EVERYONE at Healthwatch Hillingdon would like to say a big thank-you to parents and professionals for supporting our research project, looking at ways we can help prevent young people from developing mental health problems.

Special thanks go to the young people who spoke to us and whose experiences are deeply and honestly felt.

We are also grateful to Hillingdon Hospital, Hillingdon Police and Hillingdon Carers. Also to dedicated autism and disability charities HACs and DASH, and to the teachers, school counsellors and nurses who gave their time.

Most teenagers wouldn’t hear you out if you started talking about ‘strategic commissioning’ – and you can hardly blame them.

But they’re the ones who will suffer if services fail them. If the mental health trust doesn’t talk to schools and health commissioners don’t talk to the voluntary sector, it’s young people who will slip through the cracks.

Good commissioning, through conversations with young people, parents and others, is the essential task.

There’s a great deal we can do before referring to specialist treatment and our sense is that there is a growing consensus for the need to tackle the challenge of children’s mental health head on.

As we work towards publishing our second report, and helping bring people together, it’s worth reminding ourselves of our starting point. That is, that mental health matters. This may sound obvious but it’s a principle that all too often we forget.

GRAHAM HAWKES CEO, Healthwatch Hillingdon

JEFF MASLEN Chair, Healthwatch Hillingdon