The urgent roll-out of Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) across schools and colleges in England could provide a ‘significant’ cost saving for the public sector, according to a children’s charity.

A cost-benefit analysis by Barnardo’s, featured in its new report It's Hard to Talk - Expanding Mental Health Support Teams in Education, has found that for every £1 invested in MHSTs, there is a predicted return of £1.90 to the state. This is through savings in further health care costs and the indirect benefits of improved school attendance and educational attainment.

MHSTs provide a link between children and young people’s mental health (CYPMH) services. There are currently around 400 in operation throughout England providing support for nearly three million children.

According to Barnardo’s, however, only around 1% of health and care funding is currently spent on children’s mental health and an estimated 6.5 million children are missing out on school-based support.

The Government's aim is for 36% of schools and colleges to be covered by an MHST by the end of this year, which would make the service available for around four million children and young people from 500 MHSTs.

However, Barnardo’s warns this would still leave ‘millions without vital provision.’

The charity’s report highlights how failing to roll out MHSTs now could cost the state £1.8bn in alternative support from the NHS including the impact of poor mental health on young people’s future contribution to society.

Lynn Perry MBE, Barnardo’s CEO, said: ‘The ongoing crisis in children’s mental health threatens the prospects of a generation. The COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating effect on children’s education, home and social lives. Just as they started to see light at the end of the tunnel, they now have to contend the cost-of-living crisis and the changes this inevitably means for families.

‘Without mental health support teams in schools, there’s no safety net to catch children who need help. Existing waiting lists for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services are groaning under the pressure, and high thresholds mean many children and young people have to wait until their mental health deteriorates before they get help.

‘We recognise that the Government can’t do everything, especially in the current economic climate. But we know that rolling out Mental Health Support Teams is the right thing to do both for young people today and for the country’s finances in the future. Extending this vital service would stop children falling through the cracks and set them on the right path to a positive future.’