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Worrying about upsetting your child during visits

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Worrying about upsetting your child during visits

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What's a Parent Carer EbE ( Experts by Experience ) ? - Someone with lived experience of accessing services.

What do Parent Carer EbEs do? - Support and work alongside professionals on projects to bring another viewpoint that comes from their own personal experience.

Services only improve when they

listen to the people who use them.

What you can get involved with:

Surveys and questionnaires

Interview panels

Focus groups & Workshops

Co-creating resources

Service development and design

For more information about what we do please contact your Family Ambassador.

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Resources and ideas parents have found helpful in supporting their own well-being

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How to support yourself as a parent – CAMHS

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© Hampshire CAMHS 2026 Hampshire Specialist CAMHS services are now provided by Hampshire & IOW Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

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Calm is a meditation, sleep and relaxation app that provides research-based tools to help you build life-changing habits to support your mental health.

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Calm is the #1 app for sleep and meditation. Join the millions experiencing better sleep, lower stress, and less anxiety.

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Headspace is a mindfulness app that offers guided meditations, courses and mindfulness exercises.

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Headspace Content | Meditation & Sleep App

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Improve your mental health with Headspace, the top-rated app for meditation, mindfulness, and better sleep. Explore guided exercises, sleep sounds, and relaxation content.

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Book Recommendations - Eating Disorders Families Australia

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Our Volunteers and Members Recommend… EDFA Members Top 30 books for parents and carers Here are our Top 30 Eating Disorder books for parents and carers…supporting you and your family on your Eating Disorder recovery journey. Find our recommendations here. Eating Disorders (General) 8 Keys to Recovery from an Eating Disorder: Effective strategies from therapeutic […]

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Young people with lived experience of being a patient and through the other side, making a difference for future young people accessing services.

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Who do I contact if the discharge plan falls through?

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Who do I contact if the discharge plan falls through?

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What do we do if there is a crisis post-discharge?

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What do we do if there is a crisis post-discharge?

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Will we need to disclose mental health for Travel Insurance?

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Will we need to disclose mental health for Travel Insurance?

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Please click the link which explains more about insurance. Like all insurances, you may find using comparison websites such as 'Go compare' and 'Compare the Market' a good starting point and also check the specialist insurers as they are often not included in comparison website.

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Compare Mental Health Travel Insurance | MTC

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Compare mental health travel insurance quotes from over 30 specialist providers to find the best deal for you today. Find cover for a variety of mental conditions.

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Resources to provide information on:

the CAMHS inpatient pathway

CAMHS hospitals and Day Services in the South East

preparing for an admission and the early days

video tours of the hospitals

the different roles involved with your child

leave

transition into the next chapter

advocating for you and your child tips

raising concerns and complaints

FAQs

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Resources to provide information on:

The Right to Choose

Mental Health Act

Informal vs on a Section

Parental Rights/Nearest Relative

S117 - Aftercare

S17 - Child in Need

consent and age 17

restrictive practice

Martha's Rule

financial: benefits and travel costs

education support

called for jury service

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Resources to provide information on:

Jargon Buster

diagnosis

medications

therapeutic interventions

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Resources to provide information on:

Family Ambassador support

Triangle of Care

Carers Support

siblings

helplines

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Resources to provide information on:

diagnosis assessment Right to Choose

CETR and DSR

what are reasonable adjustments?

eating disorders and neurodivergence (PEACE)

Oliver McGowan mandatory training

psychotropic medications

transfer to Adult services

Autism support

ADHD support

Education and EHCPs are under 'Rights, Legal and Financial'

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We have gathered our favourite books, podcasts, and videos all in one convenient place for you. Whether you have five minutes to listen to a podcast on your commute, or want to dive into a helpful book, we hope you find these resources useful.

Please explore the links below! If you have any questions or need a specific recommendation, feel free to reach out.

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Don't know what to do when your child phones in distress

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Don't know what to do when your child phones in distress

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Feeling your knowledge of your child isn’t being fully heard

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Feeling your knowledge of your child isn’t being fully heard

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Feeling guilty when you cannot visit every day

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Feeling guilty when you cannot visit every day

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Different expectations between you and the Team

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Different expectations between you and the Team

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Feeling frustrated when progress is slow

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Feeling frustrated when progress is slow

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How do you maintain a parental role when others are making the decisions?

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How do you maintain a parental role when others are making the decisions?

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Feeling unsure how things will be when your child returns home

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Feeling unsure how things will be when your child returns home

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spft.dg-hsktier4familyambassadorteam@nhs.net

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Please contact your local Family Ambassador to find out more about the support available to you and your family.

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The legal rights to choice of mental health provider and team apply when :

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Watch this video to learn more about the role of a Family Ambassador and find out why they are so passionate about what they do and how they help families every day.

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You are not currently authorised to access www.sussexpartnership.nhs.uk.

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What will a CAMHS inpatient admission look like?

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What will a CAMHS inpatient admission look like?

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A CAMHS inpatient admission can feel like being dropped into an unfamiliar world — full of new faces, routines, and words that don’t always make sense at first. It’s normal to feel overwhelmed, worried, or even frightened.

But you are not alone in this. Your child is being held by a team whose goal is to keep them safe, understand what they are going through, and help them move forward. It may take time to find your footing, to learn the language of the ward, and to feel part of the process — and that’s okay.

Trust that you know your child better than anyone. Your voice matters here. Ask questions, share your insights, and take things one step at a time. Even in a place that feels unfamiliar, relationships will form, understanding will grow, and small moments of progress will begin to emerge.

Be gentle with yourself — this is a journey, not something you have to get right all at once.

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Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM)

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The CALM C.A.R.E. Kit is here to help you protect the young people in your life from suicide. Get practical youth suicide prevention advice from CALM.

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Papyrus’s suicide safety plan helps you stay safe in your hardest moments. Build your personal plan, explore coping strategies and reasons for living.

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Click on the picture for the units and day services within the Southern Counties Provider Collaborative

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Every app on the platform has been independently reviewed by PAPYRUS so you can feel confident it’s safe to use – and spend more time finding what works for you.

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Welcome to the PAPYRUS app library. You can use this library to search for apps that can support with concerns that may be impacting on your thoughts of suicide.

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Video Tours

Bere Clinic - Elysium Healthcare

Serenity Path Hospital

Austen House

Bluebird House

Blake Day Service

Emerald Place Clinic

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A short Parent Carer video about what they wish they had known prior to admission

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A short Parent Carer video about what they wish they had known prior to admission

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Parents who have been through Tier 4 admission share what they wish they had known at the beginning of an admission

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Mind have excellent information about Sectioning: Being sectioned - for 11-18 year olds | Mind

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Mental Health Act 1983 information leaflets

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As usual now, there are separate documents for use in England and in Wales. See also: Foreign-language information leaflets and Tribunal forms.

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Will my child have access to an Advocate?

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Will my child have access to an Advocate?

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Yes - your child will have access to an Independent Mental Health Advocate who informs and supports about the Mental Health Act and their rights. In some units there is also a Young Person Advocate who visits young people regularly and support young people to have their voices heard.

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Info on mental health advocacy - for 11-18 year olds | Mind - Mind

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Learn about mental health advocacy and how advocates can help to get your voice heard when it comes to your mental health treatment and support.

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How Does Nearest Relative Changing to Appointed Person Impact Me?

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How Does Nearest Relative Changing to Appointed Person Impact Me?

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A quick guide to who counts as your child’s Nearest Relative and what that means during their stay.

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This is a family member who has certain responsibilities for if someone who is sectioned or on a Community Treatment Order (CTO).

Click on the link below for an information leaflet PDF: https://www.mentalhealthlaw.co.uk/Patient_information_leaflet_Nearest_Relative:_Your_nearest_relative_under_the_Mental_Health_Act_1983_(March_2009)

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The NHS have produced a collection of guides created by and for families in collaboration with the NHS, containing important information family members need when their child or young person (CYP) has been admitted to a CAMHS inpatient unit.

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Young people under 16 who understand the implications (Gillick competence) may consent to their own treatment, and those aged 16-17 are presumed capable of making their own medical decisions.

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Gillick Competence – Young People – CAMHS

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© Hampshire CAMHS 2026 Hampshire Specialist CAMHS services are now provided by Hampshire & IOW Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

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Parent information for Over 17's (courtesy of Oxford Health)

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Parent information for Over 17's (courtesy of Oxford Health)

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CAMHS Tier 4 Parent Carer Information Booklet

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CAMHS Tier 4 Parent Carer Information Booklet

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The service will give you a booklet describing the multidisciplinary team, daily routines, visiting, treatment planning, education arrangements, meetings and ward expectations. It includes safeguarding, young people’s rights, and confidentiality and how to raise concerns and the complaint process. If you have not receive one, please either ask the service for a copy or inform your Family Ambassador.

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A parent and carers group psychoeducation topic of discussion on restrictive practice in CAMHS inpatient units by NHS Pennine Care CAMHS: Talk on restrictive practices CAMHS inpatient units

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Accessing an urgent review if your child's physical health deteriorates and ensure your concerns are listened to and acted upon.

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The first phase of the introduction of Martha's Rule will be implemented in the NHS from April 2024. Once fully implemented, patients, families, carers and staff will have round-the-clock access to a rapid review from a separate care team if they are worried about a person's condition.

Martha Mills died in 2021 after developing sepsis in hospital, where she had been admitted with a pancreatic injury after falling off her bike. Martha's family's concerns about her deteriorating condition were not responded to promptly, and in 2023 a coroner ruled that Martha would probably have survived had she been moved to intensive care earlier.

In response to this and other cases related to the management of deterioration, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and NHS England committed to implement 'Martha's Rule'; to ensure the vitally important concerns of the patient and those who know the patient best are listened to and acted upon.

What does Martha's Rule involve

The three proposed components of Martha's Rule are:

1. All staff in NHS trusts must have 24/7 access to a rapid review from a critical care outreach team, who they can contact should they have concerns about a patient.

2. All patients, their families, carers, and advocates must also have access to the same 24/7 rapid review from a critical care outreach team, which they can contact via mechanisms advertised around the hospital, and more widely if they are worried about the patient's condition. This is Martha's Rule.

3. The NHS must implement a structured approach to obtain information relating to a patient's condition directly from patients and their families at least daily. In the first instance, this will cover all inpatients in acute and specialist trusts.

Implementation of Martha's Rule

The implementation of Martha's Rule in the NHS will take a phased approach, beginning with at least 100 adult and paediatric acute provider sites who already offer a 24/7 critical care outreach capability. We will soon ask for expressions of interest to be part of the first phase of the programme.

This first phase will take place during 2024/25 and will focus on supporting participating provider sites to devise and agree a standardised approach to all three elements of Martha's Rule, ahead of scale up to the remaining sites in England in the following years.

Criteria for participation will be set out in an expression of interest document and will include the requirement that the provider sites taking part in the first phase have an existing 24/7 critical care outreach infrastructure. The document will also outline the support offer from NHS England; this will include additional funding for project resources, and access to specialist implementation support and expertise from the Health Innovation Network's Patient Safety Collaboratives.

Further developments

The focused approach at the initial provider sites will inform the development of wider national policy proposals for Martha's Rule that can be expanded in a phased way across the NHS from 2025/26. We will also identify ways to roll out an adapted Martha's Rule model across other settings including community and mental health hospitals where the processes may not apply in the same way.

Other measures to improve the identification of deterioration

Martha's Rule will build on the evaluation of NHS England's Worry and Concern Improvement Collaborative which involves seven regional pilots and began in 2023. They have been testing and implementing methods for patients, families and carers to escalate their concerns about deterioration and to input their views about their illness into the health record.

The introduction of Martha's Rule comes alongside other measures to improve the identification of deterioration, including the rollout last November of a new early warning system for staff treating children, built on similar systems already in place for adult, newborn, and maternity services.

To ensure that Martha's Rule is effective as it can be, it will be implemented as part of an integrated programme to improve the management of deterioration using the 'PIER' framework, which helps systems to Prevent, Identify, Escalate and R espond to physical deterioration. This work will improve how the NHS supports staff to manage deterioration and encourage greater involvement from patients, families, and carers.

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The first phase of the introduction of Martha's Rule will be implemented in the NHS from April 2024. Once fully implemented, patients, families, carers and staff will have round-the-clock access to a rapid review from a separate care team if they are worried about a person's condition.

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The Triangle of Care is a membership run by the Carers Trust. Triangle of Care focuses on keeping carers included, informed and supported when they are caring for an individual with mental health difficulties.

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The Triangle of Care, ToC, Triangle of Care

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The Triangle of Care is a therapeutic alliance between carers, service users and health professionals. Find out more and become a member.

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You are not currently authorised to access www.sussexpartnership.nhs.uk.

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Medication

Some young people may be offered medication alongside therapy and other supports. It is usually prescribed and reviewed by a psychiatrist or specialist doctor.

Families and young people should be involved in discussions about medication, including benefits, risks, and side effects.

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UK’s largest mental health support directory

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UK’s largest mental health support directory

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Hampshire:

Kent:

Sussex:

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Carer Assessments for Unpaid Carers | Carers Support

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Understand what you’re entitled to with Carers Support’s Carer Assessments. Find help & resources for your needs here.

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Care, Education and Treatment Reviews (CETR) and Dynamic Support Register (DSR)

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Care, Education and Treatment Reviews (CETR) and Dynamic Support Register (DSR)

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CETRS and the DSR aim to improve support for children with learning disabilities and/or autism and challenging behaviour.

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A Carer Assessment is a conversation with a trained assessor to explore how your caring role affects your life and what support might help you. It focuses on your needs, wellbeing and goals as a carer, not a test of your ability to care. Please see the information attached about requesting support for you as a Carer via a Carer's Assessment. The unit's Social Worker and Family Ambassador can discuss a referral.

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What are Reasonable Adjustments?                                       

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What are Reasonable Adjustments?                                       

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What is PEACE?

PEACE is a Pathway for Eating disorders and Autism developed from Clinical Experience. Our research suggests that around 35% of people experiencing an eating disorder may may have autism spectrum condition (ASC), or present with high levels of autistic traits. We hope this pathway will support autistic people suffering with an eating disorder, their loved ones and their clinicians.

Help and Support

You are now part of the PEACE Community! Reach out and connect with others on one of our social pages below:

Are you a Researcher?

Welcome to the PEACE Community! We are always welcoming fellow researchers as we need more research to support this under-researched group. Check out the PEACE Lab's research here. Got a specific research question or want to get involved? Send us a message on our socials!

Resources

The PEACE Team made up from a group of wonderful clinicians and researchers have worked hard to create materials to support you! Check them out below, we hope you find them useful.

Our Book

Alongside this website, we've also written a book! Here you'll find even more information about the comorbidity, ways to adapt treatments and support recovery.
It's now available to buy on Amazon.

PEACE Blog

Have a read of our latest blog posts! Whether you want to read about someone's experiences, learn more about the comorbidity or explore nutritional recommendations, we hope you will find something that meets your needs!

Download presentations from the 2022 PEACE Pathway Conference

What is interoception, and why is it important?

BEACON is a brain imaging project looking at how the brain processes emotion and cognition in individuals with anorexia nervosa. We are also interested in how autistic characteristics affect these brain processes and how these processes change over time.

PEACE Pathway 2020 All rights Reserved Website by TOTEM

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PEACE is a Pathway for Eating disorders and Autism developed from Clinical Experience. Our research suggests that around 35% of people experiencing an eating disorder may may have autism spectrum condition (ASC), or present with high levels of autistic traits. We hope this pathway will support autistic people suffering with an eating disorder, their loved ones and their clinicians.

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Oliver McGowan -  NHS Mandatory training on learning disability and autism

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Oliver McGowan -  NHS Mandatory training on learning disability and autism

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This film includes information about Oliver McGowan and mentions his death, which some people may find upsetting - please take a break or ask for support if you need to.

It is a short film explaining the importance of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training to help health and care staff better understand people with a learning disability and autistic people, so they can provide safe, respectful and person-centred care.

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NHS England Workforce, Training and Education

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The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism

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What is the NHS Ask - Listen - Do initiative?

# data[].attributes.subject
What is the NHS Ask - Listen - Do initiative?

# data[].attributes.body
Part of the Oliver McGowan training to ensure that people with a learning disability and/or autistic people, along with their families and carers, get safe, high-quality care

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I am worried about my child being prescribed psychotropic medications?

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I am worried about my child being prescribed psychotropic medications?

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Find out about switching from children’s health to adult health services as your disabled child becomes an adult.

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TCAP - Transforming Care, Prevention and Support Service

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TCAP - Transforming Care, Prevention and Support Service

# data[].attributes.headline
Parent Carer Peer Support Groups: Local and National

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Parent Carer Peer Support Groups: Local and National

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Charlie Waller: Accessing Parent Carer Peer Support Groups

West Sussex Mind | Parenting support

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Siblings, lets talk! Older siblings_teens

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Autism Hampshire

IASK Information Advice and Support Kent

Amaze Supporting families in East Sussex and Brighton & Hove

ASPENS CHARITIES

West Sussex Parent Carer Forum

Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Signposting

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Attached is the DoH Mental Health Code of Practice.

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Video about Section 117 for Children and Young People

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Are there any legal rights for discharge support if my child is on Section 3? 

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Are there any legal rights for discharge support if my child is on Section 3? 

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Section 117 for Children and Young People

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Anna Davies and Julia Jones from Bevan Brittan guided us through key issues in this area, focusing specifically on matters and complexities that can arise in respect of Section 117 aftercare for children and young people.

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Discharge Planning: s.117 Aftercare Funding

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Discharge Planning: s.117 Aftercare Funding

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Explaining your rights to section 117 aftercare | Mind

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Find out what section 117 aftercare is, including who can get it, how long for, and what kind of services are covered.

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Requesting a Child and Family Assessment under S17

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Requesting a Child and Family Assessment under S17

# data[].attributes.body
This page explains the duty of children’s services under Section 17 Children Act 1989 to provide services to children in need in their area. It explains the definition of a child in need, the assessment process and child in need plans and the types of services available.

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This page explains the duty of Children's Services under section 17 Children Act 1989 to provide services to children in need in their area. It explains the definition of a child in need, the assessment process and child in need plans and the types of services available.

All children and young people are unique and have differing needs. Similarly, parents also differ in their capability to respond to and meet their child's needs.

Children's Services are expected to provide help and support to children in their area as part of a continuum:

Early Help services

Section 17 Children Act 1989 support for more complex needs

Action under section 47 if there is reasonable cause to suspect that a child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm.

A 'child in need' assessment under section 17 will identify the needs of the child and ensure that the family are given the appropriate support in enabling them to safeguard and promote the child's welfare.

What is the legal definition of a child in need?

Under Section 17 Children Act 1989, a child will be considered in need if:

they are unlikely to achieve or maintain or to have the opportunity to achieve or maintain a reasonable standard of health or development without provision of services from the Local Authority;

their health or development is likely to be significantly impaired, or further impaired, without the provision of services from the Local Authority;

they have a disability.

Disability includes blindness, hearing impairments, mental disorders and permanent illnesses, injuries or congenital deformities.

Children in need may be:

children with SEND;

young carers (see our page on Young Carers);

children who have committed a crime;

children whose parents are in prison; or

asylum seeking children.

What is the duty of Children's Services under section 17 to a child in need?

It shall be the general duty of every Local Authority:

to safeguard and promote the welfare of children within their area who are in need; and

so far as is reasonably consistent with that duty, to promote the upbringing of such children by their families, by providing a range and level of services appropriate to those children's needs.

Local authorities are only under a duty in relation to a child within their area. However, 'within their area' simply means that a child has to be physically present in the geographical area of the Local Authority to trigger the section 17 duty.

Any service provided by a Local Authority may be provided for the family of a particular child in need or for any family member, if it is provided with a view to safeguarding or promoting the child's welfare ( section 17 (3)).

How can a request be made for a child in need assessment?

We advise that a request for a section 17 assessment be made in writing and that the correspondence make particular reference to the child's needs and the type of support which is required.

Each Local Safeguarding Children Board must produce a threshold document which sets out the criteria and level of need for when a case should be referred to social care for an assessment.

A parent or child can also ask a doctor, GP, health visitor to contact Children's Services on their behalf.

What will be considered as part of a child in need assessment?

The assessment will address the following questions:

What are the developmental needs of the child?

Are the parents able to respond appropriately to the child's identified needs?

Do the parents have the capacity to respond to the child's needs?

Are the parents able to promote the child's health and development?

What impact are the family functioning and history, the wider family and environmental factors having on the parents' capacity to respond to their child's needs and the child's developmental progress?

Is there any evidence of domestic violence?

Are there any other children in the household or elsewhere who should be included in the assessment?

What is a child in need plan?

A child in need plan will contain the support which is being provided to a child and/or family by Children's Services.

The plan should set out:

what is working well within the family;

what support is required and why;

which agencies will provide the required services;

what the child and/or family agree to do;

what the expected outcomes are;

what the timeframe of the plan is and when it will be reviewed. The first review should be held within 3 months of the start of the child in need plan and further reviews should take place at least every 6 months thereafter.

Which type of support can be provided to a child in need?

The Local Authority can provide a range of services for a child in need. These can include:

day care facilities for children under 5;

advice, guidance and counselling;

occupational, social, cultural and recreational activities;

assistance for the child and family to have a holiday;

family centres, where parents can receive family support and practical parenting advice, while children have a safe space to play;

financial assistance, which may be in the form of a loan, a cash payment, or payment in kind, for example, vouchers for a particular shop, or an item of food, clothing or furniture;

respite care (temporary relief care for the family, where the children are placed with a carer on a regular or one-off basis); and

accommodation.

Going further

If you wish to initiate a complaint against Children's Services, detailed information can be found in our How-to Guide. Please note that a fee is charged for this service.

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This page explains the duty of Children’s Services under section 17 Children Act 1989 to provide services to children in need in their area. It explains the definition of a child in need, the assessment process and child in need plans and the types of services available.