It was great to mark Children's Mental Health Week together with Government's Youth Mental Health Ambassador, Dr Alex George, as he joined me at Trinity CofE School in Belvedere to hear from the inspiring pupils about their mental health and wellbeing. As the Department for Education Minister responsible for children's mental health, it is important for me to have these conversations with children as they inform my work in this crucial policy area.
Supporting the mental health of our children and young people is an issue of great urgency, an issue of which has only been compounded due to the pandemic. We have announced more than £17 million to improve mental health and wellbeing support in schools and colleges, including a new £7 million Wellbeing for Education Recovery programme, which provides free expert training, support and resources for staff dealing with children and young people experiencing additional pressures from the last two years including trauma, anxiety or grief. This builds upon the success of the our £8 million Wellbeing for Education Return, used by more than 90 per cent of councils since its launch.
In addition, more children and young people will have access to significantly expanded mental health services, with mental health support teams in schools and colleges growing from 59 to 400 by April 2023, supporting nearly 3 million children. This will be achieved by £79 million of government investment.