Suicide: Mental Health Services
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support suicide prevention among young people in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill
We are committed to delivering the five-year cross-Government Suicide Prevention Strategy, which identifies eight priority groups, including children and young people, for targeted and tailored support at a national level, and sets out over 100 actions to save lives. We will continue to explore opportunities to go further.
It is vital that we put more emphasis on early intervention and recovery to support people to live well and thrive. Through the 10-Year Health Plan, we are expanding NHS Talking Therapies so that so more adults with anxiety and depression can get the help they need, and we are expanding access to mental health support teams in schools and colleges to reach full national coverage by 2029, ensuring that every pupil has access to early support services.
We are also giving patients better access to 24/7 support directly through the NHS App, providing a national route for people to find information, access self-referral where available, and engage with digital tools alongside their local service offers.
In addition, we are continuing to provide £7 million in top-up funding to 24 Early Support Hubs to expand their services, enabling them to deliver at least 10,000 additional mental health and wellbeing interventions, so that more children and young people are supported.
Integrated care boards are responsible for providing health and care services to meet the needs of their local populations.
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