Abstract
Background: Increasing numbers of children and young people (CYP) are presenting with common mental health difficulties. In 2017 the UK government outlined a service transformation plan which led to the development and implementation of Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs), to deliver evidence-based interventions in schools for mild to moderate mental health difficulties.
Aims: This service evaluation aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of individual interventions delivered by MHST practitioners trained to deliver low-intensity cognitive behavioural interventions to CYP with mild to moderate mental health difficulties, within one service based in the South East of England.
Method: 459 CYP engaged in an individual intervention delivered by MHST practitioners between January 2021 and December 2022. Interventions were delivered either online via video call or face-to-face. All children and their parents/carers were invited to complete two routine outcome measures (Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire) at baseline and post-intervention.
Results: Outcome data demonstrated significant improvements across all child and parentrated RCADS anxiety and depression scales. Significant improvements were also shown for both child and parent-rated SDQ total difficulties and impact scores. These all showed effect sizes ranging from medium to large. Girls presented higher scores pre and post-intervention compared to boys apart from the OCD subscale; Gender was not a predictor of improvement in the majority of analyses.
Conclusions: Individual, low-intensity cognitive behavioural interventions delivered in this MHST service were effective in reducing symptoms of emotional and behavioural difficulties in CYP with mild to moderate mental health difficulties.
Aims: This service evaluation aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of individual interventions delivered by MHST practitioners trained to deliver low-intensity cognitive behavioural interventions to CYP with mild to moderate mental health difficulties, within one service based in the South East of England.
Method: 459 CYP engaged in an individual intervention delivered by MHST practitioners between January 2021 and December 2022. Interventions were delivered either online via video call or face-to-face. All children and their parents/carers were invited to complete two routine outcome measures (Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire) at baseline and post-intervention.
Results: Outcome data demonstrated significant improvements across all child and parentrated RCADS anxiety and depression scales. Significant improvements were also shown for both child and parent-rated SDQ total difficulties and impact scores. These all showed effect sizes ranging from medium to large. Girls presented higher scores pre and post-intervention compared to boys apart from the OCD subscale; Gender was not a predictor of improvement in the majority of analyses.
Conclusions: Individual, low-intensity cognitive behavioural interventions delivered in this MHST service were effective in reducing symptoms of emotional and behavioural difficulties in CYP with mild to moderate mental health difficulties.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e37 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| Journal | Cognitive Behaviour Therapist |
| Volume | 18 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 12 Aug 2025 |
Keywords
- anxiety
- children
- cognitive behaviour therapy
- depression
- low-intensity
