Inadequate access to mental health services for children in care, report finds

The Commons Education Committee (CEC) has found that children in care are not receiving sufficient access to mental health treatment, despite being at higher risk from suffering such problems.

The report calls for fostered children to be made a priority when issuing mental health support, with almost half of children in care diagnosed with a mental health disorder. It outlined that numerous local authorities in England were failing to identify mental health issues when children enter the care system.

In some cases, children are turned away because their conditions are not deemed severe enough to qualify for treatment. In other cases, children are denied the services simply because they move around too often.

Neil Carmichael, chair of the CEC, said: "Given that children in care may have unstable family lives and are frequently moving foster or residential placement, this inflexibility puts vulnerable children in care at a serious disadvantage in getting the support they deserve.”

“This must change - we recommend children in care be given priority access to mental health assessments and never refused care based on their placement or the severity of their condition."

The report warned that too often, schools were left to manage children with mental health problems with little support from other agencies. It advised more mental health support should be made available to young people leaving care, claiming they were five times more likely than their peers to attempt suicide.

The report calls for: better mental health assessments of children entering care; better mental health support for care leavers; better integration of services for children in care, with more focus on mental health; more mental health training for teachers, foster carers and children's home staff; a bigger voice for children in care on the services they receive; and better research on the prevalence of mental illness in children.

Commenting on the findings, a government spokesman said: "Children in care have often lived through traumatic experiences, and it is vital they receive the support they need. That's why we are putting a record £1.4 billion into children and young people's mental health, and investing in better links between these services and schools.

"This is backed up by £700 million in reforming the social work profession, so staff are supported to make the right decisions for those in their care."