Emotional Mental Health and Wellbeing of Children and Young People in South Tyneside

What already exists?  

Maternal Mental Health

The Perinatal Community Mental Health Team which is part of Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (CNTW), a provider of mental health and disability services, is a community service which provides secondary care for women who are experiencing mental health problems within the perinatal period and offers care and support for women with a range of moderate to severe common mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and psychosis.  Referrals can be made via a midwife, obstetrician, health visitor, GP or by the Specialist Mental Health Service

Women who may be having difficulty with their mental wellbeing during pregnancy may also be referred to the Obstetric Mental Health Clinic - provided by South Tyneside and Sunderland Foundation Trust (STSFT) - and seen by one of the specialist teams within the antenatal clinics.  In the first instance, any difficulties should be raised with the midwife, GP, or health visitor.

It is also possible to self-refer to the Maternal Mental Health Service (provided by South Tyneside and Sunderland Foundation Trust).  They can provide support for issues including traumatic births, pregnancy, or newborn loss, fear/anxiety around pregnancy or childbirth. 

Talking Therapies can also provide psychological support to women during pregnancy, and the wider family.  Self-referrals can be made through the Single Point of Access on 0191 283 2937.

Children and Young People's Offer

Healthy Minds Team (Mental Health Support Team) is a "getting advice and getting help" service (based on the i-Thrive model) and currently work with schools in developing a "whole school approach" to good mental wellbeing, by providing consultation and training and to build resilience in children, providing group or 1-1 interventions.    

Lifecycle is a 'Getting Help' service (based on the Thrive model) and supports young people who have difficulties with attachment, behaviour, development, emerging OCD, anxiety and depression. It provides whole-person therapeutic and non-therapeutic services to young people of any age and their families.

Children and Young People's Service (provided by Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Trust), support young people with more complex needs, which can range from attachment, eating disorders, psychosis, mange medication, risk and more.  They also provide a diagnostic service for neurodevelopmental assessment (this is under the Getting More Help in the Thrive Model).  Under 'Risk Support' in the Thrive Model, Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Trust also provide access to inpatient care, where this is deemed necessary.

Kooth is a digital online tool which is anonymous and in South Tyneside is available for children and young people aged 10-25.  They offer online community support with peers, access to articles which have been developed by young people (this part sits under the "Getting Advice" part of the Thrive Model). 

Kooth also provides a digital counselling service via chat and can be accessed 365 days a year and has counsellors available 12-10pm Monday to Friday and 6-10pm Saturday and Sunday.  Kooth's counterpart Qwell is available for those aged 25+.

Humankind provide support for young carers and can help with:

• support to identify future goals and aspirations.
• advocacy (speaking on behalf of a young carer).
• information, advice, and guidance.
• activities to give them a break from their caring role.
• meeting people in a similar situation.
• support to access other services.

Humankind also provides an LGBT+ Support Service across South Tyneside for those between the age of 11-25.  All reasonable adjustments are based on a young person's needs and on a case-by-case basis. All staff are fully trained in speech, language, and communication needs.

The service can help with:

• one-to-one sessions.
• sexual health guidance.
• support to access clinical gender identity services.
• the opportunity to meet other young people to share experiences.
• support for your family, either one to one or together.
• hate crime reporting.
• fun activities and sessions such as sailing, meals, climbing, etc. in a safe space.

The National Trust provide activities for children, young people and adults with SEND, Learning Disabilities and/or Autism, including young people with mental health needs - particularly those young people who are more vulnerable (including care leavers) or who are engaging in emotional-based school avoidance behaviours.  Activities may vary, as some activities are seasonal due to being weather permitted.  Referrals can be made from various professionals. 

0-19 Service (up to 25 for those with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities)

Health visitors

South Tyneside Council commission a Health Visiting Service which is provided by Sunderland and South Tyneside NHS Trust. Health Visitors lead the Healthy Child Programme (0-5 years) and are fundamental in ensuring every child has the best start in life.

These specialist Public Health nurses work with families with a new baby from late in the antenatal period up to five years of age. During this period, all families receive at least 5 comprehensive contacts with their Hv where the physical and mental health of both mum and infant (and the family situation) are reviewed and needs and risks are determined to identify any support or referral required.

Health visitors are often the first to recognise whether a child is not progressing well, mum is struggling with her physical and or mental health - or the family is struggling and therefore work closely with other health and social care partners to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the family. A vulnerable parent pathway is in operation for young parents and/or those with extra needs.

School Nurses

South Tyneside Council also commission a school nursing service again delivered by Sunderland and South Tyneside NHS Trust.

They lead on delivering the five to 19 elements of the Healthy Child Programme and are also specialist community public health nurses (SCPHN - SN).

In South Tyneside they are supported by skilled, mixed teams of staff, including community staff nurses and health care assistants.

They work alongside other members of the children's workforce, including GPs, health visitors and voluntary services. They partner closely with schools, providing training for staff, deliver mandated programmes such as the National Child Measurement Programme, carry out vision screening and delivering specific public health sessions at a population based on need in each school. Individual support is also provided to children and young people in need around mental health, sexual health, healthy weight, or risk-taking behaviour.

Our School Nurses run a confidential text messaging service for young people called CHAT health, where they can get confidential help and advice on a range of health topics, with mental health often being the number one topic of conversation.

Young Adults

Community Treatment Team provides an assessment and treatment service for people who are experiencing difficulties with their mental health.  The team is made up of several health care professionals. Appointments with the team are arranged at a number of different sites.  The service is available for those aged over the age of 18. 

Youth Justice

South Tyneside Youth Justice Service coordinates the provision and delivery of interventions and partnership working that are underpinned by the principle aim of the youth justice system. The aim of the Youth Justice system is to prevent offending by children and young people and prevent re-offending (Crime and disorder act 1998).

South Tyneside YJS works in partnership to achieve the national youth justice strategic objectives, which are to:

• reduce the number of children in the youth justice system
• reduce re-offending by children in the youth justice system
• improve the safety and wellbeing of children in the youth justice system
• improve outcomes for children in the youth justice system

The Youth Justice service provides a range of programmes with the aim to prevent re-offending, supporting, and promoting the welfare of young people, improving the life chances of young people, and protecting the public. The services including educational support, mentoring support, skills training, group work, and ensuring that the young people have the right provision for physical, sexual, emotional, and mental health.

Outdoor Education and Youth Services

The Youth Service gives young people the opportunity to be involved in social action/community projects across the borough,access creative activities, and develop personal, social, and emotional skills. The service offers sessions tailored to young people with SEND.

Youth Service

2022/23 saw an increase in the participation for children and young people from 2021/22. The service hosted an inaugural 'Youth Festival' in-line with the National Youth Agency's annual youth work week as well as other themed / topical events reflected in the data of open access.

Additional activities were funded through the Office of the Police Crime Commissioner (OPCC) Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) to reduce seasonal violence during the summer and winter months. This increased participation through a range of targeted diversionary positive activities, as identified below:

2022-23 has seen an increase in targeted delivery with additional activities funded by the Violence Reduction Unit OPCC and Ministry of Justice Street Games.

Connexions

Connexions provides independent and impartial advice and guidance for post-16 careers, employment, and educational options. Young people with multiple vulnerabilities in year 11, NEET young people aged 16-18, and those with SEND are offered Personalised support to help remove any barriers in accessing future Education, Employment or Training opportunities. The benefits of education, employment and training are well documented to improving mental health and wellbeing. The overall aim is to support young people around career choice, post 16 options and ensuring a smooth, supported transition into their post 16/18 destination.

Holiday Activity and Food Programme

The Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme is a national scheme for children and young people aged 5-16 years in receipt of free school meals (FSM), and for young people up to the age of 18 years with SEND also in receipt of FSM.  Funded by the Department for Education (DfE) the programme delivers accessible enrichment activities and meals during Easter, Summer, and Winter school holidays. Due to South Tyneside being a highly deprived area, there are a number of children who are eligible for the Holiday Activity and Food Programme and service level data (unpublished) indicates there was an increase in the number of children and young people who accessed the programme.

Matrix Young People's Service

The service delivers specialist drug treatment, advice and information for young people requiring care-planned multi-disciplinary responses and interventions to support them and their families with drug or alcohol related needs. Matrix can be accessed through multiple referral points and offers both outreach and centre-based appointments.

The design and delivery of the Matrix Service reflects the intrinsic differences of children and adults and is flexible to the needs of young people offering both outreach and centre-based appointments. Many young people who use substances have multiple psychological, social and educational issues with a wide range of complexities, predicaments and vulnerabilities. Matrix acknowledges that some young people have been exposed to adverse childhood experiences requiring a support system which is responsive in meeting their holistic needs.

Children and Families Social Care

South Tyneside's Children in Care Council is called MAGIC (Making a Great Important Change). The MAGIC Umbrella includes several groups and activities that bring together cared for children in fun and creative ways to share their experiences, and voice opinions, that help to change and improve Children's Services in South Tyneside.

The Children with Disabilities (CWD) Social Work Team, who provide access to specialist social work support to families of disabled children aged 0-18. The team works with children and young people who have a permanent and substantial impairment, typically needing input from agencies on a lifelong basis. Needs assessments identify what services are best placed to support the child and their family.

Impact Family Services - This service provides a range of programmes for both children and adults who are experiencing a difficult time due to separation, divorce, or domestic abuse.

Leaving Care

Young people have access to a dedicated Health and Wellbeing Counsellor providing one to one therapeutic support as well as group support and therapeutic activities.

One to one talking therapy is offered to help young people change how they think and feel. Through one-to-one support young people can explore issues such as anxiety, stress, loss, loneliness, anger and relationship difficulties.

Activities and opportunities are offered to build resilience, tackle social isolation and loneliness and promote wellbeing.

The service is confidential, easily accessible, flexible and designed to meet the needs of young people.

For complex mental health needs young people are signposted to appropriate specialist intervention. The dedicated health and well-being Counsellor can help guide and navigate this journey in accessing these services.

Early Help

Early/Family Help in South Tyneside is not a single service or programme but rather an approach which allows for collaboration and coordination between communities, families, and services. The Early/Family Help system aims to draw on a family's strengths, local universal services, and, where necessary, targeted services.

Early/Family Help in South Tyneside, and the basis for decision making on basis of need, is centred on the principle of: "Right Conversations, Right Help, Right Time." Needs for children/young people/families are categorised into 4 levels which informs the services that are best placed to address the needs. The South Tyneside Framework for Decision Making explains the different levels outlined below with examples of the needs, risks, and impacts at each level but are briefly outlined here:

• Universal: Families have the capacity to support themselves, or their needs can be met by universal services
• Additional: Children, young people or families are experiencing additional needs which need some support to reduce the likelihood of the situation becoming worse.
• Complex: Children, Young People and families with complex needs which are having an impact on their expected outcomes
• Acute: Children and young people where their need is having a major impact on their expected outcomes and there are serious concerns about their safety.

Family Help Services

The South Tyneside Council Early/Family Help Team - provides tailored support to children, young people and families meeting the Supporting Families Programme thresholds for intervention for Local Authority provided Early Help support.

Family Hubs - provide a joined-up, place-based provision of family services. They bring services together to improve access, strengthen links between families, professionals, services, and providers, and centralise relationships. Consequently, a wide range of services can be delivered through the Family Hubs network.

South Tyneside's Family Hub network provides a range of Early/Family Help prevention and intervention programmes for those 0-19/25. These programmes include:

• Learning with Play and Learning with Play (SEND) 0-4 years,
• Baby Explorers, Little Explorers and Language Explorers which focus on bonding, communication, development milestones, and health and wellbeing,
• HENRY Antenatal-10 years which provides support to parents and children in developing healthy lifestyle habits and a happier home environment.
• Triple P Parenting Programmes 0-19 years which provides support for families to build healthy relationships and manage children's behaviour.

The Family Hubs Programme Guide will change in response to demand and need and be tailored as feedback from service users is received.

STANLEY's Daycare within South Tyneside - based with Family Hubs but operates independently from the Family Hubs core offer and provides Early Years Foundation Stage education for children up to 4 years.

Asylum, Refugee and Migrant Community Integration Team - Supports individuals and families experiencing crisis due to their migration status. Manage complex welfare and legal systems to support Asylum seekers, refugees, or migrants to integrate into their community.

Education Psychology

The service can provide a range of support including assessment and identification of need.  Schools, however, before an educational psychologist becomes involved, the child or young person will have already received additional support in school, where the school will have adapted their teaching in relation to a child's strengths and areas for improvement in accessing the curriculum.

They can also provide advice and support relating to emotional based school avoidance and have a specialist Emotional Resilience Team (below) who deliver support to schools through a service level agreement.

Emotional Resilience Team

The Team provide support to targeted children and young people from ages 7 to 16, who have been identified as requiring support in particular areas that may create barriers to their learning and/or mental health.  The team also works with targeted Year 6 children and helps to support them with their transition to Year 7 (secondary education).

In addition, intensive support is provided to children and young people who are presenting as school refusers, helping to reintegrate them into an education setting.

The team can also offer bereavement support to children who are struggling with the death or loss of someone close to them.

South Tyneside Council

On license from the National Autistic Society offers the Early Bird (under five), Early Bird Plus (four-nine) and Teen Life (10-16-year-olds) support programmes for parents and carers.  The programmes, which are delivered by staff from Educational Psychology and Portage and Pre-school Service, offer advice and guidance on strategies to help support young autistic children, such as developing good behaviours and social skills. Staff offer termly coffee mornings for parents who have attended the programmes which offer further advice and support.

South Tyneside Council is an Autism Education Trust (AET) partner. As licenced trainers they provide a range of courses to education settings in early years, primary/secondary schools, and post-16 providers.

The courses offer staff working within education settings a range of training option, practical strategies, and free resources to enable them to support autistic children and young people in both mainstream and specialist settings.

The National Autistic Society supports children in mainstream schools into further and higher education. It has a diagnostic service and offers specialist support via its helpline. Help is available at home or in residential settings. 

The North East Autism Society offers services across the North East; including Education, Childcare, Adult Care, Short Breaks, assistance to families and employment services.

Inclusion Service

To support mainstream settings to effectively meet the needs of autistic children and young people, South Tyneside Council have created an Inclusion Service, which is delivered by highly skilled teachers and Higher-Level Teaching Assistants (HLTAs).  These staff have a range of expertise and experience working with children and young people who have Special Educational Needs (SEN). The Inclusion Service focuses on two areas of need which have been identified as a priority: Communication and Interaction - Autism and Social, Emotional & Mental Health.

Support from the Service is available to all Early Years, Primary and Secondary settings and aims to ensure that staff within mainstream settings have the skills, training and knowledge they need to meet the needs of our children.  This is achieved through a robust system of observations, recommendations, implementation and review.

The Service will:

• Provide advice and support to settings regarding individual children and young people.
• Provide advice and guidance regarding whole school approaches to inclusive practice.
• Deliver training to schools/settings and partners.

Emotional Based School Avoidance & Transition Project 

 The Emotional Based School Avoidance (EBSA) & Transitions Project is being led by our Emotional Resilience Team Manager, who will engage with settings, children and young people, parents and carers as well as other Education, Health & Care Services to understand the challenges that children and young people can face during times of transition and when experiencing Emotional Based School Avoidance. The project aims to:  

• Obtain a baseline of current occurrences of EBSA across the Local Area  
• Develop a training offer for stakeholders in Transitions & EBSA. 
• Develop an intense programme of support for children and young people with Emotionally Based School Avoidance, to understand better how to support them as we work to enhance our Alternative Provision offer. 
• Establish an EBSA Panel/Focus group to enable better multi-agency approaches to supporting young people experiencing EBSA. 
• Develop a new model for how to best support children and young people experiencing EBSA that promotes reintegration into settings, with new a EBSA Policy & Guidance for schools/settings. 
• Develop a Transition Protocol that parents/carers and settings are confident produces positive outcomes, preventing applications for EHCP's at perceived 'critical' points. 

Mental Health Champions Network

The Mental Health Champions Network is an opportunity for professionals working in schools, the voluntary sector and health services to come together to share good practice around mental health for children and young people.  As well as face-to-face network meetings, information and updates are sent to the network regularly via email to be shared with any professional that works with children and young people.  Work is currently underway to ensure that every school in South Tyneside has a named Mental Health Champion. 

Senior Mental Health Lead in Schools

Following consultation, proposals set out within the 'Transforming children and young people's mental health provision: a green paper', encourages all schools and colleges to appoint a designated lead for mental health [Senior mental health lead training - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)].

Whilst there were already several Mental Health Champions (as above), this is specific Department for Education approved training, which will upskill staff to recognise signs that a child or young person may require additional support. South Tyneside now has more than a third of its education establishments who have completed the Department for Education's approved training and appointed designed Senior Mental Health Lead.

Healthy Schools Award/Healthy Schools Network

The Healthy Schools Award refreshes its accreditation annually based on local priority and need, and national guidance and evidence. 

Educational settings in Early Years, Primary, and Secondary and Special, are assessed in 4 main criteria areas: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity, Personal, Social and Health Education (including Relationships, Sex and Health Education), and Emotional Wellbeing.  Settings must re-accredit every 3 years to ensure they are evidencing best practice, and every school in South Tyneside is either up-to-date or working towards re-accreditation.  We are proud to say that 100% of South Tyneside schools are engaged with the programme.

We have recently welcomed South Tyneside College to the Healthy Schools Network.  A new set of criteria questions were developed in partnership with college staff and students, and in June 2023 they successfully achieved the first Healthy Schools Award for Further Education settings in the borough.

Every school in South Tyneside has a named Healthy Schools Lead within their school.  As part of the network, schools are provided with regular bulletins which include continuing professional development (CPD) and training, funding opportunities, information and updates on key public health topics, and upcoming campaigns.  Healthy Schools Network meetings are held termly, with a focus on a particular health topic, to ensure schools are promoting the best possible health outcomes for their pupils.

RSHE

The Department for Education 'Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE)' guidelines became mandatory for all schools in 2019.  Also referred to as 'RSE', the document sets out details of what children and young people need to know to be safe and healthy, and how schools should deliver high qu

ality, evidence-based and age-appropriate teaching of these subjects to help prepare pupils for the future.  Direct support for teaching staff is available to all South Tyneside schools, and schools are offered termly network meetings and training around RSHE topics to ensure key messages are being delivered to students equitably across the borough.

South Tyneside Young Health Ambassadors

As part of the Young Health Ambassador programme, supported by 'a better u', young people in South Tyneside schools and colleges in year 9 and above complete a 6-8-week training course in key public health topic areas and behaviour change, to take information back to their schools and act as peer support for students and the community.

The young health ambassadors are supported to design and run their own health campaign, based on what they have learned about the level of need in South Tyneside, and what is important to them.  The young people are trained to inspect health services and offer guidance on how they can be 'young person friendly'.

The 2023 cohort includes young people from the majority of South Tyneside secondary schools and South Tyneside College.  Their health campaign for the next academic year centres around 'mental health' as their topic area, focussing on access to mental health services and opening up conversations around self-care, referral pathways and mental health management with service users and service provider professionals by creating their own podcast.

South Tyneside Young People's Parliament

South Tyneside Young People's Parliament (STYPP) represent youth voice across South Tyneside and the focus of their campaign last year was 'Health and Wellbeing'. 

The young people held engagement events and conducted research in local secondary schools around services available to them. They found that young people were unaware of what services were available to them.  In response, they developed a list of services on their campaign website, and designed an illustrated map of the borough showing what is available.  The map is proudly displayed in many settings where young people may visit, including all secondary schools. See the STYPP's campaign page.

Stronger Schools

Is a website which professionals and school staff have access to which aims to provide good quality information and advice on how best to support students in the classroom on a range of topics, such as anxiety.  It aims to support children from 5 -11 in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, but some of the guidance is applicable to young people in year 7.

Autism Hub

The Toby Henderson Trust (THT) provides post-diagnostic support and early intervention with autistic children and young people. They also offer a wide range of services including webinars on topics such as sensory, masking etc, professionals (including school staff).  They also offer similar training to parents/carers of autistic children. 

Autism In Mind (AIM)

Autism in Mind (AIM) supports individuals and families living with autism in South Tyneside.   Support is provided to anyone with a diagnosis of autism age 16+.  The organisation works with both individuals and families to empower autistic adults to live as independently as possible.

Escape Interventions

Escape is a third sector charity which exists to promote the emotional, social, educational, and vocational competence of children and young people, by offering a range of therapeutic interventions, including counselling, advice, guidance, and support, to enable them to reach their potential and remove the barriers to personal success. They provide support to 4-25-year-olds and their parents/carers to alleviate mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, stress, anger, domestic/sexual abuse, bereavement/loss etc. They deliver resilience programmes to improve young people's ability to cope with adverse childhood experiences. They also provide free outdoor and creative activities to promote good mental health for 11-18year olds. Referrals can be made by parents, young people themselves or professionals involved, over the telephone or via a simple referral form.

Carer Support

South Tyneside Young Carers service is delivered by TEN North East. They work with young carers under the age of 18 and offer the following support:

• Advice, support and signposting
• Peer support and opportunities to meet other young carers
• School support
• Personal development, workshops and qualifications

Further information can be found at: Young carers - South Tyneside Council

Connected Caring, a partnership between Age Concern Tyneside South (ACTS), Vision and Hearing Support, and Your Voice Counts provides support to adult carers in South Tyneside. This includes:

• Advice and support based around the needs of the carer to enable them to continue their caring role.
• Access to emotional and wellbeing support.
• Peer support groups.
• Skills development, such as supporting with employment and training opportunities, as well as digital connection support.
• Working with Young Carers to support transition.

Further information can be found at: Carers - South Tyneside Council