Services that are available 24 hours a day Below is a list of services that you could suggest when having those late-night conversations. As a helper it can sometimes be hard to hear this but you are not the only person your friend can talk to. They will have other friends and family members who care. So, help them to identify who those people are and suggesting these services can be helpful too.
Shout - Text Shout to 85258 Childline - Call 0800 1111 or visit their website for alternative services - https://www.childline.org.uk/ Samaritans - Call 116123 If they need more ongoing help Abingdon Bridge (aged 13 - 25) https://www.theabingdonbridge.org.uk/ Riverside Counselling Service for Young People https://www.riversidecounsellingservice.co.uk/young-people/ NHS - Child and Adolescent Mental Health Support (CAMHS) Team or Mental Health Support Team contact the Single Point of Access - https://secureforms.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk/mhst/
Adults Where Are You? Young people helping other young people is nothing new. Although, I do think young people are turning to each other far more than they ever have. If you’ve watched Sex Education, you’ll know that the main character Otis provides a somewhat professional sex and relationship advice service to his peers. Albeit his clinic is often in the grotty off-limits toilet block, abandoned due to asbestos! Having grown up with parents as therapists, Otis has picked up a few tools along the way and his young clients soon come to trust (in Season One) his words of wisdom. Although, the whole show does seem to predicate itself on exploiting stereotypes for humour, it is reflecting something of the relationships between adults and young people. In fact, I am beginning to think some young people do not trust us to understand their difficulties, not to overreact, not to be judgemental, and to respond in a way that leaves them feeling understood. It’s not everyone’s experience, but it’s definitely what we are hearing in the counselling service. The pandemic seems to have left young people stuck somewhere two years ago and are now suddenly in a world where everything has become incredibly controlled, serious and the decisions that they make are perceived as having fixed lifelong consequences. Whether that’s their GCSE choices, completion of ordinary homework, the use of single use plastic or what they sent online. They’ve missed out on valuable prep time to get them ready for adulthood. This Easter holidays, seize the opportunity to be playful and if the relationship between you and your young person has drifted, remember these wise words from Otis…
“I realised I still... I still behave like a child most of the time, and I pretend to be so grown up. [But] I still need you.” By Matt Barnard, Lead School Counsellor
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