An extra £1.25 billion will be ploughed into mental health services over the next five years in a move that will benefit more than 100,000 children, Nick Clegg announced today, as politicians, business chiefs and showbusiness stars pledge their support to a campaign by The Times.
The deputy prime minister revealed details of the additional £250-million-a-year funding package, which will be confirmed in next week’s budget, the last before the general election.
He said the cash would help around 110,000 children currently being subjected to “a form of institutionalised cruelty” by being left without suitable mental healthcare and resources.
The announcement marks a major milestone for the Time To Mind campaign, launched by The Times this week to try to end the scandal over the lack of support for children and young people’s mental health services.
More than 2,400 readers have joined stars, experts and bereaved parents in calling for urgent improvements to child and adolescent mental health services.
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The new cash boost will be used to pay for early intervention programmes, therapy sessions and family support work as well as helping to offer better training for clinicians and the development of websites and apps to help support young people.
Money will also be used to new mothers, who Mr Clegg said had previously had to cope with a “second-class mental health service”.
Mr Clegg called for a “seismic shift” to ensure that mental disorders are treated with the same gravity as physical conditions as he announced the new funding during a visit to Clock View Hospital in Liverpool.
“It’s an institutionalised form of cruelty, the way we allow vulnerable children with mental health problems to basically have to fend for themselves at the moment,” he said.
“There would be an outcry if a child with diabetes was left to cope without support or treatment. But that’s exactly what’s been happening with young people’s mental health services.
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“I have heard, time and again, harrowing stories from young people and their families about how they suffered and their condition deteriorated waiting to get the right treatment for serious mental health problems.
“That’s why I am determined to start a seismic shift to revolutionise children’s mental healthcare and end this unacceptable injustice.”
Securing more funding for mental health has been a key Liberal Democrat demand during negotiations over Wednesday’s budget.
Simon Stevens, the chief executive of NHS England, hailed the agreement as a “much needed investment” to car for young people and their families.
He said: “NHS nurses, therapist and doctors will use this funding to benefit families in every part of the country.”
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Emergency admissions for psychiatric conditions have doubled to more than 17,000 over the past four years, admissions of young women for self-harm have increased by almost 70 per cent since 2004, and the number of children treated for eating disorders has jumped by 12 per cent in a single year. Only 6 per cent of the NHS mental health budget is spent on services for children and teenagers, which have had less money every year since the coalition came to power.
The Time to Change ten-point campaign manifesto, includes calls for greater investment in early intervention, improved training for professionals, a study into the prevalence of child mental health issues and better access to out-of-hours services.
Matt Lucas tweeted his support for the campaign, directing his 855,000 Twitter followers to The Times’s manifesto — which has been viewed online more than 12,400 times — while Sir Martin Sorrell said: “Children’s mental health is a subject worthy of far greater attention from the media, policymakers and society in general. This timely campaign will shed much-needed light on the issue.”
Alan Davies said: “Mental health issues untreated in childhood and particularly adolescence can lead to self-harm and even suicide. It is essential that young people are supported and not left with feelings of isolation and desperation.”
They were joined in their support by James Rhodes, the pianist; Sir Mark Elder and Sir Simon Rattle, the conductors; Tim Burgess, the lead singer of the Charlatans; Deborah Bull, the former creative director of the Royal Opera House; and Richard Harman, chairman of the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference.
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Peter Wanless, chief executive of the NSPCC, said: “The rising number of children who contact ChildLine because they have mental health issues is deeply disturbing — and just as worrying is the lack of services to help them.” He warned that “we risk leaving a generation on the brink of despair”.