WINTER 2020

YOUNG PEOPLE TALK MENTAL HEALTH: “Start taking more time to listen to young people’s experiences!”

MENTAL HEALTH W

ALES

INSIDE: We talk to young people across Wales, the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales and Hafal’s Chair Mair Elliott and ask: how can we improve support for young people?

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In October First Minister for Wales Mark

Drakeford announced that Eluned Morgan will

take on a new role as Minister for Mental

Health, Wellbeing and the Welsh Language,

acknowledging the longer-term impact on the

Covid-19 pandemic will have on people’s

mental health and wellbeing.

The Minister will assume responsibility for mental

health services, dementia, autism, substance

misuse, veterans’ health, patient experience and

the obesity strategy, working alongside Minister

for Health and Social Services, Vaughan Gething.

The First Minister said: “We have learned a lot

from the first wave of coronavirus and the way

both we and public services have responded to

the virus. Once again, we are facing rising cases

across the country and a difficult few months

ahead.

“Vaughan has done an amazing job leading our

health service’s response to the pandemic and

will continue to take day-to-day charge of that

response. The changes I am making to my

Cabinet team will mean he can focus all his time

and effort on coronavirus and ensuring our NHS is

able to treat people with the virus as well as

respond to the population’s wider health needs.

“Eluned has a strong track record in government

and will bring all that experience to safeguarding

and promoting the wider wellbeing of people in

Wales.”

Alun Thomas, Chief Executive of Welsh mental

health charity Hafal, said:“We are delighted by this

appointment and in particular we are pleased that

the minister will be in the cabinet – this gives hope

to mental health patients and their families that

their concerns will be heard and acted on.

“Hafal’s Chair recently published Mair’s Manifesto

which called for this role to be created and it is

welcome that the voice of patients has been

heeded.

“Mental health patients are having a hard time

because of the direct and indirect consequences

of coronavirus. Our vulnerable clients have been

worried that they received little or no information

about what mental health services would remain

in place during the crisis – they had accepted that

services would be scaled back but they should

have been told what was available. The new

minister could make a great start by ensuring that

there is clarity about the availability of services.

“Longer-term we hope the minister will be able to

use her authority to apply prudent healthcare

principles to mental health services, ensuring that

those in most need are prioritised while schools,

employers and others take responsibility for the

wellbeing of their clients and staff. We hope that

she will be able to negotiate this with her cabinet

colleagues and put a stop to the dilution of mental

health services and the medicalisation of life

events.”

Eluned Morgan appointed to the new role of minister with responsibility for mental health

mentalhealthwales.net

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Committee calls on Welsh Government to do more to support young people

Number of children in Wales counselled by Childline over mental health worries rises significantly since first lockdown

NEWS

For more of the latest news visit: mentalhealthwales.net

In November the NSPCC revealed that since

lockdown measures were first introduced

Childline has delivered more than 1,500

counselling sessions about mental and

emotional health, with children from Wales

reaching out for help with issues including

loneliness and low self-esteem.

Figures showed that Childline has counselled

17% more children in Wales about their mental

health, from an average of 191 per month before

the first national lockdown measures were

introduced to an average of 224 sessions per

month since the end of March.

Mental Health Wales is published by Hafal. If

you have any comments, please contact us at:

Hafal, Unit B3

Lakeside Technology Park

Phoenix Way, Llansamlet

Swansea SA7 9FE

Email: hafal@hafal.org

Tel: 01792 816600

Facebook/Twitter: search for Hafal

We hope you found the latest issue of our journal useful! To support our work in providing the latest mental health news and information you can make a donation to Hafal at our JustGiving page: justgiving.com/hafal

Launched ahead of World Mental Health Day,

the Senedd’s Children, Young People and

Education Committee report “Mind over

Matter: two years on” calls on the Welsh

Government to do much more to help children

and young people.

After taking evidence, the Committee believes

that while there has been some progress in

schools’ approaches to emotional and mental

health, changes to improve the situation across all

public services – including in the NHS and local

government – are not happening quickly enough.

The Committee believes the impact of the current

pandemic makes these changes more necessary

than ever before.

On the same day, the Welsh Youth Parliament

also launched its report on young people’s

emotional and mental health, “Let’s talk about

Mental Health,” after hearing the experiences of

many young people across Wales. It too is calling

for more mental health support for young people.

Lynne Neagle MS, Chair of the Children, Young

People and Education Committee, said: “Our

original report said we were not willing to allow

this issue to be passed on yet again to a future

Committee with repeated conclusions of “more

work to be done”. We intend to keep our promise

to the people of Wales and do everything we can

to ensure that the Welsh Government puts our

recommendations into practice.”

Your recent report shows that children and young people who experience mental health problems are being bounced between services who cannot agree who is responsible for their care. What needs to change? We need to stop the situations where different services argue over the heads of children and young people over who is responsible for their care, by making sure that those services work together as a matter of course, and as early as possible from when a child or young person needs help. That is why in my report I highlight examples like the single point of access (SPACE­Wellbeing) panels in Gwent. This is where children whose needs are complex have their needs considered by a panel of people from across lots of different services, including mental health, social services and education, but might also include mental health charities, youth services, housing services, the local authority’s sports and leisure providers and others. Children are then given help and support quickly after their options have been properly considered by this panel of experts. My report also highlights ‘early help and support hubs’, such as those in Conwy, where many different services are brought together under one roof in family centres, the idea being that families looking for support have everything in the one place so they don’t have to keep contacting lots of different people and having lots of different appointments. I would also like more places where young people could go for immediate advice and support on mental health issues, like the Maison des Adolescents network in France or the ‘one stop shops’ called for by our Youth Parliament. How do we ensure that specialist mental health services are prioritised for those in highest need

while also ensuring that those who do not require such specialist support still get help? The resources we have in Wales for children and young people with the highest need are scarce. We have a very limited number of mental health inpatient beds, for example, and no NHS secure accommodation for children with mental health issues. The resources we do have in Wales are too often not the right fit for those who need it, and we regularly hear from families where a child or young person finds themselves in a sort of limbo between community­based mental health support and inpatient settings. Sadly, we often hear of children being placed on adult wards in Wales because there is no provision for them, or who are sent away to settings outside of Wales. This needs to change. This is why I have called for new residential provision to be provided for those children and young people with the most complex needs, which provides for both their mental health and social needs. Welsh Government have promised to take action on this, working with Regional Partnership Boards, and I continue to hold them to account for this promise, ensuring real action is taken before the end of this Welsh Parliament in May 2021. What do you think are the key ways that mental health support for young people in Wales can be improved? We need to diversify the offer for those with the highest level of need – meaning that there are more options available than just a mental health inpatient

INTERVIEW: SALLY HOLLAND, CHILDREN’S COMMISSIONER FOR WALES

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Children’s Commissioner for Wales

Professor Sally Holland is dedicated to

promoting and protecting the rights of

children. Recently the Commissioner

published a key report on services for

children and young people. We spoke to the

Commissioner to find out more about the

report’s findings, and how mental health

support for young people should be

improved...

unit, which often can’t meet the needs of children and young people. For those children and young people for whom inpatient units are the best fit for them, we need to make sure they receive this support quickly. We also need to diversify the offer for children and young people with ‘lower level’ mental health needs. If you are a child or young person, support for mental health and wellbeing should be there for you when you need it, wherever you are. You should be able to ask for help in school and in your community, and you should get a response which responds properly to your individual needs. Our Youth Parliament has also called for better advertisement of services, and more easily accessible information, as well as more options for seeking help anonymously, for example on­line. Work on whole school approaches and school based interventions is taking place across Wales, and the Welsh Government is producing guidance for all schools to help them create a supportive and nurturing environment, as well as being equipped to support those with higher levels of need. The new curriculum has much more of a focus on wellbeing and awareness around mental health than before. But for these to make a real difference, we need to fundamentally shift how all the services supporting children and young people work together. Is there a risk that young people’s experiences and normal life events are being medicalised? Children and young people face many stresses and strains as they grow up ­ from having to worry about school and getting the grades they need, to understanding the world around them and the relationships they form. At the moment, they also have to deal with restrictions on their everyday lives and in seeing their friends and family, as well as all the uncertainty when it comes to their education or going into the world of work. There is a risk that the experience of growing up can be medicalised, and that is exactly why it is so important that we normalise mental health and wellbeing in our society. We all have mental health. We all need to look after our wellbeing. I think we have come a long way in recognising this, but we need to make talking about mental health, and creating a nurturing environment for children and young people at school and in their community, the mainstream. We need to do more to ensure children and young people are supported through those difficult times, while recognising that some will need more specialist support.

Service users are concerned that funding for mental health should not be diverted away from those in greatest need and towards supporting the responsibilities of public­facing general services to protect the mental wellbeing of their clients. What do you think the mental health funding priorities should be? I agree that funding for those in greatest need should always be the priority, and certainly funding should not be diverted away from those scarce resources at the higher end of provision. It is my role as Commissioner to push for greater investment across all children’s services, and it is clear to me that many areas of the system are really struggling. From my point of view we need more investment in the mental health system at all levels. There is definitely a need for early help and prevention, which is currently being addressed partly through the whole school approach to wellbeing. We also don’t have enough provision at the ‘higher end’ of mental health support to properly care for those who need it most. It just doesn’t exist as it should in Wales. That absolutely needs to change ­ no child or young person experiencing serious mental health problems should be told they don’t reach the ‘right threshold’, or are placed somewhere unsuitable which can make things even worse. Sadly, I hear from many who experience this. Overall, I’d like to see more investment and concentration on children and young people’s mental health across the board. It is possible that the appointment of a dedicated Minister for Mental Health will help with this. I’m sure she will be hearing from all of us about what the priorities should be!

find out more about the commissioner’s work for young people @ childcomwales.org.uk

We need to fundamentally shift how all the services supporting children and

young people work together

What do you think are the key ways that mental health services and support for young people in Wales can be improved in future? Mental health is a pressing concern for future generations and in the production of our Future Generations Report, mental health, and concerns about the impact of mental illness, was the issue most raised. The challenges many people face have become suddenly starker with the pressures of Covid­19 and the scale and impact of poor mental health need tackling as a matter of urgency. One in four adults in Wales are likely to experience a mental health problem each year. The growing prevalence of mental health problems is putting an unsustainable strain on the NHS as well as other public and voluntary sector services. Tackling mental health is a priority for Welsh Government and other public bodies, but there needs to be more join­up or consideration of the wider determinants of health to enable a whole system preventative approach. You have often spoken about the importance of prevention within healthcare. How could this work with regard to young people’s mental health? For example, would it require a ‘whole government’ approach? And what might the benefits be? There is compelling evidence that we’re not investing in the best balance of services to keep people well and to enable them to live healthy and fulfilled lives. Future generations are facing different problems from when the NHS was designed 70 years ago, such as air pollution, extreme weather, a growing obesity problem, disconnect with nature, feelings of loneliness and isolation and declining mental health. The issues that we face today cannot just be treated in a healthcare or clinical setting and

for too long, we’ve been focusing on treating people when they’re ill, rather than keeping them well. I’ve proposed a shift to prevention and a national wellness system that would ensure services would support people to understand behaviours and choices that benefit future health, enabling people to live the highest quality of life they can, easing strain on the NHS. I want to see a whole government approach to keeping people mentally well, where the importance of good mental health is fully recognised and prioritised in people’s everyday lives, so it’s part of how we design transport, housing and public spaces. There needs to be consideration of alternative ways of keeping people well and wider determinants of health such as access to nature, air quality, housing, food, the negative knock­on effects to mental health from housing provision or lack of employment opportunities. It’s a more proactive approach to staying well and prevention.

INTERVIEW: SOPHIE HOWE, FUTURE GENERATIONS COMMISSIONER FOR WALES

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Future Generations Commissioner for Wales Sophie Howe provides advice to the

Government and other public bodies in Wales on delivering social, economic,

environmental and cultural wellbeing for current and future generations, and

assessing and reporting on how they are delivering. Here the Commissioner talks to

us about the future of mental health services for young people in Wales - and a need

for a shift towards prevention...

There needs to be more join­up or consideration

of the wider determinants of health to enable a

whole system preventative

approach

Patients and carers are concerned that funding for mental health should not be diverted away from those in greatest need (e.g. towards supporting the responsibilities of general services to protect the mental wellbeing of their clients). What do you think the mental health funding priorities should be? Good health is one of the main building blocks of wellness and opportunity. Enabling people to have the highest quality of life they can includes supporting them to have a lifestyle that maintains good physical and mental health. One of the elements of prevention is progressive universalism, which is a determination to provide support for all, giving everyone and everything a voice and vested

interest, but recognising more support will be required by those people or areas with greater needs. We know that 50% of people with enduring mental health problems present symptoms before the age of 14, so how can public bodies intervene earlier and what changes are needed so that our children and adolescent services can prevent further problems during adulthood? Practices that support good mental health must be understood from an early age. We also need to scale up the role of digital technology and broader service and community interventions towards identifying opportunities to promote mental wellbeing and encourage a whole system approach and clear leadership with pace.

find out more about the commissioner’s work for future generations @ futuregenerations.wales

Practices that support good mental health must be understood from an

early age

For too long, we’ve been focusing on treating people

when they’re ill, rather than keeping them well

It’s a few years since you worked on the Making Sense report which included recommendations on how to improve services. What has changed since then?

There have been some examples of good practice in supporting young people across Wales, but generally we are still seeing the same issues as we saw five years ago. There are still inappropriate referrals to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) which lead to delays for those with high needs; the transition from CAMHS to adult services can still be problematic; carers and families are still not fully consulted when it comes to providing services, and young people still don’t feel they are listened to.

In other words, all the recommendations we made four years ago still stand, and in some ways the Covid­19 pandemic has compounded the issues, having interrupted service provision and increased demand for mental health support.

The T4YCP Programme was established by the Welsh Government in 2015 to consider ways to remodel mental health services for children and young people in Wales, and the Programme Board endorsed the recommendations made by the Making Sense report. Has the Board acted on the recommendations?

It was really gratifying for all the young people who took part in the Making Sense consultation when the recommendations were endorsed by the T4CYP Programme Board.

However, I have yet to see real and meaningful changes to the way in which services are structured and how care and treatment is delivered to children and young people and their families/carers. In our report we recommended that referral pathways were reformed; this has not come into fruition as evidenced by the recent report from the Children’s Commissioner (more on this later). We also recommended that the transition process from CAMHS to adult services was reformed, that carers should have more support and that children and young people should be listened to.

While there may be small and local attempts to improve on these areas, I am still hearing of families struggling to get support, young people falling into the precipice between CAMHS and adult services, and that children and young people are feeling unheard. I welcome the attempts of T4CYP to engage with children and young people in their decision­making process – however, it still remains that when a child or young person accesses services at the local level they feel they have no say or voice in their own care or in the services they attend.

Is the resourcing of CAMHS a major issue?

It’s one of the key issues. Funding for young people’s mental health services should be set at a much higher level – not least to recognise the increased and lasting pressure on services arising from the Covid­19 pandemic. This funding should be applied as a minimum percentage of health and social care budgets, and the ring­fenced percentage should be expanded as necessary to achieve parity with other health and social care needs.

Funding for mental health should not be diverted to support the responsibilities of public­facing general services to protect the mental wellbeing of their clients – for example, schools.

INTERVIEW: MAIR ELLIOTT

all the recommendations

we made four years ago still

stand

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Mair Elliott has personal experience of using mental health

services in Wales, and as Chair of mental health charity Hafal

she represents hundreds of young people currently receiving

services. In 2016 Mair published the “Making Sense” report

which was based on a consultation with over 500 young people,

and which presented key recommendations for improving

support for young people in Wales. We asked Mair: has

anything changed?

I welcome the recognition in recent years that mental wellbeing is an issue for everybody. But that does not mean that CAMHS should expand their role. Specialist mental health services should give priority to those in greatest need, aiming to assist those patients receiving higher­end services to achieve recovery and move down into lower­level support services, as this will have the greatest impact in terms of improving young people's lives ­ and additionally in reducing the cost of their care and treatment. These high­level interventions need to be provided quickly and effectively.

CAMHS should be available immediately for young people who have serious mental health challenges; they should act quickly to resolve problems or sustain support for as long as needed. This will only be possible if there is a clear threshold of need for their services. But no child or young person should fall between different levels of support and they should always receive a positive referral to an appropriate source of help.

A recent report from the Children’s Commissioner suggests that children can be run from pillar to post when trying to access help for mental health problems. How can we overcome this?

The best solution would be to have a single point of access controlled by a multi­disciplinary team through which all referrals (including those by GPs) must be assessed. And every assessment should have a positive outcome – referral back to non­specialists, to primary

care or, where appropriate, to CAMHS or other specialist mental health services.

The mental wellbeing of children and young people depends on supportive families, schools and colleges, and well supported training and work opportunities. CAMHS should only be there for young people who have serious mental illness.

read more about making sense at: hafal.org/youngpeople

Funding for young people’s mental health

services should be set at a much higher level

FOCUS GROUP WHAT SHOULD YOUNG PEOPLE’S SERVICES LOOK LIKE IN THE FUTURE?

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by Declan Terry

Mental Health Wales reporter Declan Terry ran a virtual focus group to ask young people

from across Wales what future mental health services and support should look like. Here

are some of the ideas they gave us...

Dec: How do you think we can improve Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS)?

Aimee: “I feel an appropriate place to start would be to start taking more time to listen to the young people’s experiences and their feedback on the services.”

Katie: “Young people should be given choices and options around their own treatment and be informed about different therapies available and why one has been chosen over another.”

Kazion: “I feel the environment is very important as my experience was that the environment was very clinical and had no uplifting energy.”

Ben: “Monthly meetings with CAMHS and services to evaluate how things are going month to month.”

Laura: “Make every young person feel listened to and understand their needs and wants too.”

Sophie: “I personally believe a whole person approach isn't used to its full potential. For example, a child may be affected by abuse, neglect, bullying, social isolation, grief, etc.”

Tessa: “I think that consistency needs to be improved ­ e.g. seeing the same CAMHS workers each appointment as often as possible.”

Sam: “We can improve CAMHS by having more funding as there isn’t enough, by employing more staff and having dedicated staff for CAMHS and support groups. Also by having more services run in local areas as it’s all a lottery of where you live as to what services you can access.”

Simon: “Look at care and services for young adults, current services are not appropriate: there’s an outdated culture and young people and families are not listened to.”

Sophie: “Due to the current pressure on health services enough time isn’t spent on building relationships with the service user. A relationship with the young person needs to be established so they can be effectively treated.”

Alison: “Having better support when transitioning into adult services by providing a six­month transition period where they are introduced to the new workers and buildings and any issues can be worked out in that period.”

join the conversation on mental health on the Clic UK online community: clic-uk.org

Dec: How do we ensure that specialist mental health services are prioritised for those in highest need?

Laura: “There should always be a first point of contact... No young person should feel left if they are struggling.”

Alison: “Use a traffic light system and refer those who are in the green category to third sector/community mental health support, amber to secondary NHS support and those in the red category to specialist mental health.”

Tessa: “I think that the referral system for CAMHS needs to be revised and that there should be clear criteria for people to be referred to CAMHS, and if someone does not meet the criteria for CAMHS then… they are made aware of other organisations and services.”

Louise: “Make sure no one falls through the gaps. If they are not eligible, signpost elsewhere.”

Dec: How do we improve non-mental health services so they can deal with most matters?

Simon: “Services should work in a more young person­friendly way.” Ben: “Education on how to deal with their emotions is key to positive outcomes from child to young adult.” Louise: “Teach healthy coping mechanisms from a young age.”

Sophie: “Schools need to be providing workshops for young people, to normalise how growing up can affect individuals and to explain anxiety and how other life stressors is a normal part of life.”

Tessa: “I think that people should be more widely educated on healthy coping mechanisms, normal response (e.g. to trauma), and the various non­mental health support which is available.” Aimee: “Staff of these non­mental health services need to be trained and educated so that they are aware and knowledgeable about these issues.” Sam: “I would also like to see mental health made compulsory in school just like physical education is compulsory in schools as to me it’s just an important to have both in schools in today’s society.”

Alison: “Create a section of curriculum around mental health including that of major mental illness.” Katie: “Low­level support should be easier to access in schools, colleges and local communities so that those in need of low­level support are able to access this rather than go to CAMHS.” Aimee: “By building on this emotional intelligence and teaching skills to young people on how to understand their mental health in the curriculum, a healthier environment can be built.” Laura: “Schedule longer GP appointments if the person does disclose their mental health so they can talk to you longer than the standard 10 minute appointments.” Jack: “I know that younger people who have mental health problems thrive in social situations so charities such as ‘Get The Boys A Lift’ who have a coffee shop in Haverfordwest have created an amazing informal space where people can go and have a drink and a chat and there’s no pressure there of feeling like it’s a counselling session.”

A big THANK YOU to you all for taking part!

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“Making Sense” is a 2016 report presenting a range of

recommendations for improving mental health services

based on the feedback of over 500 young people in Wales.

Here we summarise those recommendations - and show

how the process of dealing with young people’s mental

health could be informed by them (see diagram opposite)...

Listen to young people! This means listening both to young people collectively when designing

services, and also individually when services are being planned and delivered to support them.

Support their carers and families. Carers often have clear insights into what action will be most

effective for the person they care for. They can often clearly see what is not working (and so

wasting resources). Carers need to be listened to and treated as lead partners.

Avoid the medicalisation of growing up. Nothing could be more wrong than treating a troubled

child for a mental health problem if their difficulty really lies externally, with family, school, or if they

are experiencing normal reactions to life events such as parents separating, bereavement, etc.

Embed emotional intelligence and healthy coping mechanisms into the curriculum. If healthy

coping mechanisms were embedded into the curriculum we could create a generation of children

and young people aware of their emotional needs, without thinking or being told that they have a

mental illness.

Expand and/or create high-quality support provided by non-mental health professionals.

Young people would prefer to turn to people they trust - over half of CAMHS users (56 per cent)

said that given the chance they would prefer to turn to friends; 44 per cent said they would prefer to

turn to educational counselling services, and 39 per cent said they would prefer to turn to teachers.

Those people should be supported and empowered so that they can help young people.

Reform CAMHS’ referral systems. Strict referral criteria needs to be introduced and enforced to

ensure that only appropriate referrals are made to CAMHS. The Making Sense report suggests

that a single, multi-agency point of access may be required through which all referrals (including

those by GPs) must be channelled.

Introduce an absolute timescale for referrals. Many young people are waiting for many weeks

to be assessed, causing unacceptable distress to them and their families and raising levels of risk.

The length of time from referral to assessment and assessment to treatment must be reduced. To

achieve this, a strict timescale for referrals must be implemented.

Always provide a positive referral. Every assessment should have a positive outcome – referral

back to non-specialists, to primary care or, where appropriate, to CAMHS or other specialist mental

health services.

Improve data collection and accountability. The availability of Wales-wide data would

encourage strategic, evidence-based decision-making across Wales, and encourage health boards

to work in a more synchronised way.

Review practice within CAMHS. New standards for CAMHS need to be established and

delivered, building on the holistic Care and Treatment Plan prescribed by the Mental Health

Measure and its Codes of Practice. All life areas need to be considered and all relevant agencies

need to be coordinated to deliver on Plans, including non-mental health agencies.

Reorganise transition to AMHS. We need to find a way to end the abrupt and disruptive transition

when a young person turns 18. One key method of doing this is through improved use of Care and

Treatment Plans, which apply to both under and over 18s.

Recommendations:

Young Person

Family, friends,

informal carer

(School, college, youth

organisation, employer)

Teachers, tutors, youth

workers, colleagues,

managers

(School, college, youth

organisation, employer)

School nurse, school

counsellor, pastoral

support, HR department

GP and other

primary care

CAMHS and other

specialist mental

health services

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read more about making sense at: hafal.org/youngpeople

For more info on NCMH visit: ncmh.info14

Some exciting news in the world mental health research for children and young people is the launch of The Wolfson Centre for Young People’s Mental Health. The new Wolfson Centre will be a dedicated research centre focusing on reducing anxiety and depression in young people. The Centre will be based at Cardiff University and within the same division as us at the Nation Centre for Mental Health (NCMH). The Centre will open in January 2021. Experts from the Cardiff University Centre will work in partnership with Swansea University, Welsh Government, NHS Wales, University Health Boards and schools across Wales. What does the Centre aim to do? The Wolfson Centre will focus on five scientific areas: • Population mental health – the team will

examine longitudinal data that tracks children over time to better understand how anxiety and depression develop.

• Genetics – they will consider the role genetic

and environmental factors play in anxiety and depression in young people.

• Interventions in adolescents at high familial risk – they will be developing a new intervention to support young people and families where a parent suffers from depression.

• Mental health interventions in schools – the

centre will look at the role schools play in promoting positive mental health in youngsters.

• Patient e­cohort ­ working jointly with experts

from Swansea University, the Centre will use information uniquely available in Wales to better understand long­term outcomes of those young people who experience anxiety and depression.

The Centre will be working alongside Swansea University and Professor Ann John, who will lead a Centre work stream focused on identifying targets for optimising the outcomes of youth anxiety and depression, and evaluating the outcome of interventions and new youth mental health policy. All the Wolfson Centre’s scientific findings will be developed in partnership with young people, practitioners and policy makers and the information generated will be used to shape public health and school policies with the aim of helping promote better mental health in young people. Find out more about the Wolfson Centre on the Cardiff University website www.cardiff.ac.uk or contact wolfsonyoungpeople@cardiff.ac.uk

New research centre to focus on anxiety and depression in young people