Spring Tide Eating Disorder Day Service
What is Spring Tide?
Spring Tide is a day service for children and young people with an eating disorder. It enables young people to be treated within the community, with family support, as an alternative to going into hospital.
It's open Monday to Friday 9am– 5pm and offers an intensive treatment programme for 6 to 12 weeks around school term times, with additions support during the holidays.
Referrals into Spring Tide should be made via a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service clinician.
Spring Tide wants to support you and your family as you move through your eating disorder, helping you to work towards whatever you want in your future life.
Treatment is based on a family approach, and includes psychological group interventions, meal supports, an occupational therapy pathway and Family Review.
Who is Spring Tide for?
Spring Tide can help up to 10 young people and their families at one time.
Our staff are able to treat young people between 10 and 17 years old with a diagnosis of Anorexia Nervosa or Atypical Anorexia Nervosa.
Young peoples physical observation must be stable.
Spring Tide is for families who are wanting to make change and are ready for a challenge.
What happens after Spring Tide?
It's important to note than complete recovery from eating disorders is not expected after treatment at Spring Tide.
We aim to help young people and their families to feel more skilled to work towards recovery and feel more hopeful about the future.
Our staff will support you and your treatment will continue within our community services.
Referrals to Spring Tide
A referral needs to be completed by a young person’s treating team.
What happens during an assessment?
Young people and their family are invited to meet with members of the Spring Tide team.
Assessments take place in two parts. Each part will be between two and three hours long on two different days.
During the assessment process, young people and their families have the opportunity to meet together and separately with the Spring Tide Team.
The purpose of assessment is to ask questions, get to know each other and to consider if Spring Tide is a suitable treatment for the young person and their family.
Assessments are not offered to everyone who is referred and places are not offered to everyone who is assessed.
Meal Support
All staff have received specialist training in how to support young people at mealtimes.
Support is provided at every snack and meal. This will involve a number of staff sitting and eating with young people at every meal, and two other members of staff being available in case any young person needs extra support away from the main dining area. Several members of staff will join each meal.
Some staff will eat alongside the young people, some staff will be available to provide any extra support needed and they will not be eating.
All staff provide meal supports, including Health Care Assistants, Therapists, Nurses and managers.
After each meal young people are supported by staff, playing games in a quiet but sociable environment to help with any stress they may be feeling.
Young people and families will be provided with clear plans about how staff will support people to have adequate nutritional if they are feeling unable to finish any meals.
Support around meal planning is provided to young people and families. All staff meal plan, the plans are overseen by a dietitian.
Family Therapy for Anorexia Nervosa
A weekly session for each young person and their family to discuss how things are going at home and make plans for treatment.
Parent Support Groups
A weekly session for parents and carers, to think together about how they can best support their young person.
Education
The education team at Spring Tide is provided by West Sussex Alternative Provision College. Education sessions are provided daily and work in collaboration with a young persons home school or college. Our education service at Spring Tide has been rated ‘Outstanding’ by OFSTED.
More details can be found on the AP College website.
Occupational Therapy Groups
The Occupational Therapy programme includes weekly creative, leisure, food and self soothe groups.
The groups aim to provide opportunities for young people to participate in a wide range of activities and to build skills to support everyday living and sustained recovery.
Psychology Groups
A series of psychologically informed groups for young people.
The groups offer psycho-education, cognitive behavioural therapy and peer support in range of areas that may be maintaining factors in anorexia including perfectionism, worry and identity.
Family Reviews
To discuss care plans, review progress of treatment goals, celebrate successes and identify further actions for change.
Watch this video to learn more about Spring Tide and meet some of the staff, including therapy dog, Pepper.
Watch this video which features stories of young people who have an eating disorder, and their families. They have kindly shared their journeys and thoughts about the service.