TEENAGERS in Bradford can now access a website which offers support about mental health issues as they move towards adulthood.

Thrive Bradford has gone online to offer the district's youngsters advice to help them through their teenage years.

The site has been developed with the support of young people at Barnardo's who raised the issue of the transition between Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and adult mental health services when they attended a City CCG Governing Body meeting.

That was to enable young people to make a difference, tackle stigma around mental health and improve how services view their users.

Nicola Swales, manager of Barnardo's Healthy Minds service in Bradford, which has developed the site, said: "Thrive Bradford is designed to provide vital support, information and guidance about the transition into adulthood for young people aged 13 to 19 across the Bradford district - especially the transition from child to adult mental health services.

"It has a special focus on emotional health and mental health because when we've asked young people they've said that education, employment, relationships and socialising have a real impact on their emotional and mental health - and their ability to cope into adulthood."

Bethany Jones, 16, who was part of the group, said: "This site will help us find out about services that can support us as we grow up and will make the move into using them easier.

"It will be a useful guide about services in Bradford and will teach us how to stay well and put us in charge of our own health.

"Because it is private, we do not have to rely on others to decide to give us the information we have a right to, and it is confidential - rather than picking up a leaflet which anyone can see you do."

The site has been commissioned by NHS Bradford Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and developed in partnership by Barnardo's, Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust, Bradford Council and Yoomee Digital Ltd.

Dr Angela Moulson, clinical speciality lead for mental health at Bradford City CCG, said: "It's vital to encourage resilience and mental health wellbeing in young people; and most of this centres round relationships, education and employment - not traditional medicine.

"I'm very happy that this is being recognised and a website will be used to spread the word.

"It's also important that young people moving from CAMHS to adult mental health services are well supported as services are different and the change can be difficult for some."

All of the content on Thrive Bradford has been written in partnership with CAMHS specialist clinicians and educational psychologists from Bradford Council.

For more information, go to thrivebradford.org.uk.