The North West London Children and Adolescence Mental Health Services (NWL CAMHS) Provider Collaborative is a partnership between West London NHS Trust (Lead Provider) and Central North and West London NHS Foundation Trust. The collaborative was initially set up as part of the national New Models of Care pilot in 2016. After successfully running as a pilot it transitioned to becoming the NWL CAMHS Provider Collaborative on the 1st October 2020, formally taking on the commissioning responsibility and quality oversight from NHS England.
Geographically, the NWL CAMHS Provider Collaborative is aligned to the North West London Integrated Care System (ICS) footprint. It is one of 3 CAMHS Provider Collaboratives in London and works closely with the other 2 London Provider Collaborative to develop, where appropriate, pan London solutions.
The key principles underpinning our Provider Collaborative are:
- Collaboration between providers across NWL ICS footprint effectively engaging with all other providers within and outside of the Provider Collaborative
- Clinicians and service users/carers leading improvements in care pathways
- Manage resources across the collaborative to invest in community alternatives and reduce inappropriate admissions/care away from home
- Working with local stakeholders and system partners
- Improvements in quality, patient experience and outcomes driving change
- Advancing equality for the local population
System Partners & Patients as Partners
We operate on the principle that in order to deliver the best possible care, service providers from different parts of the healthcare system need to work in partnership to ensure that the individual needs of patients are being met at all times. This partnership also ensures that the journey that all children and young people take through the system is as smooth as possible.
It is also important that we partner closely with patients and their families and carers when deciding what support is best for the individual, so all of the services being developed within the CAMHS Provider Collaborative are focused on listening to patients and working with them to decide how best to care for them.
Improvement Initiatives
Building on the collaborative work done during the pandemic we have introduced a number of new and improved services for children and young people in North West London including the following:
Circle is a hub space and cafe in Ealing that offers support for children and young people aged 5-18 who are in active mental health distress. It exists to provide mental health support early to prevent things getting worse. Young people can come in for advice, support, or just to talk, with drop-in or appointment-based services available.
Kooth is an online mental wellbeing community which is providing free, safe, anonymous support for young residents in our 8 North West London boroughs. This service supports children and young people with a wide range of mental health issues.
Lavender Walk Adolescent Mental Health Unit caters for up to 12 inpatients and four day patients. It serves the needs of young people aged 13-18 with mental health difficulties and autism.
The Kingswood Centre: Crystal House is a 5 bed facility that serves the needs of 13-18 year olds with learning disabilities and autism.
Arc Community Eating Disorder Service is a day programme for 13-17 year olds which aims to reduce the number of young people who need to be admitted to an acute hospitals or inpatient units. It also provides care for young people leaving inpatient settings.
Best For You NHS is an online portal that connects young people and their families with the mental health support they need.
All of these services enable us to provide the most appropriate care for our young people whilst ensuring best value for the NHS. They help children and young people to learn how to cope with their condition without needing to travel outside of London.
