Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are providing to the government of the Falkland Islands to assist with the provision of mental health services for young people.

The Department of Health and Social Care works with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, to provide health system support to all Overseas Territories, including the Falkland Islands.

The public health programme, led by UKHSA, has undertaken several initiatives related to youth mental health which the Falkland Islands have benefitted from, including: an upcoming project with experts in the United Kingdom to deliver support to Overseas Territories in designing and delivering a campaign to improve awareness and understanding of mental health and reduce stigma and discrimination in the community;regular sharing of the latest public health publications, reports and initiatives from the UK and around the world with colleagues in all Overseas Territories, some of which relate to mental health, such as the Every Mind Matters initiative; and establishing networks of health professionals, including clinical psychologists, health promotion leads, psychiatric nurses and school nurses, across the Overseas Territories.

The networks are a means of peer support for isolated health professionals and an effective approach for sharing good practice in what works in remote island contexts. The Falkland Islands have taken an active role in this network.