This year’s theme, organised by charity Place2Be, is Growing Together, and throughout the week the Trust will be sharing tips from our clinicians about supporting young people and their families. We will also be sharing updates about our exciting plans on the Pears Maudsley Centre for Children and Young People and our ambition to transform the mental health of children and young people.

Developed by South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, King’s College London’s  Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) and the Maudsley Charity, the centre is due to open its doors in 2023. The new facilities and the work to be undertaken there are a timely response to rising mental health problems amongst children and young people – a trend exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

David Bradley, Chief Executive of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, said:

“The mental health of children and young people has never been so important, and together with our partners, we are embracing the opportunity to truly transform mental health care and research for children and young people.

“I look forward to marking Children’s Mental Health Week and hearing from our experts in child and adolescent mental health services, our clinical academics and researchers from IoPPN, about our activities to support our communities throughout the week.”

Look out for:

• Parenting tips from Professor Stephen Scott, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, and Professor of Child Health and Behaviour.
• Simple tips and tricks in our animated Families Under Pressure Series, formulated by researchers and NHS mental health experts, which are backed by science and proven to work with families.
• Advice and signposting to urgent mental health support for children
• Opportunities for young people to get involved in research
• Guides and information for people worried about a young person’s eating, weight or shape from our Eating Disorders clinicians
• Advice and guidance on Body Dysmorphic Disorder from Dr Amita Jassi, Consultant Clinical Psychologist at the National and Specialist OCD, BDD and Related Disorder Service for Children and Young People
• A conversation with Maarten Crommelin, Head of School at Bethlem and Maudsley Hospital School who shares what it’s like going to school when you are in hospital

Bethlem and Maudsley Hospital School has maintained its Outstanding rating following an OFSTED inspection in November 2021.

The school caters for pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs who use services at the Bethlem and Maudsley hospitals. This was the first inspection since the Covid-19 pandemic began.

The report found the school has very high expectations for pupils, including for their behaviour, and said families and pupils very much appreciate the work of staff. Inspectors also praised the consistency and stability that the school provides at a key moment in their lives.

John Ivens, Executive Headteacher, Bethlem and Maudsley Hospital School, said: “This is the third ‘Outstanding’, inspection that the school has had in a row. The result is a testament to how the staff and the students work together – finding a path to a happier future.”

David Bradley, Chief Executive, said: “Bethlem and Maudsley Hospital School and the staff who work there are a real asset to South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust.

“I would like to pass on my congratulations to the school’s leaders who have been praised in the report for their excellent subject knowledge and the stability the school provides at this significant moment for pupils.”

The Pears Maudsley Centre for Children and Young People is set to open its doors in 2023. It will be the new home to the Bethlem and Maudsley Hospital School.

A new housing development on De Crespigny Park in Southwark took a step closer last night after Southwark Council’s Planning Committee voted in favour of the scheme. The plans include the construction of 187 new homes and a nursery.

Part of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust’s ambitious modernisation plans, the new homes will be built on surplus land on the edge of the Trust’s Denmark Hill campus.

The land is currently occupied by buildings used by the Trust’s Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) which will be moving to the new £65m Pears Maudsley Centre for Children and Young People currently under construction in Denmark Hill.

The existing buildings (Mapother House, Michael Rutter Centre and Professorial Buildings) are no longer fit to provide high-quality modern mental health care.

When the Pears Maudsley Centre opens its doors in 2023, it will be a world-leading centre for children and young people’s mental health, bringing together clinicians from South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust with researchers from King’s College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience to work alongside each other and develop new innovations in care.

The approved modernisation plans, will see the surplus land redeveloped to provide much needed new homes in the heart of Camberwell. The 187 new homes have been designed to be in keeping with the area and meet the needs of families, couples and single people.

Fifty per cent of the new homes will be affordable and 70 per cent of those will be available at social rents. A car free development, it will create an attractive public realm and will improve pedestrian and cycle networks locally.

The development will help fund improved mental health services and forms part of the Trust’s ambitious plans to invest more than £140 million in modern new services and facilities to improve patient care and experience for local people.

Chief Executive, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, David Bradley, said:

“Southwark Council’s decision helps to ensure we can provide modern facilities fit for the highest standards of 21st century mental health care.

 

“We also take our responsibility as an anchor institution very seriously and the 50 per cent affordable housing at the heart of these plans will be a significant boost for families and individuals in need of high-quality homes in Southwark.”

The Pears Maudsley Centre for Children and Young People is set to open in Denmark Hill in 2023. It will bring together leading clinicians and researchers working in child and adolescent mental health with the aim of transforming child mental health.

Find out more: https://slam.nhs.uk/pressreleases/new-childrens-mental-health-centre-highly-commended-in-major-european-design-award-657