New figures sourced from NHS England using the Children’s Commissioner’s legislative powers reveal that in 2022/23, 949,200 children and young people were referred to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) – equal to 8% of the 11.9 million children in England.

The De Souza’s Children’s Mental Health Services 2022-23 report found that 32% of children and young people referred to mental health services received support but 28% – close to 270,300 – were still waiting for support from mental health services.

A further 39% of those waiting for help had their referral closed before accessing support.

The report shows that waiting times for mental health support continue to vary significantly.

For the 305,000 children and young people who accessed support the average waiting time was 35 days, however, in the last year nearly 40,000 children experienced a wait of over two years.