IN THE wake of her £1bn pledge to tackle mental health problems in young people, the Prime Minister met with some youngsters to hear their thoughts.

Theresa May visited scores of teenagers who are completing their National Citizen Service (NCS) at a centre in Powys, South Wales, which is owned by Oxfordshire County Council.

In an exclusive piece for the Oxford Mail, Mrs May announced a new NCS course, which will see young people provided with dedicated mental health courses and training.

She also revealed her plans to roll out mental health training for frontline staff and to set up a new network for NCS graduates.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister visited some of these young people and found the time to chat – and take selfies – with them and ask their thoughts about how to tackle mental health issues.

Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet member for education, Hilary Hibbert-Biles, said: “We were delighted to host Theresa May at our Woodlands Centre today, and fully support the proposals to put NCS at the heart of plans to tackle mental health issues among young people.

“We’re very proud of our NCS scheme in Oxfordshire, which has grown from strength to strength with a record number of young people taking part again this year.”

Dan Knowles, chief executive officer of Oxfordshire Mind – a local mental health charity – said he hoped the government would follow through with its plans. He said: “It is really positive news that there is going to be such a focus on the mental health of young people but does a billion really mean a billion?

“I’m not really sure where this level of money is going to come from because if you consider Oxfordshire is one per cent of the country, it would mean we received a lot of money.

“This amount of money would be absolutely life changing so I really do hope it becomes a reality.”

Mr Knowles said tackling the issue of mental health is challenging, but the right thing to be focusing on as a society.

He said: “ I would urge the Prime Minister to ensure the promise of money is followed through because it could transform so many lives and make a massive difference.”

More in Monday’s Oxford Mail.