The Deaf Children, Young People And Family Service, based at the Lime Trees Adolescent and Family Unit, in Shipton Road, York gets £1.4m boost

9:45am Tuesday 23rd June 2009

By Nicola Fifield

A LIFELINE service for deaf children and their families is set for an expansion – thanks to a £1.4 million funding boost.

The Deaf Children, Young People And Family Service, based at the Lime Trees Adolescent and Family Unit, in Shipton Road, York, will use the money to recruit more staff and extend its service provision.

The centre, run by NHS North Yorkshire and York, provides specialist mental health support for deaf and hearing impaired children with a range of emotional and behavioural problems.

The centre serves the entire north of England and sees around 100 deaf or hearing impaired children and young people a year.

Dr Barry Wright, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist at Lime Trees, said: “We are delighted that national funding has been made available so we can expand our service and reach out to more deaf children and young people.

“One in four of us will experience a mental health problem in our lifetime and for deaf children and young people, these problems can present greater challenges as they grow up.

“The team at Lime Trees works with a deaf child or young person who is having difficulties such as mental health or behavioural problems which could be affecting their home life or school life.

“We then link up with other health and social care professionals to make sure support networks are in place to help these young people cope with any problems.”

The Lime Trees team includes professionals in psychiatry, nursing, psychology, social work, family and communication support.

They then offer one-to-one or group settings, support and advice for the family, and advice and consultation for teachers and care staff. Emma Atkinson, a support worker at Lime Trees, has been deaf since birth and communicates through British Sign Language.

She said: “In the past, NHS mental health services have struggled to meet the needs of deaf children and consequently these children they have grown up and developed mental health problems.

“As a deaf adult, I am a role model for the children we see. I work with the child and their families with issues such as communication and deaf awareness.”

The funding will also be used by NHS North Yorkshire and York to open two satellite centres in Newcastle and Manchester.