onlineA website that helps young people to find local mental health services quickly and easily has been launched with support from actor Stephen Fry.

The Find Get Give website, which is being piloted in Brighton & Hove, Sheffield, Newham and Cornwall, among other locations, helps young people to find mental health services in their area. By being able to access other people’s feedback about the treatment and support they received, they can make more informed decisions about accessing services and know what to expect. Also, mental health services will get useful feedback to adjust and improve what they offer.

The website has evolved through work with young people and mental health services to understand their needs and explore how Find Get Give could work for them. Find Get Give has been developed by YMCA DownsLink Group.

“There are organisations across the UK doing marvellous work to support and help young people with their mental health challenges,” said Fry. “But finding that support needs to be quick and easy for young people, otherwise there are real risks of not being able to reach those most in need of help. Find Get Give is a great initiative that helps tackle this problem and gives young people a voice to feedback on the mental health support they receive, which is so important to make that support even better."

Alex Sharrock, a young person involved in the design process of Find Get Give, said: "Find Get Give is a revolutionary service for young people. It cuts out the middle man, the fear of not being able to find the right service and allows them to access information about what they need, when they want it. There are so many services out there and now we finally have a designated tool to help young people find them."

Mark Cull, Find Get Give’s project manager, added: “Young people designed Find Get Give and they’ve made it as simple to use as possible. You can find and view local mental health services by selecting the type of help you’re looking for or by searching by a diagnosis. We’re looking for even more services to add, so we encourage you to get in touch if you’re a mental health service that can help support young people.”