Call comes as 11 of 14 health boards miss waiting time target.
A coalition of children’s charities and care providers is calling for “dramatically increased” investment in mental health services.
The call comes as official figures showed 11 of Scotland’s 14 health boards missed the waiting time target for children and young people to receive treatment from mental health services.
More than a third of young people waited longer than the target 18 weeks for treatment, while 272 children across Scotland were forced to wait longer than a year.
The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC) is now urging a “fundamental rethink” with renewed focus on prevention and early intervention, including embedding mental health within education services.
Research has found that 10% of children and young people aged five to 16 has a clinically diagnosable mental health problem, with 50% of mental health problems established by the age of 14 and 75% by the age of 24.
The SCSC said it acknowledged the Scottish Government’s commitment to tackling mental health issues, including an additional £250 million of funding announced in 2018, but said Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) still needed more investment.
A spokesperson for the SCSC said: “The simple fact is that we are continuing to fail thousands of children and young people with mental health problems, and more clearly needs to be done to address this epidemic.
“These newly released figures highlight that the NHS in Scotland, including 11 of our health boards, are failing to meet what is already a lengthy waiting time. Yet we know that three children in every classroom has a clinically diagnosable mental health problem.
“There must be a radical transformation of our mental health services, with a focus on preventing such problems arising in the first place and intervening early, especially when we know that half of all mental health problems begin before the age of 14. This includes embedding mental health within education from an early age as well as providing training for all staff involved in education.
“With mental health and the issues associated with it representing one of the greatest public health challenges of our time, we must ensure that children and young people are able to get the care and support they need, when they need it. This includes investing in greater community support and support at school, reducing the need for referral to specialist CAMHS.”
