Health Management and Policy Alert

Early evaluation of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Trailblazer programme: a rapid mixed-methods study

National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) - 

The Children and Young People’s Mental Health Trailblazer programme is funding the creation of new mental health support teams (MHSTs) to work in schools and further education colleges. MHSTs directly support children and young people with ‘mild to moderate’ mental health problems and work with school and college staff to promote wellbeing for all. A new workforce of education mental health practitioners (EMHPs) is being trained for the teams. This early evaluation of the Trailblazer programme examines the development, implementation and early progress of MHSTs in the programme’s first 25 ‘Trailblazer’ sites.

• Report
• More detail

UK poverty 2023: the essential guide to understanding poverty in the UK

Joseph Rowntree Foundation -
This report sets out recent trends in poverty across the UK and how levels of poverty differ between groups of people and regions. It also describes the impact it has on people’s lives, including physical and mental health.

• Report
• Joseph Rowntree Foundation - publications

Can mental health services afford the cost-of-living crisis?

NHS Confederation - 

While the recent extra funding to mental health crisis services is welcomed to help mental health services address the immense pressures the cost-of-living crisis is having on the mental health of England's population, this is short-term thinking. The mental health sector need governmental support to move to preventative approaches.

• Long read

Draft Mental Health Bill 2022

Joint Committee on the Draft Mental Health Bill -
This report outlines how the Joint Committee want the Government’s draft Mental Health Bill to be strengthened to address rising numbers detained under current legislation and racial inequalities. The Committee supports reform of the 1983 Mental Health Act and the intentions behind the draft Bill but says that the reform process needs to continue beyond the draft Bill in the direction of more rights-led legislation that respects patient choice. It also urges the Government to publish a comprehensive implementation and workforce plan alongside the Bill with clear actions and milestones.

• Report
• Joint Committee on the Draft Mental Health Bill - news

Away from hospital and into the community: a research report into alternative options for young people’s mental health crisis care

Look Ahead -
According to this report, young people and expert mental health care staff say patients are unlikely to receive in-patient mental health care unless they “have attempted suicide multiple times”. It finds increasing demand for children and young people’s crisis mental health services amidst challenges with existing services. The report recommends alternative community crisis services, including supported housing away from hospital settings to reduce pressure on A&E and reduce costs by more than 50 per cent.

• Report
• Look Ahead - press release

Mental health and the cost-of-living crisis report: another pandemic in the making?

Mental Health Foundation (MHF) - 

This policy briefing paper provides an overview of the current and likely effects of the so-called ‘cost-of living crisis’ on mental health. It sets out MHF's evidence-based recommendations for governments across the UK to tackle the mental health impacts of the cost-of-living crisis. The paper emphasises that the priority must be to ensure suitable financial support schemes are available to all who need them to prevent people from experiencing poverty, financial stress and related mental health problems. The paper also stresses that the income support announced to date does not go far enough to meet the needs of low-income people who continue to go without essentials such as food and heating.

• Briefing paper
• Press release

Get in on the Act: Mental Health Act 2022

Local Government Association -
In June 2022 the government published the draft Mental Health Bill. The Bill is currently going through parliament and is at the Joint Committee Inquiry stage. Councils have several existing statutory duties under the Mental Health Act 1983 and will continue to have responsibilities under the new Act. This briefing examines the role and responsibilities of Councils under the new Act.

• Local Government Association - publications

Connected: remote technology in mental health services

Centre for Mental Health - 

This briefing summarises evidence from six studies on the use of digital and telephone technology to deliver mental health services. It finds that using remote technology can improve access to mental health support for rural communities, disabled people or people needing a specialist service far from home. It has the potential to increase access and choice in mental health care. But it also risks exacerbating inequalities for people who are digitally excluded.

• Briefing
• More detail

No wrong door

NHS Confederation -
The NHS Confederation and Centre for Mental Health wrote this Parliamentary briefing to identify a vision for mental health, autism and learning disability services for people of all ages in England in 2032. It describes how these services need changes to the way they are delivered to meet demand, and that mental health service providers can’t do this alone. The briefing sets out how investment is needed from government and calls for the cross-government plan for mental health to be published and resourced without delay.

• Briefing
• NHS Confederation - publications

Mental health and wellbeing

Covid Social Mobility & Opportunities Study -
Poor mental health among young people (aged 16 and 17) has increased by more than a quarter since 2017, according to this research. This briefing explores the mental health and wellbeing of a sample of almost 13,000 young people across England who were in Year 11 in 2021. It finds that almost half (44 per cent) of young people were above the threshold for ‘probable mental ill health’, using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), indicating high levels of psychological distress. This has increased dramatically from 35 per cent in 2017 and 23 per cent in 2007 (from previous cohort studies looking at similar ages), pointing to a decline in the mental health and wellbeing of young people, likely accelerated by the pandemic.

• Briefing
• Covid Social Mobility & Opportunities Study - press release