A Penrith family has hailed the support of charity Barnardo's, and has joined it in urging the Government to follow Cumbria's example.

Established in 2020, the LINK scheme is an innovative partnership between Barnardo's and GP practices in Carlisle, Penrith and Eden, Keswick and Solway, and Longtown and Brampton, offering 'social prescribing'.

Kath recounts the harrowing experiences leading to her family's brush with LINK.

Back in 2020, her then 11-year old child, Beth, had suffered from panic attacks and hallucinations.

Beth's struggles with school demands also intensified during the Coronavirus pandemic lockdown.

Despite the severity of their condition, local mental health services turned them down for not meeting strict criteria.

“It was a horrible time,” said Kath. “Beth frequently said that they didn’t want to be here anymore. I was trying to be strong, and people were telling me that I should just make Beth go to school. But their mental health was severely suffering so we had to focus on what was the most important at that time.”

Amid the tumult, their local GP referred them to Lucy, their local LINK worker.

“Lucy was like my guardian angel,” says Kath. “The LINK service started to put things into place. They fought for us to have ways to manage what was happening and they also checked in on how I was doing too. This really was a lifeline for us. It has taken some time but now I feel like I have my child back – this is who Beth is and I wouldn’t change that for the world.

“The LINK service saved Beth’s life. Lucy was an absolute advocate for Beth and was someone we could open up to as well as providing the help we needed. This sort of support should be available to everyone – Beth is not in a minority for feeling this way. Children are under so much pressure these days and it easily takes its toll.”

Now on World Mental Health Day (October 10), the Government is being urged to do more.

Barnardo's report, 'The Missing Link - Social Prescribing for Children and Young People,' stresses the need for services like Cumbria's LINK programme on a national scale.

Lynn Perry MBE, CEO of Barnardo’s, said: “Children and young people are having to wait for months – even years, in many cases – to get the help and support they need when they are struggling with their mental health. Their condition often just intensifies whilst their names sit on long waiting lists.

“Social prescribing connects children with community-based activities like walking outside and developing creative skills, which can help improve wellbeing and stop things escalating.

“We know through our own frontline work that for a group of children and young people who are struggling, this can really help to turn their lives around, and means they don’t go on to need clinical NHS services. That’s why we’re calling on the Government to put the backbones of funding and infrastructure in place to ensure social prescribing is available to all children and young people who need it throughout the country.”

You can watch a video about Kath and Beth's story at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwYg3kb0la8