Young People

The Therapeutic Counselling Service was set up in November 2003 and is provided to young people 16-25 years old living in the North Down and Ards area.

The South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust Sexual Health Service is based at the Downe Hospital, Downpatrick, with additional clinics in Bangor and Lisburn. You do not have to be referred by a doctor. We provide free sexual health care and advice for all age groups, including testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections and genital conditions. Urgent and non urgent appointments are available, and the service is strictly confidential.

Lifeline is the Northern Ireland crisis response helpline service for people who are experiencing distress or despair. No matter what your age or where you live in Northern Ireland, if you are or someone you know is in distress or despair, Lifeline is here to help.

Welcome to the Northern Ireland Youth Forum website. We are very passionate about young people and making sure your voice is heard.

MACS was established in 1990 to provide a range of services for young people. Since then, we have succeeded in developing an approach which is effective and sustainable.

Child Sexual Exploitation is a form of sexual abuse that can affect any child, anytime, anywhere - regardless of their social or ethnic background.Safeguarding is everyone’s business.

The Rainbow Project is a health organisation that works to improve the physical, mental & emotional health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender people in Northern Ireland. We are the foremost LGB&T organisation in Northern Ireland and have two centres: one in Belfast city centre and the other in Foyle, L’Derry.

Cara-Friend has been serving the LGBTQ+ community in Northern Ireland for over 40 years. We provide regional LGBTQ+ youth groups across Northern Ireland, one-to-one support for individuals, LGBTQ+ awareness training for professionals and volunteers working in a variety of different areas, community development, the LGBT Switchboard, and the LGBTQ+ Inclusive Schools Programme. We also have a range of resources on this website to help young people, and those supporting young people who are LGBTQ+.

We are able to offer a safe, knowledgeable and accepting environment for young people to talk and to access sexual health services. All our clinics are for 19 and under, however, our STI clinics are open to everyone up to 24 years old.

This website, aimed at young people and adults, offers information and advice on how to look after your sexual health. It also highlights the services available where you can get more help and advice.

On healthtalk.org you can find out about what it’s like to live with a health condition, by watching other people share their stories. Our health affects every aspect of our lives. This website helps to prepare you for what’s ahead, beyond the symptoms and treatments. Healthtalk.org contains hundreds of real people’s stories. These stories are collected by academic researchers who interview people in their own homes, using their own words.

Looking after your sexual health Sexual health is an important part of physical and mental health as well as your emotional and social wellbeing. It's important to take care of your sexual health and to talk about sex and relationships with your loved ones.

Struggling to concentrate, having too much energy or not being able to easily control your behaviour are some of the symptoms of ADHD. Find out more about ADHD and how to get help.

Meditation app. Learn to relax. 10mins free for 10 days then small subscription.

Papyrus (Prevention of Young Suicide) gives advice and support for young people who feel like they want to take their own life, and all their advice is confidential.

It can be very difficult to talk to people when you’re having problems with your mental health. Doc Ready helps you prepare for the first time you visit a Doctor to discuss your mental health.

Young Minds is leading the fight for a future where all young minds are supported and empowered, whatever their challenges.

The Mix is the UK’s leading support service for young people. There to help young people take on any challenge they are facing – from mental health to money problems, from homelessness to finding a job, from break-ups to drugs. Talk to them online or by using their free, confidential helpline.

Want someone to understand or advice to help a friend? Kooth offers free, safe and anonymous online support for young people.

Like adults, young people (aged 16 or 17) are presumed to have sufficient capacity to decide on their own medical treatment, unless there's significant evidence to suggest otherwise.

Whether you’re moving to secondary school, jumping into the world of work, starting a new relationship or just feeling a bit stressed, we’ve asked those who’ve been through it to share their wisdom.