Cumbria’s three-month mental health waiting times are ‘a tragedy’ – MP

Local MP Tim Farron has written to the Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, urging him to provide more funding to help reduce Cumbria's lengthy waiting times for young people with mental health problems.

Figures obtained from via a Freedom of Information request by the Education Policy Institute last year revealed that Cumbria is in the top 10 worst areas for waiting times, with young people having to wait 84 days on average to receive mental health treatment.

Tim said: "I'm incredibly grateful to everyone who recently supported our campaign for a seven-day mental health crisis service for young people in our area.

"However, that was just the tip of the iceberg - our young people deserve better than having to wait the best part of three months to receive the help they need.

"The only way that this tragedy can be improved, however, is for the Government to give our local mental health trust the resources in order to employ more mental health psychiatrists so that our young people can be seen in as a short a time as possible."