Oxford mental health unit to open for young people

The Meadow Unit will aim to offer patients and families treatment closer to their homes

A new mental health facility to treat young people is set to open in Oxford.

The Meadow Unit at Warneford Hospital is designed to help children experiencing a serious mental disorder receive treatment closer to home.

The new eight-bed unit, funded partly by NHS England, will offer recreational facilities and access to education.

Chief Nurse Marie Crofts, from Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, said the unit was "incredible" for young people in Thames Valley.

The £6m building will include a seclusion suite, de-escalation room, school rooms and an outside gym and sports area.

Service Director Katrina Anderson, who overseas mental health services in Oxfordshire, said the opening has been many years in the making.

"I'm very proud of it. It's the realisation of hard work for many people," she said.

Project Manager Tom Cox alongside some of the artwork from patients at Highland NHS Trust's CAMHS unit

The new facility, near Warneford Meadow, was given its name by young people and staff to reflect the "setting and commitment to providing a highly specialised therapeutic environment for patients".

It will also feature art works produced by patients from Highland NHS's Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), in collaboration with a local artist, supported by the Oxford Health Charity and Oxford Arts Partnership.

Project Manager Tom Cox, said that young people had their hand not only in designing artwork, but all the colours and themes surrounding the building "before there was even a spade in the ground".

He added that the artwork has been designed to be interactive and "robust" so they can withstand "whatever life throws at it".

A spokesman for Oxford Health NHS foundation Trust said it was hoped it would provide "a safe and nurturing environment".

"Patients will have access to professionally qualified staff 24 hours a day, seven days a week, offering skilled mental and physical health care," they added.