Suzie McKenzie launches a new Mental Health Support Team

North Tyneside Young Mayor Suzie McKenzie, currently in Year 12 at STM, was delighted this week by the progress being made on one of her mayoral pledges, to improve support for young people’s mental health.  Suzie takes up the story:

“The Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust, North Tyneside Council and North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group are working together to roll-out a new Mental Health Support Team at certain schools and colleges in North Tyneside. The idea is to improve early intervention when it comes to young people suffering mental health problems.

The newly formed Mental Health Support Team launched last week on three double-decker vintage buses, visiting schools and community centres to talk to young people about their mental health. One of the first places the buses visited was St Thomas More.

Mental health in young people has been an issue for a long time but, like so many things, it is an issue that has been highlighted and worsened by the pandemic. Thankfully, even before Covid-19, there was progress being made in supporting young people’s mental health. It has become more accepted, young people feel more able to ask for help and overall, it has become less of a ‘taboo’ topic to discuss. However, despite this progression, I felt more still needed to be done.  This is why I decided to make mental health my pledge, and it is something I have been working on throughout my term as Young Mayor. 

My pledge is to create better support in schools for young people’s mental health and to ignite a change within these schools to overall improve the support for young people. I am very happy to see this new strategy being rolled out and these Mental Health Support teams being set up and in schools. It’s a huge step in the right direction and I am so excited to see some change.”

Suzie is picture above with headteacher Mr Watson.