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North Bedfordshire CAMHS

9 Rush Court, Bedford
Bedfordshire
MK40 3JT

 

01234 893301 / 01234 893300

9am-5pm Monday to Friday

 

https://elft.nhs.uk/camhs

This is a short video guide on how anyone can make a referral to CAMHS:

The Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) provides outpatient assessments, support and treatment for children and young people up to the age of 18 experiencing moderate to severe mental health problems. The service works to provide them with a greater knowledge of their condition and improve coping techniques.  See our specialist CAMHS website here.

We provide help to children and to the wider family, including those with living with foster parents, adopted children and young people living in children’s homes. The service may see children and adolescents on their own, with their parents or with their family, and may also see parents on their own.

Children, adolescents and their families referred to the service may be experiencing different kinds of problems. These may include:

  • Eating difficulties
  • Emotional feelings such as those of unhappiness, loneliness
  • Fears and anxieties
  • Parents having problems managing their children or feeling that their own difficulties are affecting their children
  • Relationship problems
  • Traumatic experiences

The service is also available to help children, adolescents and their families with mental health issues related to physical or learning disabilities.

The service consists of a multi-disciplinary team which offers a range of expertise including:

  • Art Psychotherapists
  • Child & Adolescent Psychiatrists
  • Clinical Psychologists
  • Nurse Specialists
  • Psychotherapists
  • Social Workers
  • Other Child & Adolescent

This is a short video describing the necessary precautions to take concerning COVID-19, and what to expect from your initial appointment with CAMHS:

COVID - Ensuring your safety at CAMHS from Copperwheat Films on Vimeo.

We now have our own CAMHS podcast channel, featuring content made by young people in CAMHS. The CAMHSTalk YouTube Channel.

Referrals can be made by GPs, healthcare professionals, schools and colleges

Scroll down to the 'Information Leaflet' section on this page below.

There are forms for self referral and for professionals.

The CAMHS Referral Form for Professionals will ideally be completed in collaboration with the young person, parent or carer. This will enable us to decide how best to help the client and their family.
Completed referral forms should be emailed to elft.spoebedfordshire@nhs.net
 

We also accept self-referrals
From April 2020, young people or parents/carers who live in Bedfordshire and Luton will be able to self-refer to their CAMHS service. Please see the attached form (below)  which should be emailed to elft.spoebedfordshire@nhs.net

The team will screen all referrals for risk and need. For any referrals that we are unable to accept during these challenging times, support will be provided in the form of psychoeducation and self-help.

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):

The Community Eating Disorder service (CEDS) is a single dedicated team developed within tier 3 CAMHS across Luton CCG and Bedfordshire CCG and includes a range of CAMHS professionals. The team leads on the direct delivery of interventions for children and young people presenting with moderate and severe presentations of eating disorders. The service model includes an appropriate emphasis on prevention and early intervention.
 

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):

This is a countywide Tier 3 service, where Tier 2 services such as nurse-led sleep clinic, nurse-led behavioural clinics, locality parenting support teams, CHUMS and Child Development Centre assessments (as appropriate) have been previously. Referrals are based on young people presenting with a combination of both: evidence of learning disability (IQ<70) and / or a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder or severe challenging behaviour and or moderate to severe.
 

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.

Grove Place Clinic

24 Grove Place
Bedford
Bedfordshire
MK40 3JT

Clinical

Conditions:

ADHD
Anxiety
Autism
Bipolar Disorder
Depression
Eating Disorders
Low mood
OCD
Personality disorder
Post traumatic stress disorder
Psychosis
Self-harm

Clinical speciality:

Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services
 

Treatment mode:

Community

Information Leaflets
Staff Photos - Bedford Emotional and Behavioural Team
Staff Photos - Adolescent Mental Health Team
Bedfordshire Referral Form for Professionals
Staff Photos - Eating Disorders Team
Bedfordshire CAMHS Referral Pathway
Staff Photos - Neurodevelopmental Team
North Bedfordshire CAMHS Self referral form
North Bedfordshire CAMHS Professional Referral Form