Local students share their thoughts on how a wellbeing service for young people should look

We worked with students aged 16 to 18 from City and Islington College to design a wellbeing project for young people. Then we took the students to meet commissioners and share ideas.

What would an ideal wellbeing service look like?

It would be holistic. The students told us that they wanted mental health and wellbeing services to be delivered in community settings alongside other services and activities that young people need. They wanted a service that was comfortable, honest and professional. High on the list for outcomes were happiness, self-confidence, and helping the community.

Once their proposal for a wellbeing service was drafted, the students went to visit other professionals and venues across Islington to test their idea.

They visited Lift, a youth hub near Angel, which inspired them to realise the need to integrate youth activities with mental health support. They also visited St Pancras hospital. This visit helped them to understand how people were looked after in psychiatric hospitals and why a move from this building is now felt important for Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust.

The students asked the following commissioners and professionals about wellbeing services, using a consultation questionnaire they had designed themselves:

  • Emma Whitby, chief executive of Healthwatch Islington
  • Alice Clark, commissioning manager for adult mental health for Islington Council and Islington Clinical Commissioning Group
  • Tanya Parr, retired commissioner of child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in Islington
  • Edward Cox, director of operational and service redesign for the St Pancras Transformation Programme 
  • Judith Samuel, youth manager at Lift

The students learnt what commissioners and providers of services felt about a young person’s wellbeing service. In particular they learnt that providers do best when they focus on what they are good at. It is also important to work with partners.

It was a real pleasure to take part. I really enjoyed the discussion, they are a lovely group and it was very refreshing to hear their thoughts and ideas on wellbeing services.

Alice Clark Joint Commissioning Manager for Adult Mental Health for Islington Council and Islington Clinical Commissioning Group

A final part of the project was the creation of an Instagram video. The students made this film to ask other young people what they thought about wellbeing.