Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on encouraging schools to appoint mental health leads.

There are 399 operational Mental Health Support Teams now in place, supporting over 3 million children and young people. That means we have already achieved our 35% coverage target, 8 months ahead of schedule.

I am planning to deliver an additional 101 teams by spring 2024 taking us to 500. The NIHR – who undertook a review of the programme – found that 77% of children and young people surveyed saw positive improvements in their mental health and wellbeing. We have also set an ambition for all state schools and colleges to train a senior mental health lead by 2025-26 in 10 state-funded secondary schools in England now have a dedicated mental health lead.

I am thankful to the support of the Department for Education in supporting this rollout.