We are extremely concerned about the waiting time for children to receive support for mental health issues and about the proportion of adolescent girls seeking help. A survey found nearly 1 in 5 of 6- to 16-year-olds in England had a probable mental health disorder in 2021. The same survey also found that almost 40% had experienced a deterioration in mental health since 2017. In addition, 13.5% of 11- to 16-year-olds felt their lives had been made ‘much worse’ by COVID-19 restrictions. But su...

We are extremely concerned about the waiting time for children to receive support for mental health issues and about the proportion of adolescent girls seeking help. A survey found nearly 1 in 5 of 6- to 16-year-olds in England had a probable mental health disorder in 2021. The same survey also found that almost 40% had experienced a deterioration in mental health since 2017. In addition, 13.5% of 11- to 16-year-olds felt their lives had been made ‘much worse’ by COVID-19 restrictions. But support is not meeting children’s need and some children with mental health issues have had to wait a very long time to start treatment. In 2020–21 the ave Type: conclusion | Number: 5 | Response status: not_addressed Government response: 5.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 5.2 In summer 2021, NHS England consulted on the potential to introduce five new waiting time standards as part of its Clinically-led Review of NHS Access Standards. All prop