HEALTH chiefs say they are taking action to support the increasing number of young people in Bury with mental health issues.

The Child And Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) has seen a 14 per cent increase in the number of people using its service, rising from 837 in 2010-11 to 950 in 2012-13.

To meet extra demand, additional clinics are being held at weekends and evenings, and temporary staff put in place. It has coincided with a decrease in the amount of money provided to the service, which was jointly funded by NHS Bury Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Bury Council.

The council reduced its financial contribution to “reflect the referrals into the service and bring this in line with other neighbouring councils whilst investing additional resources into early intervention for children and young people”.

The change is being funded by NHS Bury CCG and Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust on an “interim basis”. As well as taking steps to meet the current demand, health bosses say they are carrying out a long-term review of CAMHS.

A spokesman for NHS Bury CCG and Pennine Care said: “In the short term, NHS Bury CCG and Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust have jointly invested the necessary resources to ensure that the service remains responsive to patients’ needs, that urgent cases are seen as a priority and waiting times are kept to a minimum.

“In the longer term, there is a wider piece of work that we are jointly undertaking to review the patient pathway.

“We will be looking at the type of referrals that come through to the service, and put in place measures to ensure that where patients could be more appropriately treated by another service, they are appropriately directed. This will ensure patients are seen in the shortest possible time.”

An update on CAMHS was due to be given at a meeting yesterday.