People Participation
Find out more about our People Participation team and how you can get involved by clicking here
Please note that our CAMHSTalk Podcasts is now available https://blubrry.com/camhstalk/
North Bedfordshire CAMHS
9 Rush Court, Bedford
Bedfordshire
MK40 3JT
01234 893301 / 01234 893300
9am-5pm Monday to Friday
Our clinics are accessed by appointment only. If you require urgent help please click on the red button at the top of the page "I need help now".
What do we do?
We are a multi-agency specialist mental health service for children and young people with complex, severe or persistent emotional, behavioural or developmental needs. We provide assessment and treatment for children and young adults up to the age of 18.
Services include:
- Specialist multi-disciplinary clinics for adolescents and young children
- Emergency assessment of children and adolescents experiencing a severe mental health episode
- Crisis Support
- Group therapies as well as 1-2-1 sessions
- Support for young people who may be struggling with the impact of certain conditions such as autism, learning disabilities and ADHD
- Support in schools and GP surgeries
- Emotional Wellbeing support
- Medication
- Psychiatry
Looked After Children (LAC):
Bedfordshire Looked after Children CAMHS provides outpatient assessments, support and treatment for children and young people up to the age of 18 years, who are in Local Authority care and are experiencing moderate to severe mental health problems. The LAC team works with children and young people who are not living at home with their birth parents and are placed with foster carers or in residential homes, either voluntarily or through a Care Order being granted to the Local Authority by the Courts.
Bedfordshire LAC CAMHS is a multi-disciplinary team comprised of Professional Clinical Lead, Psychotherapist, Family Systemic Therapist, Specialist Nurse and a Social Worker.
The Community Eating Disorder Service (CEDS):
For more information on our Eating Disorder Service please click the link below:
Early Help:
The targeted team provide rapid access to targeted interventions for children which will be facilitated at an early stage of need. This will include joint health and social care assessments and consultation for the Team Around the Child, focusing on the principle of strong, collaborative partnership working between agencies.
Schools Programme:
Is a targeted group of specialist CAMHS Mental Health Practitioners who are embedded in each of the Upper Schools and Colleges within Bedfordshire providing specialist emotional health training to staff, case consultation and where appropriate direct assessment if required.
The named lead in schools are responsible for mental health, developing closer relationships with CAMHS in support of timely and appropriate referrals to services.
Neuro-Developmental Team (NDT):
The Neurodevelopmental Team (NDT) is a multi-disciplinary team made up of psychology, psychiatry, nursing and occupational therapy who support young people with a diagnosis of learning disability and/ or autism who present with either moderate to severe mental health issues or behaviours that place them at risk or are causing concern to those that support them. We frequently work with those that are supporting the young person, as opposed to the young person themselves.
The Autism Assessment Pathway (AAP) is also held within the NDT. As our commitments highlight, we are dedicated to completing neuro-affirming assessments and practising in a neuro-affirming way.
Adolescent Mental Health Team (AMHT):
The specialist team work with young people age 13-17 presenting with severe mental illness and behaviour indicating a high risk to themselves or others. This will include young people who are psychotic, bipolar, severely depressed or dysphoric and emotionally unstable, or with other conditions such as obsessive compulsive disorder where there is a high level of dysfunction, and those isolated to a marked degree when it is considered a significant mental illness is likely. The main function of the model is to provide an alternative to in-patient admission through community-based interventions.
Emotional and Behavioural Team (EBT x 2):
Bedford Emotional and Behavioural Teams are based in Bedford and Central Bedfordshire, split across two sites (one in the North and one in the South of the county). The teams provide assessment and treatment for young people with emotional and/or behavioural difficulties unless already managed by any of the above specialist teams.
North Beds CAMHS Services & Self-Help Resources
Discover additional services providing support to parents, carers and service users on a variety of topics
Bereavement Services
Cancer Services
Coping with change
Domestic Abuse Services
Family Support
Housing Difficulties
Young Carers
Crisis Support
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
ADHD/Autism/Learning Difficulties
Rufugee / Migrant Services
Victim Support
Other Useful Contacts
Feedback
We welcome your feedback and want to be as responsive as we can to your experiences, good and bad. There are two effective ways of talking to us about your views and experience.
- Participation - We have a dedicated Participation team who will listen to any feedback or experience of CAMHS. There are monthly meetings where young people using the service can have their say and work alongside staff to make improvements. For more info check out our Participation page or contact elft.blcamhsparticipation@nhs.net
- Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALs) - PALS can help you make an official complaint if the service has not responded to your feedback
Co-Production of Page
This webpage has been created in collaboration with children, young people, parents and carers. If you have suggestions for improving these webpages, please contact elft.ppgchcamhs@nhs.net