Following the recent well-publicised investment in Child and Adolescent Mental Health, the CAMHS service is finalising the recruitment of six additional clinicians, proactively addressing the existing waiting list. With over 800 children currently awaiting assessment, this initiative is expected to take some 12 months to complete. Priority will be given to those children and young people with the most acute need or longest wait time.
The CAMHS team has in recent months experienced extremely high levels of calls from families seeking information regarding the status of their original referrals. Commencing in November 2024, the CAMHS team will be proactively reaching out to families in order to provide information regarding the assessment pathway and to agree assessment dates. During this time, the CAMHS team would respectfully request that parents and guardians try to limit contact with the service to those who are actively receiving treatment.
Please also ensure that if you are offered an appointment that is no longer needed, you cancel it ahead of time, which means that the team will be able to offer it to another family.
