Congratulations to Year 3 and 4 pupils at St Margaret's Church of England Primary School, who have graduated from Premier League Primary Stars.
The initiative uses the appeal of the Premier League and professional football clubs to inspire children to learn, get active and develop important life skills. Locally the scheme is delivered by the Crawley Town Community Foundation.
I’ve found it insightful to speak with parents and Community Foundation staff about the programme. I’m pleased to support the initiative in no small part due to its focus on emotional well-being.
While central government is treating mental health on a par with physical health, there’s still more to be done to ensure even greater provision. We know around half of all mental illness starts before the age of 14 so it is vital children get support as soon as they need it.
Last year, NHS investment in frontline mental health services rose by over £575 million, with CAMHS investment growing by around £100 million. The Government have asked local Clinical Commissioning Groups, such as ours in Crawley, to increase their spending on mental health provision each year.
Since 2010 NHS provision has been returning to Crawley Hospital, with an Urgent Care Centre now open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and new wards with extra beds. This is not to say there aren’t pressures on services and I continue to pursue these.
Last week the Department of Health published a consultation document, known as a Green Paper, on Transforming Children and Young People’s Mental Health Provision.
The proposals in the Green Paper would cost £215 million over the next three years and include senior leads for mental health in England’s schools and colleges, mental health support teams to provide support in or near schools and colleges for children and young people with emerging and more moderate needs, and piloting of a four week waiting time standard for accessing children and young people’s mental health services.
A record £11.6 billion a year is being spent on addressing mental health; it’s an important investment and one we must build further on.
Henry Smith MP