Supporting young people who repeatedly self-harm.

This paper explores the views and experiences of a group of 74 young people aged 16-22 who were interviewed following presentation in accident and emergency (A&E) departments after intentionally harming themselves. It focuses on a sub-group of 38 young people with a history of self-harm behaviour that extended from when they were under the age of 16, one-third of whom had been or were currently in care. Whilst some had kept their self-harming hidden and had not received any professional intervention until they reached adulthood, others had been in touch with services, although their treatment had not prevented them from continuing to self-harm.