Children’s Mental Health Referrals in England Exceed One Million for the First Time

More than one million children and young people had an active referral to NHS mental health services in England during 2024/25, marking the first time the figure has passed the one million threshold and highlighting continued pressure on children’s mental health services.

The findings come from the latest report by England’s Children’s Commissioner, which recorded 1,048,965 active referrals to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) during the year. This represents a 9.5% increase on the previous year and is almost double the 563,639 active referrals recorded in 2018/19.

An active referral includes children and young people who were referred to, waiting for, or receiving treatment during the reporting period. It does not include those who were already in treatment before the year began.

Anxiety Remains the Leading Reason for Referral

The report found that anxiety was the most common reason for referral, accounting for 16% of all active referrals.

It also identified increasing referrals relating to suspected autism and other neurodevelopmental conditions, with these children often experiencing some of the longest waits for assessment and support.

Long Waiting Times Continue

Despite more children receiving support than in previous years, demand continues to outpace capacity.

According to the report:

• More than 60,000 children had been waiting over two years for support.
• More than one third of children with an active referral were still waiting to begin treatment.
• The number of children waiting longer for support increased compared with the previous year.

Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza described the figures as “stark” and said they demonstrate the scale of the challenge facing children’s mental health services across England.

Calls for a More Joined-Up Approach

The report concludes that improving children’s mental health will require action beyond healthcare alone, with closer collaboration across health, education and social care.

Mental health charity Mind also said the figures show that demand continues to exceed available capacity, warning that long waits can allow children’s mental health to deteriorate and increase the likelihood of requiring crisis support later.

Why This Matters

The report highlights the sustained demand being experienced by NHS children’s mental health services and the ongoing challenges in ensuring timely access to care.

For healthcare professionals, commissioners and service providers, the findings underline the importance of continued investment in mental health services, workforce capacity and earlier intervention to meet growing demand.