A flagship pledge to get more youngsters access to mental health services is behind schedule and looks set to be missed unless rates are quickly increased.
The NHS’s 2019 long-term plan promised that by March 2024, at least an additional 345,000 children and young people up to age 25 could access support through either NHS-funded mental health services or new school mental health support teams.
However, a presentation by NHS bosses, seen by Schools Week, shows only about 234,000 extra children were getting support in October – a gap of 111,000.
This was about a third below target, with just five months to go at the time.
