Kooth

Kooth in your area?
Kooth could be the service you've been looking for if there are population groups of vulnerable young people within your area who do not engage with existing services because of one or more of the following factors:

• demographic issues such as where they live (for example, remote or rural location), gender, education or income level
• attitudinal or behavioural factors such as distrust or public services, the stigma associated with mental or emotional health problems or lifestyle habits (for example, drug users)
• cultural factors such as ethnic background
• structural factors such as perceived bureaucracy or the location of or the way in which existing services are delivered

By virtue of the way it is designed and operated Kooth is uniquely able to reach out to 'high risk' and vulnerable 11 to 25 year olds with mental health therapy and advice. It's much more than simply a counselling service which happens to be web-based. Kooth addresses issues of stigma and discrimination. Kooth engages young people in a way that other services are unable to do.

In the eyes of young people, Kooth is unlike other face-to-face and indeed other online counselling services in one important aspect: it's a 'cool' service and a brand. It's an attitude of mind, in their eyes. Kooth as a word has been defined to mean 'emotional strength', in other words, the ability to bounce back from problems.

Kooth is not unique in being an online counselling service. Other similar services are emerging now, but Kooth was the first-of-its-kind when it launched in 2004. A key difference between Kooth and other similar services is that Kooth is a local service and not a national one. Localisation is a key factor in the success of the service. It means that local authorities and PCTs, using Kooth, can canvass the views and opinions of local young people using online polls and can provide information and content which is relevant to their local population.

Kooth is effective when compared against telephone and other counselling options - 89% of Kooth users say they prefer online counselling to telephone support. The service has broken the stigma surrounding mental and emotional health for the young people who use it - Kooth is seen as trendy, credible and trustworthy.

Kooth enables young people to talk about difficult issues in an open and honest way whilst maintaining their anonymity until they are ready to come forward and access face-to-face services. Young people have reported that it is this ability to disclose their concerns whilst maintaining a 'locus of control' about what happens next, that they particularly like.

Finally, Kooth is a multiple-awarding service - it won the LGC Award for Innovation in 2005, the Big Chip Award in 2005, was the runner-up in the NHS Live Award for Innovation and Improvement in 2005 and won the Local Government IT Excellence Award in 2008.

If you'd like any more information on how Kooth could enable you to serve your local population of high risk and hard-to-reach young people feel free to call us now on 0845 330 7090 or contact us