The Leeds Transition Service is a specialist team within Leeds CAMHS providing extra support to young people (aged 17.5 to 18 years) making the transition out of child services and into adult services. The service starts to work with the young person around six months prior to transition, and may stay involved for up to 9 months. The team also provides consultation and supervision for cases for other professionals working in CAMHS, adult mental health services, CAMHS workers in schools, and youth offending teams.
The Leeds Transition Service is a specialist team within Leeds CAMHS providing extra support to young people (aged 17.5 to 18 years) making the transition out of child services and into adult services. The service starts to work with the young person around six months prior to transition, and may stay involved for up to 9 months. The team also provides consultation and supervision for cases for other professionals working in CAMHS, adult mental health services, CAMHS workers in schools, and youth offending teams.
Young person focused transitions
To facilitate better transitions, the team work with the young person to identify current needs and strategies, and liaise with adult services to ensure access to the right support around the transition, without unnecessary re-assessment. They also prepare young people for the different approach an adult service may adopt, such as an emphasis on independence, self-help, and reduced dependence on the family. They also play a role in risk assessments and crisis planning with the young person, where necessary.
Developing transition pathways
The team have developed clinical pathways with all adult mental health services in primary and secondary care and they have been involved in the creation of mental health champions in most of these services. These are staff who have an interest in working with young people and their families and are geared up to offer a young person friendly approach. The service continues to review and develop their pathways through regular CAMHS and adult mental health services interface meetings, and are currently working on pathways with the Yorkshire Centre for Eating Disorders, the Improving Access to Psychological Therapy (IAPT) service and adult ADHD services. They are also piloting a patient held passport developed by NHS England as an aid to transition to adult services.
Outcomes monitoring
The Transitions Service uses outcome measures regularly, including session by session monitoring, to develop goals for working collaboratively with young people. They have received positive feedback from young people who have used the service, particularly around feeling supported and informed throughout the process. Adult services have reported that the Transition Service has enabled them to inform care plans from the start, and to adopt the best approach during a young person’s transition.
Why is this service an example of positive practice?
“All the hard work and relationship building which has gone into developing the pathways has meant that young people do not have to be re-assessed by adult services, that we are able to share their care and treatment in CAMHS, and that young people are not having to retell their ‘story’ over again once they get into an adult service. Young people feel prepared for the different approach an adult service may adopt with the emphasis on independence and self-help and the reduced dependence on the family.
In our ever-changing world, the transition service is able to keep up to date on the changes in services in the adult sector which can inform families and colleagues about what is available to them.”
Further details
Commissioning
Leeds CCG
Providers
Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust
Workforce (WTE)
2 mental health practitioners (with backgrounds in nursing and social work, band 6 and 7)
Population size
Total population – 781743, under 18 – 164806 (Office of National Statistics 2016 mid-year population estimates for Leeds)
Caseload
In 2016, they received 130 referrals and had 124 on their caseload. The mean number of appointments was 7.8 (range of 1 to 37) over a mean of 18.4 weeks.
Access and advice – consultation lines, triage and signposting
