Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the finding of the report from The Place2Be's survey of headteachers that children with mental health problems are suffering as a consequence of school environments with a paucity of mental health support staff for teachers.

Good mental health is a priority for the department. It can have a profound impact on the whole of a child’s life. Schools and colleges have an important role to play in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people by developing approaches that suit their needs.

The department recognises that teachers are not mental health professionals and that many schools and colleges have reported having to deal with an increase in mental health problems requiring support from specialist services. The findings from Place2Be’s survey echo the findings from our Supporting Mental Health in Schools and Colleges study and Teacher Voice omnibus survey. These indicate teachers would like more information on what works in schools in promoting good mental wellbeing and better access to specialist support. That is why the government is committed to supporting schools and colleges to promote good mental wellbeing in children, to provide a supportive environment for those experiencing problems, and to secure access to more specialist help for those who need it. The Department of Health and Social Care have committed £1.4 billion for mental health services for children, young people and new mothers over the five years to 2020.

The attached green paper, ‘Transforming children and young people’s mental health provision’, sets out proposals to provide significant further support linked to schools, supported by over £300 million funding. These include incentivising and supporting all schools and colleges to identify and train a Designated Senior Lead for Mental Health, to deliver whole school approaches to promoting better mental health. The government will also fund new Mental Health Support Teams, to provide additional, clinically-supervised, staff trained in evidence-based interventions and to ensure schools and the NHS work together.