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Our Mental Health Support Teams are an early intervention service that support children and young people, their families and schools and college communities with mild to moderate mental health difficulties. Each MHST is allocated to specific secondary schools/colleges and their feeder primary schools within Suffolk. Our team work in education settings and in the wider education community, both in and out of term time, including school holidays. The East teams we are supporting schools in the Leiston, Woodbridge and Ipswich areas. The West teams we are supporting schools in the Mildenhall, Thurston and Haverhill areas. The Central teams are supporting schools in the Stowmarket, Stowupland, Stoke and East Bergholt areas. To find out if our team is linked to your school or college please check-in with your individual education setting staff.
- Service Contact: Dr Amy Alexander - Principal Clinical Psychologist/Clinical Lead, Matthew Pull - Clinical Team Manager (West), Scott Mason - Clinical Team Manager (East) Daniel Newman - Clinical Team Manager (Central)
- Reception phone number: 01284 733234
- Service hours: This service is available from 9:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays. The team can be emailed on: MHST.East@nsft.nhs.uk for East teams. MHST.West@nsft.nhs.uk for West teams. MHST.Central@nsft.nhs.uk for Central teams.
- What this service offers
- Access this service
- How this service support carers including friends and family
- Urgent help
What this service offers
Our MHST service provides bespoke support for mild to moderate mental health difficulties. This support is provided in a timely manner following assessment. This could include individual therapy sessions, school based intervention and work with parents.
Our team also support schools in developing their whole school approach.
Conditions our team provides support for are:
- Anxiety and/or avoidance
- Behavioural difficulties
- Irritability as a symptom of depression
- Low confidence and low self-esteem
- Low mood / depression
- Managing negative thoughts
- Mild obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and other rigid/ritualistic behaviour
- Panic management
- Sleep difficulties
- Thoughts of self-harm and support for alternative coping strategies for superficial self-harm
- Worry management.
Access this service
Referrals to our MHST service are mostly via schools. We also accept referrals from other professionals working with children and young people. We do accept self-referral, but please discuss with your education setting regarding local processes before self-referring.
How this service support carers including friends and family
Our MHST service works as closely with families as possible and include them when appropriate in a child/young person's care.
Urgent help
The MHST is not an emergency service.
If you are a service user and are in crisis and need support urgently you can contact your service on the number which will have been provided.
Call 111 and select the mental health option to speak to our 24 hour mental health crisis line.
If you are with someone who has attempted suicide, call 999 and stay with them until the ambulance arrives.
If anyone is at serious risk of harm, call 999 and ask for the police.
For non-life threatening medical situations, call NHS111 on 111.
For more information, see Help in a Crisis.