Crossways Community Logo

Reboot

Mental Health Awareness

Meeting the mental health needs in our community.

At Crossways Community we believe that if people, including children and young people, understand that mental illnesses, such as depression, body anxiety or exam-related stress, are relatively common and nothing to be afraid or ashamed of, then they are more likely to recognise signs and symptoms in themselves or others and ask for support.

There has been much interest amongst academics recently around causes for the rise in mental health problems in children and young people, and we are passionate about being part of the solution.  More information can be found in the “Support for Parents” tab below.

Whatever the experts say, and whatever the probable cause, we know that 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem of some kind each year in England.

In a bid to address the situation locally, Reboot can offer support and raised awareness for schools, parents and carers with teens tackling mental health issues, and for adults via businesses and churches.

Books about Health and Wellbeing
Addressing mental health issues locally

Latest Reboot News

coffee and chat

Drop-in support for parents

From this term, October to December, Sara in Reboot is providing drop-in sessions for parents with concerns about the mental health of their young person.  These are held at our…
Read more

Sara, our Reboot mental health awareness trainer, can visit schools locally to deliver short interactive lessons within the PHSE curriculum.

We also provide a three-lesson course for primary school Year 6 children to help prepare them for the transition to secondary school.  Each lesson / course can be tailored to suit an individual school’s circumstance.

To make enquiries or bookings please contact Sara Barker

When asked, the children were keen to explain that the sessions had helped to allay their fears and that it was good to talk about things that were in their heads.

Year 6 teacher

The NHS data:

Data collected by the NHS from 2023 shows an increasing demand for mental health support, with record-high numbers of children and young people struggling with their mental health.

  • Almost 4 million 7-24 year olds in England have a probable or possible mental health disorder.
  • New emergency referrals to crisis care teams for 0-18 year olds were higher in March 2023 than any other point since records began, at 1,102.
  • Overall, new emergency referrals to crisis care teams for children aged 18 and under were up 10% from the year before, to 9,640.
  • There were 494,415 open referrals to children and young people's mental health services in December 2022 - the highest since records began.

A Growing Problem

There has been much interest amongst academics recently around causes for the rise in mental health problems in children and young people. One new review of research carried out by academics at Newcastle University, which covered 1.2 million children in 21 countries, found that energy drink consumption among young people is linked to poor sleep quality and short sleep duration as well as lower academic performance compared to non-energy drinkers.

Energy drink consumption was also associated with increased risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, psychological distress, depression, anxiety, insulin resistance, and dental issues.

The ubiquity of smartphones has led to issues that parents are more likely to be aware of but may not be equipped to cope with.  Two recent studies found that 18.7% of 16-18 year olds and 14.5% of 13-16 year olds reported problematic smartphone use.  “Problematic” is a way of describing a pattern of smartphone use which shares similarities with other behavioural additions – loss of control over use, primacy of the phone in their life so that they are spending time on it in preference to other meaningful activities or sleep, and continue to do this despite an awareness of the downsides.   One of the studies can be seen here

Crossways Community can provide support for parents who are under-resourced for dealing with mental health associated issues arising from their young people in the home.  These sessions are provided as a friendly drop-in so that there is support available when it is needed, without tying anyone into a fixed schedule.

To make enquiries or find out more, please contact Sara Barker 

Crossways Community offers a mental health awareness programme for adults – providing short courses and seminars for churches and businesses.  These are not for mental health professionals but for the majority of people who wish to better understand their own mental health and build better mental resilience, or know people who are struggling with mental health issues but don’t know how to help.

To make enquiries or bookings please contact Sara Barker

I’ve done other mental health awareness courses, but the one delivered by Crossways was more relevant, accessible and fun!

Participant
Reboot re-launch
Feeding the Fish
A helping hand
Colourful Flower pots
If you would like more information about our services or are looking to refer then please get in touch