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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Andrew Gregory Health editor

Child referrals for mental health care in England up 39% in a year

Teenage girl with her head in her hands.
The figures include children who are suicidal, self-harming, suffering serious depression or anxiety, and those with eating disorders. Photograph: Gareth Fuller/PA

The number of children in England needing treatment for serious mental health problems has risen by 39% in a year, official data shows.

Experts say the pandemic, social inequality, austerity and online harm are all fuelling a crisis in which NHS mental health treatment referrals for under-18s have increased to more than 1.1m in 2021-22.

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