Young Minds, Hidden Struggles: Self Harm report

After over a year of dedicated collaboration with partners across the Medway and Swale Health and Care Partnership (MS HaCP), MVA Kent and Medway, Medway Public Health and Healthwatch Medway and Kent, we are proud to share with you Young Minds, Hidden Struggles: Self Harm report

Self-harm among children, young people, and young adults was identified as both a health inequality and a clinical pathway priority through MS HaCP Population Health Management analytics and priority-setting work. In 2025, the rate of hospital admissions for self-harm among 10 to 24-year-olds in Medway and Swale remained significantly higher than the England average and other areas of Kent.

Case reviews and research show that suicide in young people is often the result of multiple vulnerabilities and adversities building up over time. These reviews highlight the importance of recognising the cumulative impact of risk factors, listening to the voices of children at risk and fostering a sense of belonging through trusted relationships and consistent sources of care (Suicide: learning from case reviews - NSPCC, August 2024).

As part of the engagement, self-harm support resources were created and shared with professionals, young people, and the wider community. Encouragingly, through the self-harm engagement programme and collective local efforts saw a reduction in A&E attendances at Medway Hospital by children and young people since October 2024. With continued collaboration, we aim to build on this progress and further reduce self-harm among children and young people.

Medway and Swale Health and Care Partnership would like to thank our wide-ranging partners, children and young people, members of the public and professionals for contributions to the report.