Jami launches mental health services for children and young people

A Jewish mental health service for children and young people will be launched by Jami. 

Jami’s existing services for adults will be expanded to deliver dedicated support to secondary school-age children. 

The charity says this will include mental health treatment, therapy, education, advocacy and carer and family support.

It will also work alongside other communal organisations delivering services for children, including Norwood, Camp Simcha and Noa Girls.

Announcing the move on Wednesday, Adam Dawson, Jami’s trustee board chair, said the goal was to “transform” the mental health of the community.

“We have made huge strides in improving the lives of adults living with mental illness, as well as those caring for them, but now is the time to deliver the equivalent class-leading mental health care for children and young people in the Jewish community as well,” he said.

Between the ages of 5 to 15, one in every nine children has a diagnosable mental illness, said the charity, rising to one in seven children of secondary school age.

Half of all mental health problems are established by the age of fourteen, meaning “prompt access” to support is crucial, it added.

NHS mental health services for children have only become even more stretched because of the pandemic, said Jami’s chief executive, Laurie Rackind.

“The pandemic has only added to the need for greater mental health support and by creating a dedicated service for children now, we are preparing a mentally healthier community in the future,” he said.