Why does Early Intervention Matter for Young People with Evolving Personality Difficulties?

Anna Freud Studio Conversations

This event forms part of Anna Freud Studio Conversations, a new series of live events bringing Studio members and the wider mental health workforce into conversation with some of the most influential thinkers, researchers and practitioners working in mental health today.

About this event

What if we intervened earlier?

For many years, personality disorder was viewed as something that could only be recognised in adulthood. Yet growing evidence suggests that difficulties often emerge much earlier, and that timely, developmentally informed support can significantly influence outcomes for young people.

In this special Anna Freud Studio Conversation, Professor Peter Fonagy, President of Anna Freud, will chair an in-depth discussion with Professor Andrew Chanen, one of the world's leading experts on prevention and early intervention for young people experiencing emerging personality difficulties and disorder.

Drawing on more than two decades of clinical and research leadership, including the development of the internationally recognised Helping Young People Early (HYPE) programme at Orygen, Andrew will explore what the evidence has shown, what has challenged longstanding assumptions, and why earlier intervention may be both more urgent and more achievable than many services imagine.

What this event will cover

Together, Andrew and Peter will examine some of the most debated questions in the field:

• why has there been hesitation about recognising personality disorder in young people?

• what does the evidence tell us about prevention and early intervention?

• why do services sometimes wait for difficulties to become severe, entrenched or diagnostically certain?

• what can specialist and non-specialist practitioners realistically do to respond earlier?

• how can services offer timely, developmentally informed support without over-pathologising young people?

• what would youth mental health services need to do differently to make prevention and early intervention a core capability?

The discussion will draw on lessons from HYPE and other early intervention models, exploring what young people need from services, how practitioners can respond earlier and more confidently, and how systems can provide meaningful support even when a young person does not yet fit neatly into a diagnosis or established pathway.

Rather than a formal lecture, this event will take the form of a chaired conversation, combining discussion between Peter and Andrew with opportunities for audience participation. Attendees will have the chance to ask questions during a dedicated live Q&A and hear two internationally respected leaders reflect on the current evidence, challenge long-held assumptions, and consider the future of early intervention in youth mental health.

Aims of this event:

By attending this event, participants will:

• explore current thinking on prevention and early intervention for young people experiencing emerging personality difficulties.

• understand the evidence underpinning early intervention approaches and what research has taught us about outcomes for young people.

• learn how programmes such as HYPE have influenced contemporary thinking about prevention, early intervention and service design for young people experiencing emerging personality difficulties.

• consider how views on diagnosis and personality disorder in young people have evolved over time.

• reflect on the impact of stigma and how services can support young people more effectively.

• examine what good early intervention looks like in practice.

• consider the implications of this work for service design, commissioning, workforce development and broader mental health provision.

• gain insights that can be applied in everyday practice when working with young people experiencing significant emotional, relational or identity difficulties.

Who is this event for?

This event is designed for professionals working with children, young people and young adults across mental health, health, education, social care and community settings, including:

• psychologists

• psychiatrists

• psychotherapists and counsellors

• mental health practitioners

• social workers

• nurses

• youth workers

• family support practitioners

• researchers and academics

• service managers and commissioners

• students and trainees in relevant disciplines

The event will also be of interest to leaders, educators and policymakers seeking to strengthen prevention and early intervention approaches for young people's mental health.

Agenda

This in-person event will run to the following timetable:

• 09:00 – 09:30: Registration and networking, with teas, coffees and pastries

• 09:30 – 10:30: Expert conversation with Andrew Chanen, chaired by Peter Fonagy

• 10:30 – 11:00: Audience Q&A

• 11:00: Close