Working together with young people and their families

Our CAMHS is a Trauma Informed Care Service, ensuring that everything we do is driven by an understanding of how trauma affects the whole person; physically, mentally and socially. We provide low and medium secure Tier 4 CAMHS inpatient services, with the objective of enabling young people to live well and to their full potential in the least restrictive environment possible.

Our Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) are designed for boys and girls aged 13 to 18 with complex mental disorders, severe emotional and behavioural difficulties, intellectual disabilities, mental illness and autistic spectrum disorders. Our ethos, is to provide person-centered care which addresses young people’s mental health needs as well as their functional, cognitive, emotional, social, communication, sensory and vocational needs.

Located centrally in Northampton, Smyth House provides bespoke programmes of care and treatment, delivered by a comprehensive on-site MDT. The service also includes St Andrew’s College, rated ‘Good' by Ofsted and 'Outstanding' in Behaviours and Attitudes in 2021.

Our Trauma Informed Model of Care

We believe that young people should have a choice about their treatment and that they should be fully informed of their options. Wherever possible families should also be involved in their child's treatment .

Treatment and care

All treatments and therapeutic interventions are needs-led, individual, and based on the outcomes of a comprehensive and ongoing assessment process for each young person.

The four main areas of focus are:

1. Mental health recovery and reducing risk: including DBT, CBT, offence-related therapy, family interventions and medication optimisation

2. Improved physical wellbeing: including self-care, weight management, sports and exercise therapy, physiotherapy

3. Maximising independence: including vocational pathways, animal therapy and incremental increases in responsibility

4. Achieving full potential and meaningful outcomes: including social work interventions and spiritual care