Publish date: 1 February 2024
From the 5-11 February 2024 the Trust will mark Children’s Mental Health Week. The theme for this year is ‘My voice matters.’ which will bring a focus to empowering children and young people to share their mental health experiences. Listening to their stories in their own words will help us all in connecting with other children and young people. This will help us better understand their emotions and, most importantly, encourage them to come forward and seek help.
West London Trust Clinical Director for Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Dr Johan Redelinghuys said:
“In recent years if we have learnt anything, it is that children and young people benefit from having the chance to talk about things that are important to them. To recognise the value their voices have, it is equally crucial we listen to them and establish opportunities and environments for them to express themselves freely."
“The theme of "My Voice Matters" enables us all to help create and maintain meaningful conversations. The earlier and more frequently these take place with children and young people, the greater the chance of a positive outcome.”
To raise awareness and promote how we’re working to support children and young people in our local communities West London CAMHS have planned a bumper line up of events.
What’s on?
The Circle, crisis prevention café anniversary
On Monday 5 February, The Circle - a crisis intervention café in South Ealing - will mark its one-year anniversary with a round table event hosted by Will Poulter, renowned British actor and official ambassador for the Circle. The celebration will be an opportunity to reflect on the achievements of the past year, exchange inspiring stories, listen to the voices of young people first hand, and engage in discussions about future initiatives that will further strengthen the mental health support network within our community.
CAMHS Youth Ambassador Programme – hear from our young ambassadors
The Trust recently launched the CAMHS Youth Ambassador programme for service users who have graduated from CAMHS services. The programme is designed to provide the young ambassadors a paid employment opportunity to gain work experience and skills to equip them with day to day life. Our young ambassadors will be sharing their thoughts on what they hope to achieve from the programme and will be out and about raising awareness of the mental health and wellbeing services we offer.
Brentford Football Club Community Sports Trust –Advantage mentoring network stalls event
As part of Brentford FC Community Sports Trust, QPR in the Community Trust and West London NHS Trust’s commitment to supporting young people across West London, Advantage Mentoring will be hosting an event at Brentford’s Community Stadium Hub during Children's Mental Health Week 2024.
Advantage Mentoring is a free, weekly one-to-one mentoring programme delivered by football clubs for young people between the ages of 14 and 21, to support participants with their mental health and wellbeing.
The event on 6 February will see over 15 organisations in the Boroughs of Hounslow and Ealing area come together to showcase the plethora of opportunities available to Children and Young People in Hounslow and Ealing, including opportunities at Brentford FC Community Sports Trust and West London NHS Trust. Stallholders on the day will include Hammersmith, Fulham, Ealing and Hounslow Mind, Ruils, Southall Blacksisters and many more.
Queens Park Rangers Vs Norwich City football match – Fan zone event
Before kick-off on Saturday 10 February, fans can visit NHS workers at the Fan zone stalls. As part of our ongoing community partnership work to support young people across North West London, teams will be there to share information on mental health and wellbeing support for young people.
Stay tuned for our events throughout the week on our social media channels!
#ChildrensMentalHealthWeek #MyVoiceMatters