What happens when google knows you're depressed?

"Google users should consider the potential damage the search engine's new depression questionnaire could do to their digital profile in the eyes of insurers and employers."

"The knowledge graph reassures the user “No individual data linking you to your answers will be used by Google without your consent. Some anonymised data may be used in aggregate to improve your experience.” In mental health, an area too often overlooked, we can be too quick to ignore the potential for damage in the seemingly beneficent actions of those in power. Data allows you to make models and models shape decisions. If you successfully turn a thing into data you can turn it into a commodity. These questionnaires, given with consent, may allow Google to confirm its hunches about who is and isn’t depressed"

Link -

CAMHS shortfall is having a deadly affect on young people

"Why are the regulators and the Government deaf to the needs of some of the most vulnerable young people in our society?

Firstly, there is a lack of understanding that children don’t suddenly become sick, then have a few months treatment and are cured. Meaningful provision means preventative steps must be taken to protect our young minds from an early age.

We need far more robust education in our schools and care homes to identify the signs of mental health – and strategies and support put in place to help these worried youngsters.

It is also crucial that there are ‘step down’ facilities so young people have the support to re-integrate them into society and are not just dumped back in the situation that caused their illness in the first instance."

Link -

School exclusion may trigger mental health problems

"The researchers from the University of Exeter who looked at responses from over 5,000 school-aged children said that young people could develop depression, anxiety and disturbed behaviour.

Relatively few pupils are expelled from school, but Professor Ford warned that even temporary exclusions can amplify psychological distress."

Link - school exclusion leading to mental health issues

UK data protection law

"The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) has published a statement of intent outlining planned reforms in the Data Protection Bill. Reforms include: giving individuals more control over their personal data by providing easier access; parents or guardians will be required to give consent to information services where a child is under the age of 13; the right to be forgotten whereby individuals will be able to ask for their personal data to be erased - this will include provision to allow people to require social media platforms to delete information they posted during their childhood."

Source: DCMS  Date: 07 August 2017

Further information: A new Data Protection Bill: our planned reforms (PDF)

Must children fall into crisis before they get the help they need?

"Children’s services are under increasing pressure. As purse strings tighten, and children’s services have to respond to an ever-widening range of challenges, is there a risk we often only help those in most dire need?

A group of MPs and Peers is aiming to understand these pressures, and establish how high the bar is before services step in to help a child in need.

The All Party Parliamentary Group for Children (APPGC) is conducting a new Inquiry into the causes of variation in the thresholds for accessing children’s social care services. We are keen to hear directly from social workers about how decisions around threshold levels are made in practice. "

NCB accessed 07-08-17

LINK to full article

Resilience: A skill your child really needs to learn (and what you can do to help)

"Resilience is the ability to overcome hardship and be okay. It’s the ability to navigate life’s inevitable bumps and still be happy and healthy and stay on track. What worries me sometimes is that our current parenting culture of achievement and obsessing over safety — and the way that electronic devices have become so ubiquitous — may get in the way of learning resilience.

According to Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child, there are four factors that help children develop resilience."...

• Supportive adult-child relationships
• A sense of self-efficacy and perceived control
• Strong adaptive skills and self-regulatory capacities
• Being able to mobilize sources of faith, hope, and cultural traditions

Full article

"In A Heart Beat"-New Pixar Movie

"In a Heartbeat was put together by Ringling College of Art and Design students Beth David and Esteban Bravo as their computer animation thesis, but it has now taken on much more of a life than just a school project. It deals with a young boy struggling to come to terms with his feelings for a handsome peer, a topic never previously explored by animated film, and features an adorable jumping heart that is just begging to be made into a new Pixar mascot. In just 4 minutes, it captures the experience of countless LGBTQ youth, and shows them that there’s nothing to be afraid of."

Video Link