Ms Kate Mitchell:

There has been some recent movement on mental health and education. We have seen the introduction of a specific component on mental health and well-being in the new reformed junior cycle reform. That is to be welcomed. There is so much more we need to do in that space if we are going to address the whole issue of prevention and early intervention. We need to see mental health promotion programmes introduced at a much earlier stage at primary school level. We also need to see supports in senior cycle in secondary schools. If we are going to ask schools and teachers to provide that type of support, they need to be adequately resourced. We need to be looking at providing training and professional development for schools and our teachers.

In addition to prevention and mental health promotion, schools are well placed to be able to identify where there may be a mental health difficulty and refer a child or young person on. Again, they need to be well supported in that context. We know, for example, that schools in the UK can link in with child and adolescent mental health services and there are key liaison staff in specialist mental health services to provide that kind of support. They are parts of England which have mental health advisers who support schools in actually implementing mental health supports and services.

We really need to be looking at those types and models if we are going to push this forward.