2009 was the final year of the National Service Framework for
Mental Health, launched in 1999. As the Department of Health began
to consult on what the next state of mental health policy in
England should be, eleven leading organisations - including the
Royal College of Psychiatrists - formed the Future Vision Coalition
in order to contribute to the debate.
Mental Health Strategy
In Febuary 2011, the Coalition Government published
No health without mental health: a cross-Government
mental health outcomes strategy for people of all ages.
Through its membership of the
Future Visions Coalition, the College has been fully engaged
with, and has succeeded in influencing, the strategy throughout the
various stages of its development.
Opportunities for a new mental health
strategy
In advance of the publication of the mental health strategy
by the Government, the Future Vision Coalition has set out our
priorities for what a new mental health strategy should aim to
achieve over the next decade and where mental health issues need to
be considered in a range of other policy areas. Opportunities
for a new mental health strategy is available to download
here.
Further information about the Future Vision
Coalition
The future priorities of the coalition are as follows:
A national public mental health strategy
We call for a robust public mental health strategy for England
outlining the actions to be taken across government to help the
whole population build resilience for times of stress, and
targeting specific support for people at the highest risk of mental
ill health.
Eradicating stigma
We call for government to commit to eradicating mental health
stigma and to fund a national anti-stigma campaign building on Time
to Change.
Early intervention
All public services should be able to offer the earliest
possible help to people experiencing mental distress and their
families. Teachers, GPs, employers and police officers, for
example, should have the knowledge and skills to identify someone
in distress and to help them to find the support they need.
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence
(NICE) guidelines
We call for urgent action to ensure that treatments (most
importantly psychological therapies) that have been recommended for
the NHS are made universally available wherever people live. This
should include the provision of appropriate support and information
to carers. NICE public health guidance such as that on promoting
mental wellbeing at work also needs to be comprehensively
implemented.
Recovery
All mental health services should have as their primary aim
helping people to get back the lives they want for themselves.
Their role should be to offer assistance and support to people of
all ages and backgrounds to attain their personal recovery goals,
however long it takes. This should include support with
accommodation, employment, education and personal life: whatever
matters most to the person concerned and the people around
them.
Transition services
We call for better support for people with mental health
problems at critical times in their lives. People aged 14 to 25
need support tailored to their needs, not to fall into the gap
between child and adult services. And we call for improved care for
those moving from working age to older people services.
Employment
Everyone using community mental health services who is seeking
paid work must be offered employment support based on the best
evidence of what works. The Fit for Work scheme should be evaluated
and its successful elements extended across the country to help
people in work to keep their jobs. And employers should be
supported and incentivised to recruit, support and retain people
with an experience of mental health problems and to provide
mentally health workplaces for all their staff.
Tackling inequality
There are wide inequalities in mental health between communities
in England. Community engagement and joint local commissioning are
vital for better prevention, treatment and support among
communities with the highest rates of mental ill health. We call
for sustained government support to narrow the mental health gap
and ensure that all communities are actively engaged in the
commissioning process.