Learning Hub: Community Mental Health Framework & Multiple Disadvantage

MEAM Learning Hub: Understanding the Community Mental Health Framework

Have you ever been frustrated at barriers to mental health services experienced by the people you support?

Are you committed to addressing inequities in access to appropriate mental health support?

Do you want to be part of a community-wide and holistic response to improving mental health?

You may have heard of the NHS Long-Term Plan (see explainer here), which sets out how NHS England will use it’s budget between 2018 – 2023 to support a growing population with increasing levels of need and health inequalities. Linked to this, the Community Mental Health Framework is NHS England’s outline for how the community mental health offer is to be transformed, moving away from siloed and often hard to reach community mental health services, towards a more dispersed, multi-disciplinary, place based model of mental health care.

Why does this matter?

The Community Mental Health Framework includes commitments to improve outcomes for people experiencing severe mental illness, to break down traditional barriers to support, and to work closely with other services to provide a holistic, person-centred approach to mental wellbeing. We should feel encouraged by these commitments. As people committed to improving outcomes for people facing multiple disadvantage, we have a role to play in ensuring that these changes do result in improvements for the people we support.

What will I learn?

This event will:

- Explore how people facing multiple disadvantage currently experience mental health services, based on evidence from the MEAM Approach network

- Provide an overview of the Community Mental Health Framework

- Look at how the Community Mental Health Framework is being commissioned and implemented in local areas, hearing from:

o Georgina Beadon (Southend CCG Integrated Commissioning Manager)

o Amanda Kilroy (Chief Executive, Colab, Exeter)

- Provide an opportunity for you to ask questions and discuss with peers what this means for people facing multiple disadvantage

These changes will impact services in all local areas so we look forward to seeing representatives from your MEAM Approach partnership.