Mersey Care launch new children’s and adolescent 24/7 mental health crisis response team.

Children and young people based in Halton, Knowsley, St Helens and Warrington up to the age of 18 who are experiencing mental health crisis will have access to a dedicated 24/7 team for the first time.

The new crisis response team, based within Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust’s Child and Young People’s Mental Health Service, will help those under 18 who are in crisis and needing an emergency response and aims to provide a risk assessment within four hours.

The service is available to anyone registered with a GP in Halton, Knowsley, St Helens and Warrington. Since the service went live in August it has had an immediate impact, with 144 emergency referrals in its first month and 217 in September.

Lisa Simpson, Mersey Care’s Clinical Services Manager for Children and Young People’s Mental Health Services, said: “The aim of the team is to provide crucial support to children, young people and families when they are in crisis and at their most vulnerable.

We want to be able to help reduce the pressure on accident and emergency departments and possibly avoid the need to detain individuals for their own safety; we’ve already seen plenty of people make use of it.”

The service will provide:

• Advice and consultation to professionals, parents, carers and children and young people
• Emergency assessment and follow up
• Brief intervention and home treatment.

The service   works in partnership with social care, schools and other professionals to ensure children and young people stay safe.

The service can be contacted on 01744 415 640 and is available 24 hours a day and seven days a week.