Serving Cheshire and North Wales border
Child mental health support in Chester
Private specialist assessment and therapy for children and young people aged 7 to 25 in Chester and Cheshire. Assessment within three weeks of referral.
- 3 weeksTo first assessment
- Ages 7–25Children and young adults
- NHS-trainedSenior CAMHS clinicians
- MDT reviewEvery case, every week
NHS CAMHS in Chester: what families face
NHS CAMHS in the Chester and Cheshire West area is provided by Cheshire and Wirral NHS Foundation Trust. Despite being one of the more organised CAMHS services in the North West, demand across the country has meant waiting times for a first assessment regularly exceed a year. Referral thresholds are high, and families with children who are struggling but have not reached the level of risk required for urgent CAMHS review frequently find themselves left without support.
Chester is also a natural point of access for families in Flintshire and the northern parts of North Wales who prefer to access English-registered private services. Blip is registering with both the Care Quality Commission in England and Healthcare Inspectorate Wales, and accepts referrals from both sides of the border.
Blip offers private specialist mental health assessment and treatment for children and young people aged 7 to 25. Sessions are delivered by videoconferencing, which means families in Chester, Ellesmere Port, Huntington, Upton, Saltney, Broughton, and across the Cheshire border can connect with a named senior clinician without a journey to a clinic.
We accept self-referrals. No GP letter is required to make an enquiry, though we work alongside GPs and accept GP referrals where that is preferred.
How quickly can we see your child?
- Triage. Within 5 working days of referral
- Initial assessment. Within 3 weeks
- Care plan agreed. Within 1 week of assessment
- Intervention begins. Within 2 weeks of care plan
Conditions we assess and treat
How sessions are delivered
Blip delivers all clinical sessions by videoconferencing. You and your child connect with your named clinician from home — no travel, no waiting rooms, no disruption to the school day. Sessions run on a secure, encrypted platform to NHS-standard data residency requirements.
Every case has one named clinician from triage to discharge, backed by a multidisciplinary team: consultant psychiatrist, senior CAMHS practitioners, occupational therapist, and family therapist. The team reviews every case weekly. No clinician makes decisions about a case alone.
We accept self-referrals from families, referrals from GPs, and referrals from schools and professionals. Professional referral form.
Who we see
Children and young people aged 7 to 25. We accept self-referrals from parents and young people, and professional referrals from GPs, schools, social workers, and other practitioners. No minimum GP referral requirement. Presentations accepted: anxiety, depression, ADHD, autism, OCD, school avoidance, trauma, self-harm, and complex presentations combining more than one of these.
This is not a crisis service
Blip is a planned-care service for low to moderate presentations. If your child is in immediate distress, please contact one of the following:
- NHS 111 option 2Mental health crisis line, 24 hours
- Samaritans116 123, free, any time
- Papyrus HOPELINE2470800 068 4141
- ShoutText SHOUT to 85258
- Emergency999 or A&E
Blip Healthcare Ltd is in the process of registering with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) for the regulated activity of Treatment of disease, disorder or injury. The service is led by Vivien Beni, RMN, Registered Mental Health Nurse and Registered Manager. All clinicians hold current registration with their professional body.
Get in touch
Fill in the enquiry form and we will respond within one working day.