South West (North) community FCAMHS has been launched to support high risk young people, their families and carers when there are concerns about their mental health, or they are experiencing emotional difficulties.

The team will assess the circumstances and provide advice to families and professionals, offer single agency consultation, multi-agency consultation, assessment and intervention for young people where appropriate.

Support will be available for young people living in Swindon, Wiltshire, Bath & North East Somerset, North Somerset, Bristol and Gloucestershire.

Launch day

The service was launched this month with an event in Bristol, led by four young people from youth engagement group Peer Power. The charity helps vulnerable young people who struggle to engage with services by supporting them to contribute in service design and development.

Dr Oliver White, our FCAMHS South West (North) clinical lead, said: “The unanimous highlight was hearing the voice of young people directly from Peer Power through their raps, spoken word pieces, and presentations.”

The young people’s creative presentations were each focused on how their experiences helped inform change and make sure services meet the needs of vulnerable young people. They highlighted how collaborative multi-agency support improves outcomes for young people.

There were also workshops held by local services about healthy sexual relationships, liaison and diversion in Gloucestershire that identify and support people with vulnerabilities when they first come into contact with the criminal justice system, substance misuse treatment service and child sexual exploitation.

Dr White said: “It was fantastic to formally launch our new South West community forensic CAMHS team, which significantly increases the geographical spread of services provided by Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust.

“There was great conversations among the people who attended, resulting in multiple positive collaborative discussions.

“We would like to say a huge thank you for all who attended and to all those involved in organising and speaking at the event.”

People living in NHS South Central region (Thames Valley, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Dorset) can also seek advice from their local FCAMHS team.

For information about referrals and contact information visit our FCAMHS website.