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The team at Kingston and Richmond CAMHS Single Point of Access receives all new referrals for children and young people with a range of mental health or emotional wellbeing concerns within the Kingston and Richmond boroughs.
- Service Type: Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
- Service Contact: camhsspaadmin@swlstg.nhs.uk – for referral queries only
- Service Category: Community
- Disabled access: Yes
- Address: Woodroffe House, Tolworth Hospital, Red Lion Road, Surbiton, KT6 7QU
- Reception hours: Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm
- Reception phone number: 020 3513 4499
- About our care
- Who is this service for?
- Referrals and access
- Patient information
- Neurodevelopmental Screening
About our care
The CAMHS SPA team receives and screens referrals to ensure that children / young people are accepted through to the most appropriate service for their needs. This may include the CAMHS SPA offering a telephone, online or face to face initial assessment appointment with the family and / or relevant professionals as deemed appropriate. In some situations we may not offer an assessment appointment, for example if a referral is comprehensive enough for onwards signposting or the child / young person is already open to a mental health service. Please see our What to expect when a child is referred to Kingston & Richmond CAMHS Single Point of Access (SPA) [pdf] 192KB flowchart.
In order to support the referral process, we request that referrers please complete all questions on the referral form including demographics and risk details, so that we can effectively prioritise cases.
Our CAMHS SPA can accept referrals through to one of our South West London & St George’s Mental Health Trust Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services; the Kingston / Richmond Child and Adolescent Wellbeing Services (Tier 3 CAMHS), the Specialist Eating Disorder Service, or the Kingston / Richmond CAMHS Getting Help services (Tier 2 CAMHS). We can also accept referrals on behalf of local youth counselling services and may signpost young people and their families to other local support services and resources. Our CAMHS SPA also receives and triages referrals requesting possible Autistic Spectrum Disorder / Condition (ASD / ASC) and / or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) assessment.
If you wish to make a referral please go to the Referrals And Access section.
Who is this service for?
Our CAMHS SPA triages referrals for children / young people under the age of 18. Please note, our services are commissioned for children and young people who have a Kingston or Richmond GP.
If you wish to check whether a GP is a Kingston or Richmond one, please do refer to our K&R GP List.pdf[pdf] 358KB (Please note: this is determined by which Integrated Care Board a GP is aligned with and not by the GP surgery address).
If we receive a referral for a young person that does not have a Kingston or Richmond GP, we may be unable to accept the referral for SWLSTG CAMHs support but may be able to signpost to other local support services. If this is the case, we will contact the referrer and family with advice.
Referrals and access
CAMHS (Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services) is the umbrella name for a range of services that assess or treat young people with emotional, behavioural, or mental health difficulties. There are a variety of services within Kingston and Richmond providing “CAMHS” support, and our CAMHS SPA receives, triages and provides initial assessment for new referrals for young people to consider which service would be the most appropriate to support them with their current difficulties.
If you are making a referral around possible neurodevelopmental concerns, please review our Neurodevelopmental Screening section for more specific information about this pathway.
To make a new referral:
- For comprehensive guidance for referrers please refer to our SPA Guide for Referrers [pdf] 309KB
- GPs are advised to make any CAMHS referrals via the Electronic Referral System (eRS). This route will be the only way for GP practices to send in referrals.
- The parent / family or any other professional referrers can refer directly to our CAMHS SPA by downloading and completing our Referral Form [docx] 111KB and emailing it into our Kingston & Richmond CAMHS SPA Referrals inbox: krcamhsreferrals@swlstg.nhs.uk
- We welcome 16 or 17-year-old young people who wish to make a self-referral to download and complete our Self-Referral form [docx] 98KB and email it to us on the above email address.
- If you are concerned that a child or young person may have an eating disorder, it is recommended to make a direct referral to CAMHS Eating Disorder Service.
Please note:
- Any referral with missing information may not be progressed, and a request made for any missing information to be provided.
- If a child or young person is already open to a CAMH service, we would encourage families to contact that service directly with any concerns they may have as our CAMHS SPA has no influence over treatment, appointment waiting lists, or with influencing changes to an existing treatment plan.
Concerned about a child or young person’s safety?
Should you have concerns about a child or young person’s safety then please do refer to our template Safety Plan Letter [docx] 31KB which can be downloaded and edited for use by families and young people, alongside our Emotional Health Support Handout. [pdf] 895KB
Please also see this useful handout with advice around Crisis and safety planning for referrers [pdf] 347KB
Patient information
SPA initial assessment
If the CAMHS SPA feels that a SPA assessment is required in order to determine the most appropriate next steps, then the family will be contacted to book this in. Appointments may be offered via Attend Anywhere [pdf] 208KB (online), telephone or face to face.
For most appointments, once an appointment has been booked the family will be asked to complete Registration Form [docx] 136KB to confirm contact details. We may also request questionnaires (called Routine Outcome Measures or ROMS) are completed, usually we will email these to the family two days before their appointment. These questionnaires are used to information treatment, so it is important that they are completed as close to the appointment as possible to support the team with considering most appropriate next steps.
Requesting a Transfer of Care
If a child or young person has used private healthcare or received a private diagnosis, and the family now wants them to be referred to the NHS for further support, we recommend they read the Guidance for making a referral following Private Psychiatry Assessment [docx] 246KB This explains what information needs to be included with a new referral.
Referrals can be considered for children registered with a Kingston or Richmond GP.
To transfer care, the referrer or private clinician needs to complete and provide the following information:
- Complete our referral form (the form and guidance can be found under the Referral and Access tab), and send this to our K&R CAMHS SPA attaching any additional documents.
- Ensure the following information is provided, either in the referral form or in an accompanying cover letter:
- Clinical summary: a detailed summary of the young person's condition, presenting history, and the progress made since their initial referral is essential.
- Current care plan and risk assessment: the letter must include an updated, agreed-upon care plan, outlining ongoing treatment, support, and any joint working arrangements. An up-to-date risk assessment is also crucial for the receiving team. Section 117 aftercare if granted.
- Roles and responsibilities: clearly define the roles and responsibilities of any professionals involved.
- Emergency contact and “safety" plan: clear indication the family have been provided with a clear plan detailing who to contact and what to do if the young person's condition deteriorates before they have been seen by Kingston & Richmond CAMHS.
- Communication needs: note any required communication needs, such as the need for an interpreter or other reasonable adjustments, for the young person and their family.
- Supporting documents: reference any supporting documents that have been shared or need to be provided, such as a chronology or diagnostic assessment, if relevant.
ADHD medication referrals
If a child or young person has been diagnosed privately with ADHD and wants to be referred into the NHS for ADHD medication, we would recommend the family reviews NICE Guidelines for ADHD Assessments [pdf] 529KB prior to making a new referral.
If making a referral to request consideration of ADHD medication, in order to support the request we would recommend that the following information is included within the referral:
- the full diagnostic assessment report
- strategies already tried by the family or school
- current impact of the ADHD on the young person, i.e. How this is affecting their day to day functioning?
Other sources of support
Depending on the concern CAMHS is not always the most appropriate service to support a child or young person, and we may signpost families to other services within the local area.
Families can find information about Other Helpful K&R Services for Families [pdf] 298KB or explore information about the Mental Health Support Teams [pdf] 269KB in schools within Kingston and Richmond.
They are happy to accept self-referrals from:
We would also signpost families to these useful websites:
- https://kr.afcinfo.org.uk/pages/community-information/information-and-advice/emotional-health-service/ithrive
- https://kr.afcinfo.org.uk/local_offer
- https://kr.afcinfo.org.uk/pages/local-offer/information-and-advice/assessment-and-education-health-and-care-planning
Neurodevelopmental Screening
If you feel that a child or young person is presenting with behaviours that may be suggestive of Autistic Spectrum Disorder, or Condition (ASD / ASC), or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), then you can make a referral to our CAMHS SPA.
Before making a new referral:
We would encourage you to consider:
- If a child or young person is already known to a CAMH service - the family should liaise with that service in the first instance as they may be able to consider these concerns alongside their work. Our CAMHS SPA will not be able to progress a new referral if a child or young person is already under CAMHS support.
- We encourage families and schools to liaise together before making referrals for ADHD and ASD screening, as the neurodevelopmental screening process requires input from the school.
- Family and school can watch our information videos. These videos have been developed by Kingston and Richmond CAMHS Single Point of Access (SPA) and Your Healthcare, and aim to increase understanding and confidence around the local pathway to seeking a diagnostic assessment for Autism or ADHD within CAMHS: pre-questionnaire for parents and pre-questionnaire for school staff
Making a referral
For neurodevelopmental concern referrals, we would strongly recommend that the parent or school makes the referral (ideally a joint referral where possible). When completing the referral form, please include detailed information with real examples of concerns from different settings such as home, school, clubs, other social activities. It is also important to show that these concerns have been present over a prolonged period. We have a specific appendix section on our referral form for referrals around neurodevelopmental concerns. Please ensure this section is fully completed.
There are a many possible reasons for any behaviour, and it is important to make sure that the neurodevelopmental screening is the right step. Families and professionals can refer to our NDT Basic Criteria [pdf] 125KB poster for further guidance about what to include in the referral.
If a referral is accepted for neurodevelopmental screening:
Please see What to expect when a child is referred to CAMHS SPA for Autism or ADHD assessment [pdf] 294KB for more information about the process and specific ASD and ADHD resources.
There are several screening questionnaires for the family and school to complete which will either be posted or sent electronically. If the family or school has received electronic forms they can read our electronic forms guide [pdf] 685KB for further information around accessing them.
Within the screening forms pack there are two longer forms to be completed, one for the family and one for the school. Due to the very high demand of referrals requesting neurodevelopmental assessment the child or young person may not be seen as part of the screening process, so it is important to gather as much information as possible within the forms to make an informed decision about whether a young person meets criteria for a referral on for specialist ASD or ADHD assessment.
- The parent or carer can read this parent guidance for completing the developmental history form [pdf] 430KB
- The school can read this school guidance for completing the school report form [pdf] 382KB
If a family is wanting to consider private options for diagnostic assessment we would recommend they read ADHD + ASD Private Diagnosis Info sheet [pdf] 299KB which has guidance on NHS standards to support them.
Whist awaiting neurodevelopmental screening, the family may be contacted to offer a wellbeing check-in call by a member of the CAMHS Needs Based Neurodevelopmental team. You then have an option of attending one the CAMHS Needs Based Neurodevelopmental workshops. Currently they are offering three workshops:
