Social emotional and mental health

Social emotional and mental health (SEMH) difficulties can bring many challenges. It can make it difficult to:

understand and manage our emotions
build positive relationships with others
handle social situations
be resilient in difficult or stressful situations.

Those with SEMH needs might have emotional outbursts, low self-esteem, and struggle making friends. These issues may cause challenging behaviours.

If you or your child are struggling, please know you are not alone. You will find plenty of information and advice on this page, including people you can talk to.

Wooden scrabble letters spelling out the words mental health

If you or someone you know is suicidal, you should call NHS 111 or 999. You can also contact the Samaritans on 116 123 or by emailing jo@samaritans.org.

Speak to someone about mental health problems

It can be helpful to share any difficulties with friends or family. If you prefer, you can also call, email, or message any of these helplines for one-to-one chats or counselling:

Mind
Kooth (for young people)
The Mix (for young people)
Childline (for children and young people)
Young Minds (for parents)

Here are more mental health helplines that might be useful for you.

What if I am struggling to manage mine or someone else's mental health?

If you are concerned or struggling to manage a mental health difficulty, you can discuss it with:

your or your child's teacher or school Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO)
your or your child's GP
Children and young people's mental health service (CYPS)
Mental Health Recovery Support Outreach Team

We encourage anyone struggling with their mental health to get help and support as early as possible.

Mental health support for people with autism and/or learning disabilities

The Dynamic Support Register (DSR) can help people with:

learning disabilities and/or autism
are also at risk of being admitted to a mental health hospital

Being on the DSR can help people get timely support and help stop mental health getting worse.

If you or someone you know is already receiving support in a Care Programme Approach (CPA) package or in other care meetings, you can request a care and treatment review.