MORE than one million children had active referrals to mental health services during the last financial year in England, the Children’s Commissioner warns.

Dame Rachel de Souza said that demand was “growing especially” for those referred with suspected autism and neurodevelopmental conditions.

The findings, published today, show the “sheer scale of distress young people are facing today” left her “in no doubt that we are facing a crisis in young people’s mental health,” she said.

She said: “Roughly one in 10 children have an active referral to mental health services in England, which clearly demonstrates the sheer scale of distress young people are facing today. 

“These are not just numbers, but children whose lives have been put on hold for months and, in some cases, years waiting for support they urgently need.”

She acknowledged “encouraging signs” as more children received support last year, but said there remains a “colossal challenge facing mental health services, as demand outpaces system capacity and funding.

“The way we look to support young people’s mental health must change — we cannot address mental health alone in isolation, improving children’s wellbeing requires action across government.

“At the same time, there must be a shift in how we approach children’s mental health with greater focus on joined-up services across health, education and social care to ensure children are getting the help they need in schools and the community, only then will we stop asking what is wrong, but rather ‘how can we help?’”

There were 1,048,965 children with active referrals to children and young people’s mental health services in the 12 months to March 2025, her annual report into the subject said.

Active referrals include children who have been referred for, were waiting on or received treatment in that time period. The figures do not include children who were already being treated at the beginning of the 12-month period.

The number of active referrals grew by 9.5 per cent in the last year alone, Dame Rachel’s report said.

It also stated that there appear to be “no straightforward answers to what is driving the rise in referrals, and that there may be different answers depending on the conditions being considered.”