Schools: Mental Health Services

(asked on 18th October 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will take steps to help ensure that every child in full time education has access through their place of education to an appropriately-qualified and professionally registered counsellor with experience of working with young people; and if he will make a statement.


Answered by
Will Quince Portrait
Will Quince
This question was answered on 2nd November 2021

Schools and colleges have an important role to play in supporting the resilience and mental health of their pupils and students. The department recognises that counselling, by well-qualified practitioners, can play a particularly effective role as part of a whole school or college approach to supporting mental health and wellbeing, guidance for which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/promoting-children-and-young-peoples-emotional-health-and-wellbeing.

Many schools and colleges already provide their pupils access to counselling support, and we have set out a strong expectation in guidance that, over time, all schools should make counselling services available to their pupils. However, the provision of access to counselling in schools and colleges is not mandatory. It is up to schools and colleges to decide what level of counselling to provide, working with other organisations including local authorities and the NHS who may fund counselling locally. It is also important there is freedom for each school or college to decide what support to offer to children and young people and staff based on their particular needs and drawing on an evidence base of effective practice. This support can come from a number of sources, including counselling.

The department has published a blueprint for school counselling services, focusing on supporting the provision of counselling in schools with practical, evidence-based advice, informed by schools and counselling experts, on how to deliver high-quality school-based counselling. It sets out that counselling works best within a whole school or college approach to mental health and wellbeing, which considers issues such as promoting wellbeing, raising awareness of, and reducing stigma around, mental health issues and providing an effective pastoral system. It also offers information on how to ensure that vulnerable children, including those with special educational needs and disabilites, looked after children, and those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, who have a higher prevalence of mental illness, can access counselling provision, details of which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/counselling-in-schools.

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