NHS emergency departments in England are seeing a sharp rise in the number of children and young people turning up in mental health crisis, with doctors warning that A&E units are increasingly being used as a default refuge for vulnerable young people who have nowhere else to go.
According to analysis by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH), the number of six to 17-year-olds attending A&E in significant distress rose by 36% between 2019 and 2025. The figures, obtained from NHS England under the Freedom of Information Act, show there were 75,491 such attendances in 2025, up from 55,525 in 2019. Some of the biggest increases were seen in the very young, with children aged six to nine among the fastest-growing groups.
A system under pressure
Doctors involved in the analysis said the cases included children brought in by families, carers, and police. Some of those in emotional crisis became aggressive or displayed challenging behaviour. In total, more than 6,200 children and young people — around 8% of those attending — waited over 12 hours in A&E before being seen or discharged.
The RCPCH said that while emergency departments are a vital safety net, they were never designed to be a place where children in mental health crisis wait for days at a time. The college pointed to a lack of community-based mental health support and crisis services in many parts of the country as the root cause, leaving families with no alternative but to go to hospital.
Why it matters
The figures paint a picture of a generation of young people struggling with self-harm, eating disorders, and acute emotional distress, and of a system that is failing to catch them before they reach breaking point. A&E is a frightening and chaotic environment for anyone in crisis, and for a child it can be deeply traumatising. When 8% of these young patients are waiting more than 12 hours for help, it raises serious questions about the adequacy of both urgent and preventative mental health provision across England.
What happens next
The government has said it is planning to publish a new mental health strategy later in the summer, and a Department of Health and Social Care spokesman pointed to ongoing investment in mental health teams for schools and more than 150 new mental health hubs in community locations. However, charities and medical bodies are pressing for the strategy to place children at its heart, with accelerated investment in accessible, community-based support that can prevent crises from escalating to the point where hospital attendance becomes the only option.
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