Cash boost for teen mental health project

6 hours ago

Angela KalwaitesCornwall

News image — The initiative provides education and mental health services

Newquay Orchard There is a patch of fruit and vegetables on the left and centre of the picture, including rhubarb and cabbages in orderly lines. They all look very healthy and vibrant. Beyond the fruit and vegetables is a small garden shed and there is a distant view of a town behind the shed which includes a church spire on the horizon. There is also the corner of a large greenhouse. On the right of the picture is a wooden gate to another field which is halfway alon a tidy and tall green hedge. The whole image is lush and green with splashes of dark red due to the rhubarb. — The initiative provides education and mental health services

A project which aims to help young people use nature to improve their mental health has been awarded a cash boost.

Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust's Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Goes Wild! offers support for people between 14 and 17 years old with a community space in the centre of Newquay.

The initiative, which provides education and mental health services, has been awarded £150,000 from NHS Charities Together.

Molly Jenkins, clinical associate psychologist for mid Cornwall CAMHS, said the funding would "enable us to deliver a nature-based lifestyle medicine programme".

The scheme is co-delivered by CAMHS Goes Wild! and Newquay Orchard.

It is one of six projects in the country to receive funds from NHS Charities Together.

The eight-week rolling sessions for young people make use of Newquay Orchard's green spaces and forest areas.

Jenkins added: '[The funding] will help us to reach young people who might otherwise fall through service gaps.

"This includes those experiencing socio-economic disadvantage and those approaching transitions to adult services."

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Ellie Orton OBE, chief executive of NHS Charities Together, said through different projects it was hoped charities could "break down the barriers young people face in accessing care".

She added: "A child's health shouldn't be determined by where they're born. But sadly, that's still the reality for too many families in the UK.

"We can give more children the chance to grow up healthy and ready to thrive."

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