Children (Psychiatric Treatment) (Hansard, 20 January 1981)

§ Sir George Young

This information is not available. NHS statistics show the number of children—or families—who had a first visit to a psychiatric out-patient clinic in a given year, but these statistics would include children referred for diagnosis but found not to be in need of psychiatric treatment; conversely they omit others who

Net Revenue Expenditure—England
	£ million at November 1978 prices
	1975–76	1976–77	1977–78	1978–79
Mental Handicap
In-patients and out-patients	219.6	216.2	222.9	227.1
Percentage of NHS expenditure in England	3.9	3.8	3.8	3.8
Mental Illness
In-patients and out-patients	460.9	448.2	463.7	469.0
Day Patients	18.2	19.6	22.5	23.0
Total	479.1	467.8	486.2	492.0
Percentage of NHS expenditure in England	8.5	8.2	8.3	8.2
Special Hospitals	13.9	14.0	14.7	15.2
Percentage of NHS expenditure in England	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.3

Comparable figures for 1974–75 are not available. Expenditure on other generic services benefiting the mentally handicapped and mentally ill—for example

Net Revenue Expenditure—Scotland
	£ million at November 1978 prices
	1975–76	1976–77	1977–78	1978–79
Mental Handicap (all patients)	28.9	28.1	28.9	30.7
Percentage of NHS expenditure in Scotland	3.7	3.6	3.6	3.7
Mental Illness (all patients)	85.0	83.9	85.2	89.5
Percentage of NHS expenditure in Scotland	10.8	10.6	10.6	10.7
Special Hospital	2.5	2.5	2.7	2.7
Percentage of NHS expenditure in Scotland	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3

Comparable figures for Wales and Northern Ireland are not available.

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may be diagnosed elsewhere as in need of psychiatric treatment—for example, in child guidance clinics not contributing to NHS statistics, in special schools, or in observation and assessment centres provided by social services departments.

Following are the figures for first visits to NHS child and family psychiatric out-patient clinics—1979 and 1980 figures are not yet available:

1975	1976	1977	1978
30,558	31,265	31,831	31,516