Your report (4 February) on the rise in mental health problems among children was an incredibly important insight into the challenges they are facing. But for children and young people who have been in care, the situation is even more dire.
Looked-after children are already at significantly higher risk of experiencing poor mental health than their peers. Despite there only being 67 children in care for every 10,000, these individuals make up 24% of the prison population and 25% of the homeless population in the UK. What’s more, as stated in a recent report by the children’s rights campaign Hope Instead of Handcuffs, young people who have spent time in care are significantly more likely than their peers to find themselves classified as not in education, employment or training.
We have yet to see fully how these statistics will be impacted by the pandemic. But for “care-experienced” children, who often don’t have the same support networks as their peers, the months of isolation are likely to have exacted a heavy toll. Any policies to improve mental health among young people must provide specific provision for those in care. We cannot keep allowing them to slip through the cracks and have poorer life outcomes just because they have spent time in care.
Sarah Champion
Labour MP, Rotherham
• Your report highlights the worrying effects of the Covid lockdowns. But it is also a symptom of 12 years of underfunding of child and adolescent mental health services (Camhs), which have been overwhelmed for many years. This leads to crisis management for life-threatening situations, and leaves many children with worsening symptoms without support.
Domestic violence and parental mental illness play a big part in causing children to suffer emotionally. These factors will only increase as the cost-of-living crisis, cuts to universal credit and higher energy bills pile more pressure on struggling, vulnerable families. The government must provide more financial and social support to families if it is serious about protecting children and young people.
Steven Walker
Former Camhs lead, Anglia Ruskin University
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