YoungMinds and the Parents Helpline
When separation conflict starts to affect your child's mental health — anxiety, school refusal, self-harm, an eating disorder, or simply a teenager in freefall — YoungMinds is the main national charity parents and young people turn to. Its Parents Helpline is a rare thing: free, expert advice specifically for worried parents.
REVIEWED BY: Sean McNamara on 2026-09-01
What YoungMinds is
YoungMinds is a UK charity fighting for children and young people's mental health. It runs a free Parents Helpline staffed by trained advisers (with access to clinicians for second-level advice), publishes extensive parent and young-people resources, and campaigns for better child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS).
What help it offers
- Parents Helpline: 0808 802 5544 — free; for parents and carers worried about a child or young person's mental health. It operates in call-back slots; check current days/times on the YoungMinds website.
- Webchat and email options for parents.
- Young people's own support — text YM to 85258 for free 24/7 crisis support (in partnership with Shout), plus online information written for young people.
- Guides for parents on anxiety, depression, self-harm, school refusal, CAMHS waiting lists, and talking to your child about hard things.
- Parents' survival guide and helpline glossary of CAMHS and mental health terms.
How a self-representing parent can use YoungMinds
1. When mental health appears in the case. If Cafcass, a guardian or the other parent raises your child's anxiety or behaviour, the Parents Helpline helps you understand what is being described and what good support looks like — so you respond constructively. 2. Fighting CAMHS waiting lists. If an expert or Cafcass recommends therapy and none is available, YoungMinds' material on getting help and what to do while waiting gives you practical steps, and evidence that you acted. 3. Between hearings. Getting your child help is often the single most welfare-relevant thing you can do while a case grinds on; a documented support plan (YoungMinds advice, CAMHS referral, school involvement) is exactly the kind of fact the court values. 4. If your child is in crisis. Text YM to 85258 or contact NHS 111; in an emergency call 999. Then tell the court promptly if the crisis is linked to arrangements — emergencies get heard fast.
YoungMinds is not a legal service and does not write reports for court. Combine its support with Cafcass guidance, school input, and (where needed) legal advice from a family solicitor or Coram Children's Legal Centre.
Contact details
- Parents Helpline (free): 0808 802 5544
- Parents Helpline page: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/parent/parents-helpline/
- Website: https://www.youngminds.org.uk
- Crisis text for young people: text YM to 85258
Useful links
- YoungMinds home: https://www.youngminds.org.uk
- Parents' guides: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/parent/
- Childline (for under-19s): https://www.childline.org.uk
- The Mix (13–25): https://www.themix.org.uk
This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws, procedures and contact details change — verify anything important against the official sources linked above before relying on it. Your Family Case is an independent directory listing; we take no referral fees and are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or receiving payment from any organisation listed.
Content verified against the official HMCTS court directory, gov.uk forms and fees pages, and the professional body registers (SRA, FMC, Bar Council). Last reviewed September 2026.