Brent Centre for Young People (Brent Centre Highlands)

We're so excited to be starting Brent Centre Highlands, and we know how much it's needed in our community. 

Mental health has hit a crisis point, exacerbated by the pandemic, and the current strains of the cost of living on ordinary people. Even before COVID-19, the Highlands was concerned with a significantly higher rate of suicide and young people were reporting poorer mental health, and record highs in failing to access services. Young people in the Highlands can face a diverse range of barriers to seeking help.

We want to help young people access mental health support when they need to, in a safe, confidential space, where they can talk about what's on their mind and know they are taken seriously. We want that space to be open to any young person who needs it.

We are building a service that can offer support and psychotherapy to young people aged between 14-21 years. At the moment we imagine initially offering a hub in Inverness and Caithness, with a model of developing 'hubs' or creatively designed services in more rural areas. We hope that young people might help tell us what they need or want locally.

We'll be recruiting specialist psychotherapists and mental health workers, and offering a flexible mix of assessment and psychotherapeutic services, alongside any practical support young people need.  Our model of therapeutic work has been working successfully since 1967, with good impact and outcomes - and most importantly, valued by the young people who have used us.

Young people can self refer, or be referred by a GP, teacher, social worker, or youth worker. Our service is free at the point of access.

We are actively fundraising to make this happen in our community, applying for grants and funding, not just to start this project but to sustain us over time, and build a really valuable community resource.

Adolescence and the transition to adulthood has always been a key time, where the right help and support can make an enormous difference. We know adolescence doesn't have an arbitrary end point at 16 or 18 years, but that young people may need flexible help over a period of years - it's one of the reasons why the way we work is so effective.

We hope you can help us. Any donation is valued, and will help us to get started as soon as possible.