New mental health app for young people in Oxfordshire
A new mental health support service is being launched with the aim of providing additional support to all young people aged 11 to 18 in Oxfordshire that need it.
Tellmi, a mental health app that delivers digital pre-moderated peer support, has been commissioned by Oxfordshire County Council to help improve outcomes for young people across the county.
It provides young people in Oxfordshire with 365-day access to a space where they can discuss their feelings anonymously, with in-house counsellors intervening to support high-risk users when needed.
They also have access to over 700 crisis specialist, and local support services through the Tellmi Directory.
Councillor Nathan Ley, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Public Health, Inequalities and Community Safety, said: “This app will be freely available to support all young people in secondary schools in Oxfordshire and local organisations that would like more support to help them deal with young people’s concerns about mental health and wellbeing.”
Since 2015, Oxfordshire has experienced a consistent increase in the number of school pupils with social, emotional, and mental health needs.,
According to the 2023 OxWell Student Survey, an average of 33 per cent of students in year groups seven to 13 reported serious thoughts about self-harm, and 19 per cent of secondary school students stated they often felt lonely.
Kerstyn Comley Co-Chief Executive Officer at Tellmi, said: “We look forward to working closely with schools and organisations to build trust in our new service and improve outcomes for young people. In addition to our digital service, we will be delivering outreach activities, which include outreach campaigns, school resources, workshops, and training for anyone working directly with young people.”
The app can be downloaded at Google Play or the App Store. The webapp can be accessed at Tellmi.app. To find out more visit Tellmi’s website.
More information
Tellmi is a multi-award-winning anonymous peer support app for people aged 11 and above. In 2022, a nine-month study of 876 young people which was conducted by University college London found statistically significant evidence that using the Tellmi app improved their mental health in young people. Using the app led to increased confidence and decreased feelings of loneliness. The app gave young people the tools to manage their own mental health and overall, young people using the app reported feeling better and less alone.
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