is available at the following link:
Asked by: Baroness Maclean of Redditch (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made an assessment of the long-term outcomes for individuals diagnosed with mental health conditions, including potential harms from diagnostic labelling and unnecessary treatment.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are concerned that many adults, young people, and children with mental health conditions have been let down by services and are not receiving timely or appropriate support and treatment. That is why we have launched an independent review into the prevalence and support for mental health conditions, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism, which will look to understand the similarities and differences between mental health conditions, ADHD, and autism.
The review will look at prevalence, early intervention, and treatment, and the current challenges facing clinical services. The review will also examine the extent to which diagnosis, medicalisation, and treatment improve outcomes for individuals. This will include exploring the evidence around clinical practice and the risks and benefits of medicalisation. It will also seek to identify opportunities to provide different models of support and pathways, within and beyond the National Health Service, that promote prevention and early intervention, supplementing clinical support.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on achieving the Access and Waiting Time Standard for children and young people with an Eating Disorder.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The number of children and young people starting treatment for eating disorders has increased since the pandemic, rising from 8,034 in 2019/20 to 11,174 in 2024/25, an increase of almost 40%. This increase in demand has affected performance against the Access and Waiting Time standard, which states that 95% of routine referrals should begin treatment within four weeks and 95% of urgent referrals should begin treatment within one week.
In the rolling quarter from September to November 2025, the Mental Health Services Data Set shows improved performance against the standard. During this period, 78.4% of, or 384 out of 490, urgent referrals and 81.7% of, or 2,145 out of 2,625, routine referrals started treatment within one and four weeks respectively.
To support systems to meet the Access and Waiting Time Standard, NHS England has published updated guidance on children and young people's eating disorders. The new guidance focuses on whole pathway approaches to early intervention, whilst ensuring swift access to specialist support as soon as an eating disorder is suspected.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting times for ADHD assessments for children.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has recognised that, nationally in England, demand for assessments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has grown significantly in recent years and that people of all ages, including children and young people, are experiencing delays accessing such assessments.
NHS England established an ADHD taskforce which brought together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. The final report was published on 6 November 2025, and we are carefully considering its recommendations.
The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan for England will make the NHS fit for the future, recognising the need for early intervention and support, including for children and young people, such as those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). In 2026, the Government will bring forward a Schools White Paper, which will detail our approach to SEND reform, ensuring joined-up support, including education and healthcare providers working together.
In respect of ADHD, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guideline does not recommend a maximum waiting time for people to receive an assessment for ADHD or a diagnosis, however it sets out best practice on providing a diagnosis.
Through the NHS Medium-term planning framework, published 24 October, NHS England has set clear expectations for local integrated care boards and trusts to improve access, experience, and outcomes for autism and ADHD services over the next three years, focusing on improving quality and productivity.
The Secretary of State announced on 4th December 2025 the launch of an Independent Review into Prevalence and Support for Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism. This independent review will inform our approach to enabling people with ADHD and autistic people to have the right support in place to enable them to live well in their communities.
Asked by: Sarah Pochin (Reform UK - Runcorn and Helsby)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps are being taken to guarantee access to specialist therapeutic support services for child victims of sexual abuse, in the context of the recommendation of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Last April, we committed to ambitious proposals in response to recommendation 16 from the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. As part of our response to delivering on that promise, we are investing up to £50 million to roll out the internationally recognised Child House model across all National Health Service regions in England.
The model brings health, justice, and social care professionals together under one roof to reduce trauma and deliver the care children deserve in a safe, child-centred environment. Too often, children are asked to retell their experiences to multiple professionals, reliving their trauma with each repetition. The Child House model changes this.
This investment sits alongside our wider work to transform children’s mental health services. We are committed to reducing waiting times for specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service support, as set out in our Medium-Term Planning Framework. We are accelerating the rollout of mental health support teams in schools and colleges, working towards full national coverage by 2029. And we are investing an additional £13 million to pilot enhanced training so school-based mental health teams can better support young people with complex needs, including trauma.
Together, these actions represent a fundamental shift by treating child sexual abuse as the healthcare priority it is and ensuring that victims and survivors receive the very best support to rebuild their lives.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has been made of the merits of providing training to mental health teams to support children with lifelong speech and language difficulties.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such specific assessment has been made. The Department of Health and Social Care is working closely with the Department for Education and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
In addition to the undergraduate degree route, speech and language therapists can now also train via a degree apprenticeship. This route is going into its fourth year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway to the traditional degree route into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.
In partnership with NHS England, the Department for Education has extended the Early Language and Support for Every Child programme, trialling new ways of working to better identify and support children with Speech, Language and Communication Needs in early years settings and primary schools.