Community Connector for Young Adults – Tower Hamlets
East London NHS Foundation Trust
(Issue Date: 13/10/2021)
Project name: Community Connector for Young Adults – Tower Hamlets
Project reference no: CCYATH01
Funding available: Up to £53,000 for 12 months
Eligibility: Local voluntary, community, and social enterprise organisations and groups. Applicant groups must be based-in and/or delivering services in the relevant borough
Funding Application Return deadline: midday 15/11/2021
NHS England published the Community Mental Health Framework for Adults and Older Adults in November 2019. One of the stated aims is to improve the service offer for young adults (those between 18-25 years old), in particular the issues relating to the transition between child and adolescent and adult mental health services; delays or no care from adult services; and the need for specific staff and the targeted interventions required for this age group.
Young people are known to face particular issues when trying to access mental health services including; a lack of care continuity; different thresholds and concepts of what constitutes mental disorders; different models of care and service expectations; different intensity of care compared to those for adult mental health services; different potential pathways between child and adults’ services and different destinations; training and expertise in adults’ services regarding working with young people.
Covid-19 has impacted young people’s ability to access services and many common support structures, such as school, university, college and social care that may have been limited or unavailable during the pandemic.
We are seeking a voluntary or community sector provider to support the NHS service in providing a minimum of 1.0 whole time equivalent (WTE) community connector (or 2 part time roles) who will specialise in supporting young adults in the Neighbourhood Mental Health Teams in Tower Hamlets for a 12 month period. The maximum available funding is £53,000 which is inclusive of all costs.
The community connector role(s) will link young adult service users to voluntary and community sector provision based on need and provide support with engagement, as well as linking in with further education providers and their counselling/mental health services to engage with student populations where there is unmet need.
To be eligible, organisations must be based-in and/or delivering services in the relevant borough.