Young children as young as six are experiencing mental health crises, forcing them to seek help in emergency departments after failing to secure timely care elsewhere. A new analysis by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) reveals a significant increase in mental health-related emergency department attendances among children aged six to 17 in England.
Data obtained by the RCPCH indicates that in 2025, 75,491 young patients attended emergency departments with a recorded mental health concern. This marks a 36 percent rise from the 55,525 attendances recorded in 2019. The increase is particularly pronounced among the youngest age group, children aged six to nine, where attendances surged by 62 percent between 2019 and 2025.
"This is deeply alarming given the vulnerable nature of young children's neurodevelopment and the potential of suffering for those children longer term without early intervention," the RCPCH stated, highlighting the specific concern for younger children.
The analysis also points to a dramatic increase in the length of time children are waiting in emergency departments. The number of children and young people waiting more than 12 hours in A&E more than tripled, rising from 1,964 in 2019 to 6,235 in 2025. Furthermore, the number of these patients facing waits of three days or more for appropriate mental health support and a safe discharge location increased from 55 to 338.
Dr. Sam Jones, an officer for mental health at the RCPCH, described the situation as a national crisis. "Behind every one of these figures is a child or young person in distress, and a family who didn't know where else to turn," Dr. Jones said. "Emergency departments are a vital safety net, but they were never designed to be a place where children in mental health crisis wait for days at a time."
Dr. Ronny Cheung, an RCPCH officer for health services, urged the government to treat these findings as a wake-up call. "The growing number of children reaching crisis point with their mental health is deeply alarming, particularly among younger children," Dr. Cheung stated. "Without urgent action to provide support earlier, we risk storing up serious problems for the future, including more young people falling out of education, employment and training, where poor mental health is already a major driver."
RCPCH has called for the government's upcoming Mental Health Strategy to prioritize prevention and improved access to early support. The organization argues that A&E departments are not equipped to manage children and young people in mental health crises.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care acknowledged that no child should reach crisis point before receiving support. The department highlighted ongoing efforts to improve access to mental health support in schools and colleges, along with the opening of new community facilities offering same-day, walk-in support. The spokesperson added that the forthcoming Mental Health Strategy will outline long-term plans to facilitate earlier intervention and reduce reliance on emergency care.
Gemma Byrne from the mental health charity Mind echoed concerns, calling the extended waits in A&E unacceptable. "The fact that children and young people are presenting at A&E for their mental health in the first place shows they aren't getting the support they need early enough," Byrne said. "The current system, where many mental health services only provide support when young people are considered 'unwell enough' to qualify, clearly isn't working."