News

New era for children's mental health and wellbeing services taking shape

Spring in Kent and Medway will see new services available to support children, young people and their families with their emotional wellbeing and mental health.

Teams across the county are working together as they prepare to launch the new services in April.

Salus in Kent

In Kent, Salus is preparing to launch the Kent Children and Young People's Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Therapeutic Alliance in April.

The new service, commissioned by NHS Kent and Medway ICB, will work seamlessly with the Kent County Council (KCC)-commissioned Kent Therapeutic Support Service (TSS), which Salus launched in November.

Together, they will create a simple, joined up pathway that lets children and young people in Kent move easily between services depending on what kind of emotional wellbeing or mental health support they need. 

Salus' Co-Chief Executive Sally Williamson said: “Our aim is to make sure children and young people in Kent get the right help at the right time.

“It also means they won't have to keep repeating their story because information will be shared appropriately between teams.

“By working closely together, the services will help manage the high demand for the Therapeutic Support Service and make sure children and young people are directed to the right level of support from the start, whether they need advice, help, or more focused support.”

For more on the children and young people's:

• Kent Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Therapeutic Alliance visit: Kent Children and Young People's Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Therapeutic Alliance - Salus 
• Kent Therapeutic Support Service visit: Kent Therapeutic Support Service - Salus

North Kent Mind

In Medway, North Kent Mind is working to the same timescales to launch the Medway Therapeutic Alliance.

Although the Kent and the Medway therapeutic alliance services are commissioned and provided by different organisations, the approach to services in Kent and in Medway has been aligned where possible to meet Medway's geographical needs.

North Kent Mind will lead the delivery of the therapeutic alliance in Medway working with: Kooth, BFB Labs, Barratt Behaviour Change Consultancy (BBCC), Salus, Young Lives Foundation, Oasis, CHUMS.

Salus will lead the delivery of the therapeutic alliance in Kent working with: We Are With You, Young Lives Foundation, Spurgeons, Involve, Oasis and CHUMS.

Rebecca Smith, Director of CYP Services, North Kent Mind, said: “This is a really exciting step for Medway and the first time we have brought partners together in this way to deliver a more joined-up emotional wellbeing offer for children and young people.  

“Moving away from organisations working in silos means better information sharing, clearer pathways and more support options across i-THRIVE groups.   

“We have already seen such a positive shift in the way services are connecting, and are excited for this to continue.

  “Our ambition is to keep driving partnership working across the Alliance and the wider network to truly change the local landscape for children and young people's mental health support.”

Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust

At the same time, close working between Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust and North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT) continues, to support the change in provider for all-age eating disorder and children and young people's mental health services in Spring 2026.

Combining the delivery of these services with the adult mental health care Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust already provides will enable more joined up support across a person's full range of needs and help create more seamless transition between services, particularly for young people moving into adult services, in the future.

Sheila Stenson, Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust's CEO, said: “This is a really important opportunity to better join up mental health care for some of the most vulnerable children, young people and adults in our communities.

“By bringing all these services together, under one local NHS trust for the very first time in Kent and Medway, we have an opportunity to develop new ways of working that offer seamless care right across a person's mental health journey, and better support families receiving help.

“But I know change can cause anxiety so want to reassure everyone currently being looked after by these services that the care they are getting will not change. They will still see the same clinicians, in the same places, and use the same contact details.”

The services transferring to Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust include:

• the Mental Health Support Teams in schools, known locally as Kent Emotional Wellbeing Teams and Medway Emotional Support Teams
• all age eating disorder services
• mental health assessments, interventions and treatment for young people aged 0-18 years in Kent and 0-19 years in Medway who are experiencing a range of challenging mental health difficulties. The trust also offers diagnostic assessments for neurodevelopmental conditions such as Autism or ADHD, please check the website for more information
• the Kent and Medway Adolescent Hospital.

More information for children and young people and their families already in touch with NELFT is available on the website .

Kooth

Kooth will continue to provide digital (online) mental health support for all children and young people in both Kent and Medway.

Children and young people can access mental health support via Kooth 365 days a year without referral by visiting the Kooth website.

Children and young people can access Kooth via a self-referral at kooth.com

NHS Kent and Medway ICB commissions Kooth in Kent.

In Medway, Kooth will provide services as part of the Medway Therapeutic Alliance, commissioned by Medway Council.