AMBULANCE call outs for children suffering a mental health crisis in the south west have increased fourfold in four years, according to a Dorset-based charity.
The Family Counselling Trust (FCT), which provides low-cost counselling for troubled families in Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire, says the reported a rise in serious referrals is the largest increase in the country, having gone from 935 in 2013 to 3,628 in 2017.
These include an increase in referrals where children have been refused help from the NHS child and adolescent mental health service and also a rise in the seriousness of children's illnesses, with more depression, self harm and anxiety reported.
Portesham-based FCT founder and chair Robert Montagu said: "We are not surprised by the staggering increase in the numbers of ambulance call outs for children suffering mental health crises in the south west region. Far too many children are reaching crisis point before they get help.
"It is clear that there is an urgent need to improve care in the South West for children suffering mental ill health. Otherwise children and families will continue to experience terrible and unnecessary suffering."
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