By Sheila Mckenzie-
Experts have urgently called for early intervention and more mental health services to be placed in schools.
The prevalence of mental health issues in schools has led to calls for more expert intervention to manage some of the worrying levels of mental health in both primary and secondary schools in the Uk, in order to address the problematic levels of mental health in schools across the country.
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Cathy Wassell, chief executive at Autistic Girls Network, has called for all pupils should undergo a “sensory audit” in reception to identify autism sooner. Experts believe the earlier autism is discovered, the sooner it can be addressed.
Similar initiatives are already happening in some schools in the north west through a toolkit called WellComm, which screens speech and language needs. Jon Goldin, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, has called for Early year’s support such as Sure Start centres to be reinstated.
Sure Start is a UK Government area-based initiative which was first announced in 1998 by the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown. It applied
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primarily in England with slightly different versions in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The initiative originated from HM Treasury, with the aim of “giving children the best possible start in life” through improvement of childcare, early education, health and family support, and with an emphasis on outreach and community development
Sure Start centres also give help and advice on child and family health, parenting, money, training and employment. Some of those centres also provide early learning and full day care for pre-school children.
In the Uk, 7 in 10 people with autism have a mental health condition such as anxiety or depression £2 million is spent on research each year into Autism in the UK.
Darren Northcott, national official for education, teachers’ union NASUWT, said, “It’s worth exploring” whether SENCOs should get training before they start their roles – adding this would need “clear commitments from schools to support that”.
Sir Alan Wood, who undertook a review of multi-agency safeguarding arrangements last year, said the “dreadful referral-on culture” must end. A “complete rethink” is needed, he added.
“At the moment, we just seem to look at what provision is in place, and say ‘we need more of this’,” he said. “We should be placing more services in schools working alongside teachers and support staff.”
It follows news that a high percentage of children are waiting up to a year for speech therapy. Regular, and excessive anxiety and fear overwhelm sometimes overwhelm people to the point where it interferes with their ability to cope with everyday tasks, leading to what is known as an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health disorders.
Research shows that 10% of children have a speech and language need and SLT assessments are also important for diagnosing autism, strongly known to be linked to communication needs.
One in four autistic children are waiting more than three years for a diagnosis, according to the National Autistic Society.
Demand for speech and language therapists is now outstripping supply. Plymouth CAST warned it could “only [get] a few hours free on the NHS”, while Kent Catholic Schools Partnership said referrals were taking eight months. Many schools across the Oasis academy trust now buy in private SLTs.
Kamini Gadhok, chief executive at the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, says health policy is too focused on adults and “children need a higher priority”.
“There are children in early years who could be helped, who may be on the autistic spectrum but aren’t being identified.
“This means they’re coming into schools with far more significant need, so the whole system gets more broken.”
Nor can schools expect to rely on private speech therapists. Sarah Buckley, vice-chair of the Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Independent Practice, says her 1,500 members are “completely booked out. There’s been a big increase in need, especially children entering reception.”
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