658 children waiting for assessment with Children & Adolescent Mental Health Service

There are currently 658 children and young people waiting for assessment with the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service.

That's according to Health Minister Lawrie Hooper, who adds the median waiting time for those referred is around 256 days or 37 weeks.

163 young people are awaiting assessment in respect of mental health disorders, where the longest waiting time is over 100 weeks.

Meanwhile, almost 500 young people are waiting for assessment in respect of neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism or ADHD.

The average waiting time for this is 43 weeks, with the longest being 121 weeks or 847 days.

Mr Hooper says that 'existing resources within CAMHS are inadequate to manage the current demand,' with a new approach to be outlined in the Children's Mental Health Strategy which will be published in December.