Halton Young People Self Harm Project
This Report is an evaluation of a Project undertaken by HITS in partnership with other agencies. The Aim of the Project was to determine whether a peer support group will improve support and outcomes for young people who self harm in Halton.
The Project was initiated on the basis of evidence of the absence of a specific response for young people who self harm in Halton, and concern about self harming behaviours on the part of some providers (especially schools). The Project was led and largely funded by a Halton-based voluntary agency, HITS. Delivery was undertaken by a joint team of staff from the Primary Care Trust (Primary Mental Health Care and School Nursing), and Barnardos. The Project adopted a group work method devised for clinical settings, and, following specific training in the use of the method, the staff applied this to delivery in a community setting. The principle referral source was secondary school-based mental health teams. An initial development phase (research, training, planning, referrals) began in September 2009. The Project delivered the group work intervention between May and August 2009. Referral numbers were not sufficient to test the value of the delivery method, although good results were achieved with one of two individuals who fully engaged with the programme. Nevertheless, there was significant learning about self harm and intervention methods from the Project. This learning has been cascaded through presentation to stakeholder groups, this report, and training for schools. The Evaluation was undertaken with supervision and support from the University of Chester.
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| Evaluation Report - Final.pdf | 61.38 KB |