Finding Help and Support – updated May 2022

The project’s aim was to find out where young people would go to find initial help and support for their mental health. 49 young people took part in an online survey. This report summarises the findings from the survey.

The number of young people that took part in this survey was relatively small and as such the results should be taken as a snapshot of the views and experiences of these individuals, rather than as generalised findings about the different types of help and support available for young people looking for help with their mental well-being.

Feedback does suggest that the majority of young people are in general aware of the options they have to get support. The results also show that young people knew where to go to get support to look after their mental well-being, and that for many, being able to go to trusted adults such as their parents, or professionals within education settings is important to them. Although some of the feedback received suggests that while a lot of young people want parental involvement there were a number who don’t.

The numbers who said they would get help from school shows they are seen as really important to young people. This also causes us concern as many young people have been away from school for so long during the past year while at the same time many will have been away from their friends, the other go-to support option. These both highlight the potential need for a lot more youth services and mental health support locally.

• We recommend that mental health support information should be given as part of a welcome pack for the yearly induction process in schools.
• We’d like to see regular mental health awareness sessions being held in schools / colleges to make young people aware of how they could best support a friend if needed.
• We recommended further engagement with young people is undertaken to develop a better understanding of their knowledge of the support available and their experiences of using those services. In particular, we’d like to see partnership working with local schools and colleges to ensure this engagement reaches a greater number of young people.