Published on: 22nd December 2021
Lincolnshire’s Children and Young People Complex Needs Service (formerly known as the Future4Me Health Team) have won a national Children and Young People Now Award for their work on mental health and wellbeing.
The service was up against ten other exceptional finalists, which go the extra mile for children and young people. The Mental Health and Wellbeing category particularly recognises "the initiative that has done the most to transform the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people, whether through prevention, early intervention or treatment”. The service was also praised by judges for “coordinated working across multiple organisations to support children and young people with complex needs”.
Cllr Mrs Patricia Bradwell OBE, Executive Member for Children's Services, said:
“This award is a fantastic achievement by all and highlights the dedication of the Complex Needs Service and the excellent collaboration with its partners. It clearly demonstrates the strength of our integrated working across our partnerships, supporting children and young people in Lincolnshire.”
The Complex Needs Service works as an integrated partnership between Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (LPFT), Lincolnshire County Council (Children Services) and other partner agencies such as education and the criminal justice system, providing holistic support to young people who are at risk of homelessness, criminalisation, or exploitation.
Dr Nicola Silvester, Clinical and Strategic Lead for the Children and Young People Complex Needs Service, said:
“We are thrilled to have won this award which recognises the important role that the service plays in overcoming the challenges of segregated working, where children risk falling between the gaps and losing access to the right services.
“The team is supported by an integrated network of specialists from health, education, housing and criminal justice services to ensure that the right support is provided, at the right time, by the right worker.”
A young person recently supported by the service was offered help to manage the emotional impact of police involvement, in addition to addressing his vulnerability to prevent him getting involved with the police again or suffering further victimisation himself. The team built a
relationship with him and his family directly, and supported him with his learning, communication skills and autism. When asked about his experiences of the service, he said:
"I prefer speaking to the same people all the time so that I can get to know them, so having a dedicated member of the team to help me was ideal.
"The service supported me when I was in trouble with the police and helped me get an autism assessment. In the past, lots of people were unable to help but the service was able to do the assessment quickly and identify things that I struggled with. The team have helped me to get the right support at college and my new part-time job.”
To find out more about NHS mental health services for children and young people in Lincolnshire, visit the LPFT website at www.lpft.nhs.uk/young-people
