PEBBLE Lodge in Bournemouth which is home to Dorset's Children and Adolescent Mental Health Team (CAMHS) has been named a national centre of excellence.

Dorset HealthCare’s team is just one of a few nationally to be awarded the Quality Network for Inpatient CAMHS (QNIC) accreditation.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists carry out rigorous inspections of mental health services in England, evaluating everything from cleanliness, care and environment to facilities, young people’s rights, clinical governance, staffing and training.

The unit was one of 30 trusts inspected across the country last year, yet only four passed.

Naomi Jenkins, ward manager at Pebble Lodge, said: “We are delighted to become a centre of excellence for CAMHS. This has been a real team effort and is a shining example of the high standards that can be achieved through hard work, commitment and dedication.

“Not many people realise we treat young people aged 12-18 for everything from anxiety, depression and self-harm to psychosis, bi-polar, severe mental illness and emotional difficulties, and this is all done under one roof – we even have our own school so young people don’t miss out on their education.

“We receive a high number of admissions each year, and also treat youngsters from out of the county, so it is great to know that our hard work has been recognised.”

The news comes as the independent regulator of health and social care services in England, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), rated adult mental health services at Dorset HealthCare as outstanding in their latest report.

Chief operating officer at Dorset HealthCare Eugine Yafele, said: “The latest findings by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in the State of Care Report reflect some of the variation in quality that exists across our services. We are absolutely delighted that our acute inpatient services are rated as outstanding.

“This reflects the hard work and dedication of our staff and our determination as a Trust to provide high quality care, however we also acknowledge that there is still much room for further improvement across all of our services.”