Any professional working with a young person under the age of 18 can refer to the service if they feel concerned and worry that they might pose a risk to others. The support given will vary depending on the need of the individual. For example, in some cases the referrer might need a question answered, or to be signposted to an appropriate service. In other cases it might be necessary for a formal consultation process to take place, which will include more in-depth discussions with possible subsequent risk assessments and treatment planning.
Referral Criteria are deliberately broad covering all young under 18 about whom there are questions regarding mental health or neurodevelopmental difficulties including learning disability and autism who:
- Present high risk of harm towards others and about whom there is major family or professional concern
- And/or are in contact with the youth justice system or at risk of involvement
- Or about whom advice about the suitability of an appropriate secure setting is being sought because of complexity of presentation and severe, recurrent self-harm and or challenging behaviour which cannot be managed elsewhere; in such cases, where non-secure in-patient services or locality CAMHS teams are usually extensively involved, the input from the secure outreach service is likely to be advisory or consultative rather than requiring direct clinical involvement
- Have high risk behaviours and highly complex mental health needs and where placements may be at risk.
