Paul Whitehouse reads The Wise Mouse for YoungMinds

“Mental illness is one of those taboo subjects because it is uncomfortable to accept that your mind might not be behaving properly", says Mr Whitehouse. "And for young people, that becomes even more difficult as you've got a load of other stuff going on in your lives, least of all that demon 'puberty'”.

The Wise Mouse is written by Virginia Ironside and is aimed at children under 10 to help them understand the complexities of mental illness and how to cope with a family member who is struggling.

“YoungMinds and stories like 'The Wise Mouse' make it easier to understand emotional well-being", says Mr Whitehouse. "They offer a kind of tool kit for the kids themselves, but they can also help parents to understand mental health from a young person's perspective”.

YoungMinds, the national children’s mental health charity, has re-developed the website to make it more accessible to children, young people, parents and professionals alike.

A key feature of the new site is free audio downloads for children and young people about issues like depression, cannabis use and self-harm.

ENDS

Notes to editors

• To listen to The Wise Mouse read by Paul Whitehouse click here
• For more information contact the YoungMinds press team on 020 7336 1450 or press@youngminds.org.uk