Bermuda’s youth co‑design national plan
Bermuda launched its first National Youth Mental Health Plan co‑designed with young people, schools, and government — recommendations focus on lowering legal access barriers, boosting early intervention, and destigmatizing help‑seeking. The youth-led process is being watched as a potential model for rights‑oriented reform elsewhere. (royalgazette.com)
Members of the Youth Advisory Board presented their research and legislative recommendations to Premier David Burt and ministers Kim Wilson, Kim Wilkerson and Tinée Furbert at Bermuda College during the March 23, 2026 meeting. (royalgazette.com) The island’s first National Adolescent Mental Health study (2022–2023) found rates of depressive and anxiety symptoms about 5–6 percentage points higher than global averages and reported that most adolescents do not seek help. (royalgazette.com) The Youth Advisory Board was formally launched for the 2025/26 term on September 27, 2025 and comprises 23 students drawn from nine public and private senior schools tasked with youth-led advocacy under the Youth Mental Health Plan. (bernews.com) Government publications define the plan’s core components as mental‑health prevention and early intervention, stigma reduction and mental‑health literacy, and improved access to services for youth and families. (gov.bm) The Department of Health rolled out a Youth Mental Health Training Programme on March 2, 2026 to upskill local professionals in recognition, response and referral for young people. (gov.bm) Youth presenters explicitly urged reduction of policy and legislative barriers that limit access to care, a recommendation discussed with the Attorney‑General during the briefings. (royalgazette.com) The plan’s recommendations were subject to international review and were presented at a town‑hall series featuring researcher Daniel Cavanagh in 2024. (royalgazette.com) Officials say a dedicated YMHP implementation team is collaborating with community stakeholders to enact the recommendations, and follow‑up implementation work is underway ahead of a planned 2027 adolescent mental‑health survey. (gov.bm)
