School referrals for mental health treatment rise by over a third

School referrals for mental health treatment rise by over a third In a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to NHS Trusts in England, we found that 123,713 referrals were made by schools seeking professional mental health help between 2014/15 and 2017/18.

The request also showed:

• 56% of referrals came from primary schools
• on average 183 referrals were made per school day in 2017/18

Where information was provided about the outcome of the referral, almost one third were declined specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) treatment (this is based on a subset of the data). NSPCC

See also:

• Sharp rise in mentally ill children aged under 11 BBC News
• Primary school mental health crisis as referrals for counselling rise by a third The Daily Telegraph
• Children needing specialist mental health treatment up by a third over three years The Independent