Written question WQ86342
- Asked by
- James EvansConservative
- To be answered by
- Minister for Health and Social Services
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 7 days
Question
What assessment has the Minister made of the impact of COVID lockdowns on the mental health of young people in Wales?
Answer
Answered by Deputy Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing
We recognise the impact the pandemic and associated restrictions has had on children and young people. We recognise that levels of anxiety increased during the pandemic and that for many young people these challanges remain. I am also aware that this impact may be further exacerbated by the cost of living crisis.
We continue to use a range of information to help us understand and respond to changing mental health needs across all age ranges. This includes population surveys and information from services. We continue to prioritise mental health and well-being and in 2022-23 we are investing an additional £50m to support mental health and mental health services for all age services.
This funding is targeted to support services most impacted by the pandemic – for instance specialist CAMHS, eating disorders and crisis services – but also key priority areas set out in the 2019-22 Together for Mental Health Delivery Plan. Additionally, we have invested significantly in tier 0/1 support to provide easy access to a range of support for children and young people – including the CALL Mental Health Helpline, Young Persons Mental Health Toolkit and BEAT’s Eating Disorder helpline.
We have also invested to establish a Wales wide offer, where young people and their families can access free online mental health support, without needing to be referred by a GP. This online therapy now has a suite of support programmes designed to help young people manage their mental health and wellbeing. Parents and carers can sign up for a free 12-week online therapy programme to help children and young people aged 4-18 with mild-to-moderate anxiety. Teenagers aged 16-18 can also sign up themselves, without needing adult consent, for support with anxiety or low mood directly via their mobile, tablet or laptop.
As well as investing to meet changing mental health needs, we continue to take a preventative approach through our whole system approach to emotional well-being and through the implementation of our NEST/NYTH framework.