How A Yorkshire Charity Is Fighting For Rural Children's Mental Health

With its historic buildings, picturesque landscapes and bustling community, it’s easy to see why the North Yorkshire market town of Skipton is so popular. Perched on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales, the town has featured on the Sunday Times’ Best Places to Live guide twice, and in 2023, came sixth in Rightmove’s 10 happiest areas list.

Yet behind the town’s scenic facade, rural poverty and poor mental health among children are growing problems. Two areas of the district of Skipton are among the 20 percent most deprived in England, where the number of children not in education or employment is double the national average.

A lack of accessible mental health services in rural areas means children in need of mental health support face long waiting lists, while rates of stress, anxiety and depression continue to soar. And although the cost of living crisis has hit all families hard, children in the North of England are among the most vulnerable to these rising costs - and struggling families feel they’re being forgotten about.

Against this backdrop, a small charity called SELFA - which consists of a handful of child support workers, mental health professionals and volunteers - is hard at work. The organisation was founded by Emma Pears with a budget of just £500 in 2007 and since then, it has grown into an organisation that supports more than 450 children and young people every year. They offer health and wellbeing programmes, peer support groups, holiday workshops, trips and even residential breaks for children and young people in North Yorkshire.

The reasons for referral are complex and varied. Many of the children have autism, ADHD, learning disabilities or mental health issues. Some come from low-income homes, help to care for siblings or parents themselves, or have been exposed to violence at home. “I suppose what makes us unique is that we are there for young people throughout their childhood and adolescence,” says Pears. “They might access us when they're five for a small nurture group to help with independence and social skills, and come back for one-to-one mental health support later down the line in their teens - the door is always open at SELFA.”

This long-term support is something many parents can only dream of. The waiting list for talking therapy on the NHS is at least year long - and those who reach the top often only receive six weeks of counselling. It’s rarely enough time to fully address their issues, so children get re-referred back to CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) to wait months or years for another six-week block of therapy.

Since Covid-19, the situation has become even worse. As children and adults navigated the unfamiliar world of a health crisis - with lockdowns, financial pressures and other stressors - levels of anxiety and depression rose dramatically among families, placing extreme pressure on already stretched NHS mental health services.

“Vulnerable children in some areas are being told they’ll have to wait up to three years to access mental health care,” says Pears. “I’ve never seen so many children and young people dealing with mental health issues as there are right now.”

Pears recalls that one parent told her they had waited a long time for a mental health referral for her nine-year-old daughter. Eventually, they were told there were no staff in the area - so her child was offered a video or phone call appointment.

After more than a decade of Conservative rule, NHS mental health services are at breaking point. Budget cuts, a lack of investment and the shelving of long overdue reforms to the Mental Health Act have created a dire situation - and families in the Skipton area face additional challenges. The North Craven district is part of both North Yorkshire as a county and local authority, and Bradford & Craven as a district and health authority, so people often find themselves passed around between services.

Not only does Pears understand these issues, she also knows what it’s like to seek mental health support as a worried parent. “When my daughter was eight, she started to show signs of emotional distress, both at school and at home,” she explains. “She went from being a happy, energetic girl to three exclusions from primary school within a year. Her teachers told me they didn’t know what to do with her anymore, so I asked if she could be referred for counselling support through school.”

This was six years before the pandemic, but Pears still faced a six-month wait for her daughter to receive a referral to a mental health professional. She was able to get help privately using her savings, and changed her working hours so she could take her child to therapy. Her now-18-year-old daughter is happy, healthy and off to university in a few weeks.

For parents who don’t have that safety net, SELFA provides critical support. Giving children a safe space to play and interact helps tackle social isolation, one of the biggest factors contributing to poor mental health. They’re encouraged to participate in activities and hobbies, which help to boost low self-esteem and confidence.

Perhaps most significantly, children with mild-to-moderate mental health problems can access different kinds of one-to-one or group support with trained professionals in schools and community settings. Crucially, parents can get support too - because parents are best able to support their children when they’re supported themselves.

For Louise, whose seven-year-old son Alfie* has autism and ADHD, SELFA offers a safe place for him to join in extra-curricular activities. “He needs somewhere that has SEN (special educational needs) trained staff and a higher staff to child ratio, so it’s difficult to find somewhere that can cater for him,” she says. “This is the main problem for SEN parents - finding after school clubs or holiday activities that are suitable and inclusive.”

Extracurricular clubs are rich environments for children to have fun, but they also help them develop autonomy, a sense of belonging and a space for them to work out who they are. Sadly, though, not all schools and clubs are equipped or trained to support neurodiverse children, so many miss out on these opportunities.

At SELFA, Louise says Alfie is understood. Sometimes, he requires some adjustments to be made like being taken into a different room if he’s struggling, but nothing is treated as a problem.

“It's just great to have somewhere where all the staff are trained to accommodate children with his needs specifically and I don't feel like I have to explain myself or his behaviour to them. They just welcome him as he is,” says Louise.

And this specialist, personalised support pays off. “He can cope in social situations much more,” she adds. “He’s more confident, independent and he’s learning how to behave around other children too.”

One of the biggest challenges for any charity is funding and as a small, grassroots non-profit organisation, SELFA is no exception. It’s hard to secure funding, and the multiple funders who do offer grants ask for individual reports back - sometimes on several different projects - which is a logistical nightmare.

Pears is campaigning to change the funding system for small charities, so they can focus on supporting children instead of paperwork. Thanks to the hard work of her and her team, SELFA just received three years’ funding from the National Lottery. “It’s going from strength to strength,” she says.

“When I’ve spoken to parents, carers and young people, they’ve said they want to access support closer to home from people they know and trust,” Pears adds. “Early intervention is the key to this success - ensuring children and young people have timely access to mental health support where they live.”

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Header image: Children and Young people enjoying time with the SELFA Charity in Skipton

Images: Rob Freeman