The LGA's media office provides the national voice of local government in England and Wales on the major issues of the day for national, regional and local press.
“Councils have proved how critical they are in providing services during COVID-19, working closely with schools and other partners to provide support to children and young people, but have had to divert all their early intervention spending into more acute services due to overstretched budgets."
Commenting on research undertaken by the London School of Economics (LSE) and the Maternal Mental Health Alliance about increasing access to perinatal mental health care, Cllr David Fothergill, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board said:
“As this stark research highlights, perinatal mental health problems occur during the period from conception to the child’s second birthday. If untreated and unsupported, these mental health problems can continue to affect mothers, and their families for years afterwards. In the UK, one in five are affected by maternal
A record number of children with mental health problems were seen by social workers last year, an increase of more than a half in five years, latest figures show.