‘Home-from-home’ design for adolescent patients

It’s a sad reality that mental health issues affect around one in 10 young people today. Some children may go on to develop mental disorders with challenging behaviours that mean it is no longer safe for them to live at home in their community. This is where St Andrew’s Healthcare comes in – to play an important role in these young people’s lives and those of their families. St Andrew’s is a unique organisation in the UK. A charity with more than 175 years’ history in supporting those with mental illness, today it employs more than 4,000 people, and cares for around 850 patients across the lifespan with some of the most complex conditions in the country.

A significant number of those patients are aged 13-18. Their conditions might include severe mental disorders including psychotic illness, severe emotional disturbance, and affective disorders associated with learning disabilities and challenging behaviours (sometimes to others, including offending behaviours, but often harm that is directed towards themselves).

The Adolescent Pathway at St Andrew’s delivers evidence-based treatment tailored to this patient group. Highly specialised multidisciplinary teams work within predominantly secure inpatient wards. The pathway currently occupies two separate buildings at the charity’s large estate in Northampton.