Young researchers draw up plans

The initiative is teaming up young people from across the town with artists and university academics to find out what other young people think about the kind of support they receive from mental health and social services. Nationally one in ten young people have a mental health problem.

The findings will then be used to help deliver improved services which better meet the needs of the young people accessing them.

Known as ‘Young Futures’, the project is a partnership between Hartlepool Borough Council, York University and Healthwatch Hartlepool.

Councillor Alan Clark, Chair of Hartlepool Borough Council’s Children's Services Committee, said: “Young people can understandably be uncomfortable when discussing their experiences with mental health and social care services. But as a Council, we want to be able to provide the best services we can that closely match the expectations of those that access them. A project like this is purposely different, but is really helping those that deliver health and social care services to understand what young people want from them.”

Brian Loader of York University added: “This is a really innovative project which puts young people at the heart of developing services that matter to them. They are being supported by youth workers and a team of local artists to gather feedback, opinions and experiences from young people who have had cause to use health, mental health and social services.

“Using art is a great way to get the young people to open up and helps them to visualise their findings and opinions in a much more creative way. It helps them to feel more comfortable when expressing their opinion, much more so than in a restricted, formal interview setting.”

Postcard surveys will be located around the town and we would urge young people to express their views as well as completing the online questionnaires available at https://york.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bNP8q4ZcOk048iV

“These results will help us learn about how Hartlepool’s young people feel about their mental health needs as well as their experience of local support services”, said Dr. Amanda Mason-Jones an expert in community health services.

As part of the project, three local artists have teamed up with a group of 20 young people from Hartlepool aged between 14 and 20 to express their views through murals, animation and ceramics. The finished artworks – along with the research findings – will be presented to the council’s Health and Wellbeing Partnership later in the year. If successful, it is hoped the project can be rolled out in other towns across the country.