Youth Health Service News

We are delighted to announce that we have been accredited with the LGBT Charter at Gold level. The LGBT Charter is awarded by LGBT Youth Scotland and supports organisations to review their policies and practices to ensure they are inclusive to LGBTQ+ people. The programme also offers opportunities for staff training, the development of resources and raising awareness of LGBTQ+ issues. 

The Youth Health Service Charter Champion group has collected evidence over the past 18 months that reflects the team’s work to make the service a safe and welcoming space for LGBTQ+ young people and their families.

During this process, Youth Health Service staff attended LGBTQ+ awareness training to improve their knowledge and confidence in supporting LGBTQ+ young people. The team hosted several events including Purple Friday at Youth Health Service venues, where staff shared information to increase awareness of the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ young people and Purple Friday posters were signed to show solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community. The team also took part in a process mapping exercise where they evaluated a young person’s experience when they come to the service for their first appointment. The exercise also considered how staff interact with young people who attend the Youth Health Service and identified ways in which LGBTQ+ young people might be positively or negatively impacted. The Youth Health Service is proud to support LGBTQ+ young people and their families and will continue to look for ways to provide an inclusive service to this community.

The Youth Health Service had another busy year, with 1224 young people attending the service. Referrals continue to increase with 1895 received this year. The majority of these came from GP Practices, and we are very grateful to the practice staff who continue to support the service. This year saw a large increase in the number of Multiple Risk sessions attended by young people, with 1034 utilised compared with 578 in 2021-2022. As with previous years, the most common issues young people presented with were related to Mental Health including anxiety, stress and low mood.

The pilot project to develop a referral pathway from Glasgow A&E departments to the Youth Health Service came to an end in March 2023. Despite the challenges associated with establishing a new project during the Covid-19 pandemic, 200 young people were referred to the service for support with drug or alcohol use. In 2022 our Youth Employability Coach supported 17 young people with CVs, interview skills and applications, Glasgow Life Youth Workers supported young people at all 9 of our venues and we were delighted to welcome a Modern Apprentice to the Business Support Team.

The Youth Health Service continues to establish itself, with uptake increasing in the North East and South of the City. Click here to read our Annual Report covering April 2022 to March 2023.

Coronavirus continued to affect our return to normal service in the year April 2021 to March 2022, with new variants of the virus resulting in staff sickness and self-isolation and appointments being cancelled at the last minute.

Referrals to the service reached a record high, with 1837 young people referred for an appointment over the year. The majority of these came from GP practices, family members or young people themselves (58%). 78% of young people who attended an appointment came for the first time in 2021-2022. As with previous years, the most common presenting issues were related to Mental Health including anxiety, stress and low mood.

A pilot project with Glasgow A&E departments was launched in April 2021, forming a referral pathway between A&E staff and the Youth Health Service for young people who present intoxicated with drugs or alcohol but don’t meet the criteria for a Social Work intervention. Other service developments included a refreshed Multiple Risk programme provided by commissioned partners includem, the addition of a Youth Employability Coach to the team through Young Person’s Guarantee funding and the development of further Mental Health support options for Glasgow young people through extra Counselling sessions and iHeart group programmes.

You can read all about our work on the Stor website.

The Youth Health Service team have been working towards achieving the LGBT Youth Scotland Gold Charter Award since June and we are making great progress. We are currently looking at creating a guide to supporting LGBTQ+ young people for our team and agreeing how we can help young people that want to change their name or pronoun when they come to the service. The LGBT Awareness training has helped us all consider LGBTQ+ young people’s experiences when they come to the Youth Health Service and what we could do better.

Our consultation is now live so our Nurses, GPs, Counsellors and Multiple Risk Workers will be chatting to LGBTQ+ young people over the next few weeks to find out what they need from our service and how we might overcome any barriers this community experience when trying to get the support they need.

Follow our Facebook and Instagram accounts for updates on how we’re getting on!

We are delighted to be able to share our first Annual Report as Glasgow City Youth Health Service, covering the year from April 2020 to March 2021. The team are really proud of what we have managed to achieve during this time and the challenges that we have overcome. Similar to many NHS services, the Youth Health Service was affected by Coronavirus restrictions and appointments were provided remotely from March-December 2020 with consultations taking place by telephone or video call.

Demand for the Youth Health Service increased rapidly during this time, with mental health being the most common reason for seeking support. This theme continued throughout the year and reflected a national increase in youth mental health concerns, with research carried out by YoungMinds in Summer 2020 finding that 81% of young people aged 13-25 years felt that the pandemic and resulting restrictions had made their mental health worse and 87% saying they felt lonely or isolated during lockdown.

In January 2021 we were able to get back into our venues and hold some appointments in-person, with others still taking place virtually or over the phone. New services in Pollok and Easterhouse helped to provide more appointment opportunities for young people in the South and North East of the City. A new citywide brand for the Youth Health Service was co-produced with local young people engaged with Scottish charity Impact Arts and launched in April 2021.

For information on our work and the projects we have been involved with over the past year, click here to read Glasgow City Youth Health Service’s Annual Report 2020-2021.

We are pleased to confirm that the expansion of Glasgow City Youth Health Service is complete. Services at Springburn and Elderpark opened in August, bringing the total to 9 venues across Glasgow City.

Julie Gordon, Youth Health Service Manager said:

“I’m absolutely delighted to be able to announce the launch of Glasgow City Youth Health Service, with 9 venues now open. We have come a long way since we opened the first service in Maryhill, but our core values remain very much the same: listening without judgement, building trust and treating everyone fairly and with respect.”

We are aware of the ways in which the pandemic has impacted young people and widened inequalities and so the need for our service has never been greater. There has been a particular focus on youth mental health over the past 18 months and as a priority, we are currently exploring additional ways of offering support. Our Multiple Risk programme is becoming established and complements the broader, holistic support provided by the Youth Health Service team. Our commissioned partners Lifelink and includem are a key part of this.

We asked one of our young service users about their experience:

“The GP was so friendly, someone to talk to every week and I could talk to her without feeling embarrassed or judged at any point. It’s amazing that more services are opening as more young people will get the help they need”

In addition to the expansion programme, we have embraced a number of opportunities to improve the support available to young people. This has included a referral pathway from A&E to support intoxicated young people and the addition of a Youth Employability Coach, funded by the Young Person’s Guarantee.

Funding for the Youth Health Service is provided by Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP).

Simon Carr, Chair of the Integrated Joint Board had these reflections:

“The Youth Health Service model is closely aligned with the HSCP’s strategic priorities, with a particular focus on early intervention and prevention. These nine services will provide person-centred support for young people in Glasgow City. We are really pleased that the service has managed to complete the expansion programme over the past 18 months, despite the challenges of the Coronavirus pandemic and I join with the team in celebrating this achievement.”

We are excited to announce a development to Glasgow City Youth Health Service. From July 1st includem will be delivering Multiple Risk support in each of our venues. Multiple Risk Workers will address risky behaviours, supporting young people to make changes, build resilience and find a positive path.

This could help young people who are involved in risky behaviours, gaming, gambling, antisocial behaviour or alcohol and drug use includem Chief Executive Martin Dorchester said: “The launch of the Multiple Risk service marks a new partnership for includem and we are delighted to be part of the Glasgow City Youth Health Service working with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and the other partners to help support and transform the lives of Glasgow’s young people who need it the most.” 

Appointments are available for young people aged 12 to 19 years who live in Glasgow or are registered with a Glasgow GP by phoning our team on 0141 451 2727.

Glasgow City Youth Health Service are delighted to announce the opening of two new venues in Easterhouse and Pollok. This completes phase II of the expansion programme approved by Glasgow City Joint Integration Board in 2019. Appointments can now be made on Monday evenings at Easterhouse Health Centre and Pollok Health Centre with the Youth Health Service team by phoning 0141 451 2727.

The Youth Health Service is available to young people aged 12-19 years who have a Glasgow City post code or are registered with a Glasgow GP. Referrals can be made by young people themselves, teachers, school nurses, parents, GPs or any other organisation working with young people. The only requirement is that the referral is discussed with the young person first.