Health and social work services

Tender description

A preventative, young person led, community based, open access drop-in service that acts as a referral point to information, advice, services and support. The contracting authority wishes to provide a dedicated open access service for young people to improve their mental health and wellbeing at the point of need without having to make a referral or be placed on a waiting list, and available from a place which can be accessed easily by those who need it and where young people feel able and safe to attend. The service will act as a welcoming entry point and take an asset based approach to offer support for emotional issues and low level mental health such as worries, anxieties and stress. This should provide an alternative provision to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and will: — facilitate access to outdoor pursuits and creative therapies, — offer group work to develop a young person’s awareness of their social health, help to decrease isolation, raise aspirations and develop interpersonal skills, — provide opportunities to build relationships and develop friendships, — provide young people with the opportunities, experiences and tools to enable them to develop their physical, emotional and social capabilities, — offer a range of support including, youth work, person-centred counselling, psychological wellbeing practices and traditional talking therapies as appropriate to the young person's needs, — recruit and train peer-mentors with local lived experience to spread the practice of good self-care, effective use of peer support and the benefit of active healthy lifestyles, — take a radical test and learn approach to co-producing with children, young people, families, communities and partners so that services and delivery are both fit for purpose, flexible for individual needs and fit for the future, — ensure there is no stigma attached to asking for help when needed; enabling them to help themselves by creating a greater awareness of where to seek help and the confidence to access it.