South-East London Integrated Care System (ICS) wants to assure young people in the region that support for their mental health and emotional wellbeing is available throughout the summer holidays, and beyond.
Anyone aged 10 to 25 can access Kooth.com - a free, safe, and confidential online platform to seek non-judgemental mental health support. With services available 24/7 - outside of the usual 9 to 5 - Kooth.com has no waiting lists or thresholds to meet to qualify for help.
To provide additional help for young people over the summer holidays, Kooth has launched its ‘Big August Ask’ campaign which will see Dr Kerry Irving, Senior Clinical Psychologist at Kooth, respond to anonymous questions sent in from young people on Kooth.com.
Dr Kerry will answer questions throughout August through a series of Q&As and blogs that will be published on Kooth.com, Instagram and in a series of podcasts available on Kooth’s Spotify page. Consultant in child and adolescent psychiatry with Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, Dr Sabitha Sridhar, said:
“Summer holidays are often associated with relaxation and the opportunity to refresh and unwind with family and friends. But many young people in South-East London encounter difficulties at home, and they also worry about exam stress and the transition from school to college or work life.”
Dr Sridhar added: “Others feel socially isolated, and this can lead to experiences of anxiety and depression. But no young person should feel alone and help, and support are available. “Kooth’s ‘Big Ask’ initiative can help young people and offer much-needed help and guidance. I hope that many young people in South-East London take advantage of this opportunity, enabling them to feel happier and healthier.”
Kooth.com provides a welcoming space for all children and young people in South-East London to access therapeutic and interactive activities and content, as well as a peer support community.
The service offers access to experienced counsellors and wellbeing practitioners: via one-to-one text-based chat sessions that are available from midday to 10pm on weekdays and from 6pm to 10pm on the weekend.
Running alongside is a fully safeguarded and pre-moderated Kooth.com community of peer support including:
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Helpful articles: written by other young people in the community, alongside the Kooth team. They cover a variety of topics that are age-appropriate and resonate with the reader, such as personal experiences and helpful tips
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Discussion boards: where young people can seek advice from their peers or join - and start - pre-moderated conversations. The topics covered are those that are on the minds of young people, from exams or work stress to relationship and friendship issues
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Daily journal: offers a place for young people to track their feelings or emotions and reflect on how they're doing
This transformational digital mental health service complements existing mental health support that exists in south London, delivered by South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, and the local voluntary sector. Delivered by Kooth Plc, it is accredited by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and all online content is age-appropriate and pre-moderated by Kooth practitioners. Ends
About Kooth plc: Kooth is the UK’s leading digital mental health platform. Our mission is to provide accessible and safe spaces for everyone to achieve better mental health. Our platform is clinically robust and accredited to provide a range of therapeutic support and interventions. All our services are predicated on easy access to make early intervention and prevention a reality.
Our services include: • Kooth: for children and young people • Kooth: for adults • Kooth Work: for employees
Kooth is a fully safeguarded and pre-moderated community with a library of peer and professional-created content, alongside access to experienced online counsellors and practitioners. There are no thresholds for support and no waiting lists. Currently, Kooth sees over 4,000 logins a day.
For adults, Kooth operates across distinct locations and serves specific cohorts, including parents, teachers, victims of crime, and those who have suffered from or continue to experience domestic violence. It is also offered as a benefit by a number of corporate organisations delivering anonymous digital mental health support services to employees.