Preet Kaur Gill MP backs plans to ensure one million more young people get access to school mental health support this year

With students from St Paul's Girls School

• School mental health support rollout to reach up to 900,000 more pupils this year, covering six in ten children across the country  

• Intervention marks major step forward in delivering the change that families voted for and fulfilling Labour’s manifesto commitment  

• 500 schools with weak attendance and poor behaviour to get new intensive support, as Labour drives forward further progress on the 3.1m more days in school to tackle the absence epidemic and deliver Plan for Change  

Preet Kaur Gill, MP for Birmingham, Edgbaston has today come out in support of plans to ensure almost one million more young people will have access to mental health support in school this year, as Labour gets on with delivering its manifesto promise for a national rollout taking a huge step in fixing the inherited challenges facing our children.  

Under Labour’s plans, all pupils will have access to mental health support in school by 2029/30, delivering on its Plan for Change to improve children's life chances and tackle the root causes of poor attendance and behaviour.  

The support teams are made up of specialists who offer a range of help to identify and tackle issues early on, from group sessions to build children’s resilience to 1:1s helping to manage anxiety - not only tackling the crisis of poor mental health among young people, but also driving up school attendance. They work directly with school and college staff alongside NHS services to provide professional advice, easing the pressure on school staff and allowing them to help young people get the right support and stay in education. New research has shown a direct link between the severity of children’s mental health problems and their likelihood to miss school.  

Preet Kaur Gill, MP for Birmingham, Edgbaston, said:  

“Poor mental health is something that is raised with me time and again by young people and parents alike when I’m out on the doorstep and running surgeries in my constituency. 

“Children suffering from untreated mental health conditions are much more likely to persistently miss school, which seriously impacts their future job prospects. Since I was elected, I’ve been raising concerns about poor mental health and persistent absence from school and have repeatedly called on previous governments to provide more support for young people. 

“The number of children persistently missing out on education is deeply concerning. In 2021/2, 1 in 4 students in Birmingham missed out on 10% or more of their education. Of course, many students miss out on much more than 10% of their schooling and disappear altogether from the system. I have written to the council to ask them what is being done to address this issue. 

“Young people growing up in Birmingham deserve the best start in life. That’s why I’m so proud that, through our Plan for Change, this Labour government is making good on our promises and expanding access to vital mental health support. I also welcome the Government legislating to create a register of all home-schooled children so that no child falls through the cracks of the system.”

The new investment of up to £49m means six in ten pupils will have access to a mental health support team by March 2026, with the rollout prioritised based on NHS identification of local need and reaching the most vulnerable children first.  

It comes as Labour unveils a new programme to provide intensive support for 500 schools with significant attendance and behaviour challenges. New attendance and behaviour hubs, built around 90 schools with a track record of improving attendance and behaviour standards, will directly target the schools with the highest need as well as providing wider support for a further 4,500 in all corners of the country.  

These will work alongside new attendance and behaviour ambassadors who will be the link between schools and the government, identifying challenges and working jointly toward solutions.  

This move builds on the progress Labour has already made to turn the tide on school attendance, with green shoots already being seen with over three million more days in school than last year.  

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said:  

“We inherited a system full of challenges and breaking the vicious cycle of poor mental health, low attendance and bad behaviour among children and young people is the most urgent one facing our schools – and this government is already turning the tide.  

“Expanding mental health support for young people is one of the single biggest steps we can take to improve children’s life chances, make sure all pupils are getting the very most out of school and deliver excellence for every child.  

“Taken alongside new intensive support for schools that are struggling, our free breakfast clubs for millions of children and our wider work to drive up school attendance, this government will continue using all available levers to break the destructive link between background and success and deliver on our Plan for Change.” 

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said:  

“Facing mental health problems when you’re young can hold you back in school, damage your potential and leave you with lifelong consequences. It’s devastating and it’s got to change.  

“That’s why this government is bringing in vital services to schools, so they can intervene early, support pupils, and help prevent conditions from becoming severe.  

“Backed by an extra £680 million in government funding this year, we are transforming mental health services for children – hiring more staff, delivering more talking therapies, and getting waiting lists down through our Plan for Change – so children can have the best possible start in life.”  

ENDS