Support and Services for Young People with Learning Disabilities and Mental Health Problems

Abstract

We are now more aware of the mental health needs of children and young people with learning disabilities, but are we really aware of the range of services and support needed for this group? Until very recently, most child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) were not meeting these needs, yet by the end of 2006 CAMHS were required to be fully comprehensive and to include care pathways for children and young people with learning disabilities and mental health problems under the Public Service Agreement Targets (PSA). The Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities has undertaken a great deal of work in this area, including a year‐long inquiry and a research programme, and now we are working with three regions in England to make CAMHS more accessible for this group of children and young people. In this article we describe how services have traditionally served this group, explore the policy context for change and discuss some of the projects currently under way that aim to address the PSA targe...