Extra cash for mental health services in Scotland expected to be announced in tomorrow's (wed) Budget should used to tackle a crisis in care for young people, according to experts
A leading coalition of children's service providers has called on the Scottish Government to plough its £25 million share of the planned additional UK Government spending on mental health to improve mental health services for vulnerable children and young people in Scotland.
The Scottish Children's Services Coalition (SCSC), which includes charities and residential care providers, has says hundreds of young people are missing out or waiting long periods for treatment and support they need.
It has written to Health Secretary Shona Robison warning that current services are at crisis point with many unfit for purpose.
They called for Scotland's share of £250m extra for mental health services in England announced by the UK Government to go towards Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) north of the Border.
Extra funding for (CAMHS) services could help speed diagnosis and cut waiting times, and prevent a rising number of children and young people being sent to non-specialist units, SCSC said.
Waiting times rose last year, and half of health boards are failing to meet an 18 week government waiting times target.
There is also no secure provision in Scotland for under 18s who need it, or any units for those with a severe learning disability. SCSC says this means those with challenging behaviours and learning disabilities are often being treated in unsuitable adult or paediatric wards, or being sent miles away from their families to England. A shortage of specialist staff also needs to be addressed, with many vacancies for doctors specialising in child and adolescent psychiatry.
Sophie Pilgrim, Director of Kindred Scotland, which supports parents and carers, and is a member of SCSC, said: "A society should be judged by how it treats its most vulnerable citizens and at the moment mental health services in Scotland are at breaking point.
"Scotland aims to lead the way in promoting the wellbeing of children and this funding presents us with a momentous opportunity to rectify the situation and help those families that are in crisis.
"We urge that the Scottish Government takes this opportunity to go that extra mile and ensure that we have a range of mental health services available in Scotland for those who so vitally need it."
Jamie Hepburn, the government minister responsible for mental health issues, said: "Scotland takes child and adolescent mental health extremely seriously, which is why we are the only country in the UK with a target for waiting times.
"Since we introduced that target we have invested £17 million in these services, plus an additional £15 for a mental health innovation fund, some of which will be used to increase access to CAMHS services and improve training."
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