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Last year it faced its highest level of demand since it was founded in 1946, after being approached by 20 million, about a third of the UK population. Many of them are children. Mind is calling on the Government to commit £1.459billion to treat children and young people over the next three years.

I previously warned that the pandemic could be the biggest hit to our mental health since the Second World War. Sadly, this prediction turned out to be no exaggeration.

Across a range of mental illnesses and age groups, more people than ever before need help. Services that were over-stretched before Covid are now struggling to keep up with the huge number needing treatment.

Lockdown and restrictions undoubtedly played a part, as has the loss of loved ones. The mental health consequences of catching the virus are serious – particularly for those on ventilators, more than a third of whom develop symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

But data shows it is children and young people who are bearing the brunt of the worst mental health crisis in 80 years.

Record numbers are being referred to mental health services, or becoming so unwell that they need crisis care.

School closures, disruption to friendships and deep uncertainty about the future have all contributed to this. Vulnerable children also slipped through the cracks due to less contact with teachers and support workers.

Eating disorders have exploded. These are among the deadliest mental illnesses, but if spotted and treated early there’s a good chance a full recovery can be made.

But the hidden epidemic of eating disorders has led to huge increases in the number of under-18s being treated, while the number waiting for urgent or routine care has more than quadrupled in a year.

Social isolation helps these problems thrive, so the effects of Covid have led to a terrible rise in kids living with anorexia, binge-eating, bulimia, and other disorders.

Old, dilapidated buildings have made social distancing in inpatient eating disorder set- tings a challenge, leading to a drop in the number of beds available to treat the sickest children and adults.

Indeed, adults have struggled as a result of the pandemic. According to the Office of National Statistics, 10 per cent of adults experienced depression before Covid. This more than doubled to 21 per cent earlier this year and remains high at 17 per cent.

Loneliness is now an even greater problem, more so for women than men. Data from January shows 86 per cent of women and 74 per cent of men felt lonely.

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Many more adults have been drinking at levels that could lead to dependency and physical health problems. As many as one in six are doing so – nearly double the number before the first lockdown.

Addiction services are not set up to treat these huge numbers and the problems that come from higher-risk drinking will end up costing the NHS and the taxpayer dearly after the damage is done.

The Government must take significant action now if it’s to protect the country from a pandemic of mental illness and allowing the backlog to become too big to shift.

They should invest in a national network of mental health support hubs to ensure young people have access to help, give mental health services the money they need to treat everyone who is struggling, and increase medical school places by 7,000 to ensure there are enough psychiatrists for the future.

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