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New space to help young people at 'time of crisis'

Kirsten RobertsonWiltshire
News imageAvon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust Two women in all-blue uniforms stand outside a blue door which says 'Place of Safety'. A brick wall is to the left of the image.Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
Shannon James (right), ward manager of the Bluebell Unit, who is about to go on maternity leave, and her replacement, Beth King (left)

A new facility has opened to support young people in need of mental health support after they have been detained by the police.

The new Lavender Suite, which is part of the Bluebell Unit at Green Lane Hospital in Devizes, Wiltshire, offers help for children and teenagers placed under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act.

The CAMHS Place of Safety has been opened by Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust which says it will support people at "a time of crisis."

Steve Dewar, a youth worker in Devizes, said the new facility is an example of "crucial" investment for young people. He added: "Every young person deserves safe spaces and safe people."

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The Lavender Suite is a one-bed facility for children and adolescents.

Robyn Laney, modern matron for the Bluebell Unit, said it is "really important" to offer a "purpose built CAMHS suite".

She added: "It's also a much friendlier environment for young people to be in at what is, understandably, a time of crisis for them."

News imageAvon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust An enclosed room with flowers and grass with brick flooring. It is a peaceful scene.Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
An outdoor room in the new Lavender Suite at Green Lane Hospital in Devizes

Laney added: "The name was chosen by colleagues and service users at Green Lane and is in keeping with our other units here – Poppy and Bluebell."

Dewar, who runs the The DAY (Devizes Area Youth) Lounge on the other side of town, said: "any investment or support for young people" like the Lavender Suite is welcome in Wiltshire.

News imageA man in a grey t-shirt smiles widely. He is sitting in a chair that is next to a table. There is an air hockey machine in the background.
Steve Dewar says the new facility forms part of wider youth support in Wiltshire

He added: "It's great Devizes has something like this and I hope the areas around us also benefit.

"With youth work, we all play a part. At the DAY Lounge we have nurses, police, volunteers, people from the town council - everyone brings something quite different to the table and works together."

He added: "We need to plan and implement more places like this."

The development of Lavender Suite took around six months to complete and comes ahead of the next phase of works for Bluebell, which will see a new complete seclusion and de-escalation suite.

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