Centre for Mental Health

06/10/2026

Some 1.4 million people were on a mental health, autism or learning disability waiting list in England by July 2026. Of those, 75,739 were children and young people still waiting after two years for an assessment or treatment.

The figures come from a new NHS England statistics dashboard, the first in a quarterly series on activity, access, spending and quality in mental health, autism and learning disability services. In his new blog over on our website, Andy Bell looks at what it tells us - and what it doesn't.

Where enforceable waiting time standards exist, they are mostly being met. For adult NHS Talking Therapies, 84% of people are seen within six weeks, and 72% of people are treated within two weeks by early intervention in psychosis services.

The dashboard also highlights racial inequities. Rates of contact with children and young people's mental health services are 6,982 per 100,000 for white children, compared with 3,029 for Asian children and 4,590 for Black children.

The dashboard offers a degree of transparency, Andy writes, if not quite accountability. It is also a reminder of what is missing: outcomes and experiences of care, wider inequalities data, digital support, physical health and the mental health workforce.

05/10/2026

Last year Professor Sir Patrick Vernon OBE wrote about the lasting scars of the Windrush scandal. He outlined the call for a Windrush Covenant to provide recognition, protection and support for the people whose lives have been upturned and damaged by this injustice.

A Windrush Covenant "would embed trauma‑informed practice across services, guarantee independent oversight of compensation and redress, and affirm the nation’s responsibility to safeguard the dignity and wellbeing of the Windrush generation and their families."

This demand remains urgent as a means of addressing an enduring instance of racial trauma and supporting wellbeing among Black communities. We must acknowledge the enormous societal contributions made by the Windrush generation and amplify the need for a Windrush Covenant to heal the mental scars inflicted on them and their families.

02/10/2026

We are very pleased to announce that Centre for Mental Health has been commissioned by the Randal Foundation to explore the complex relationship between children and young people's engagement with the digital world and their mental health.

The project will focus on understanding the perspectives of young people, particularly those from marginalised and underrepresented backgrounds whose voices are often missing from national debates.

Working in partnership with Leaders Unlocked, young people will share their experiences and help shape the research and recommendations for policymakers. We'll explore both the positive and negative impacts of digital engagement.

Our ambition is for future policy affecting children's digital lives to be informed by the voices and experiences of young people themselves.

01/10/2026

Today marks the launch of . This years’ theme is ‘Honouring Our Communities’, recognising the individuals whose everyday contributions shape, support and sustain Black life across the UK

Black people experience significant inequalities in mental health and mental healthcare. They are more likely to face barriers to getting support and are too often met with poor experiences when they do seek help.

Our recent research has found that:

➡️ Racism is a daily stress harming mental health at every stage of life. The current hostile political climate and increasing overt racism are increasing fear and harm for many people and communities.

➡️ People from racialised communities face disproportionately high levels of trauma, and public services meant to support them often reproduce this trauma rather than alleviate it.

➡️ Neurodivergent children and young people from racialised communities are more likely to experience significant mental health problems at some stage of school.

➡️ Black women face a higher risk of developing mental health problems during and after pregnancy, but face significant barriers when accessing mental health care and are less likely to receive the support they need.

We urgently need to tackle the systemic racism and structural inequalities that contribute to these inequities.

We know the vital role that community-led mental health support has in improving mental health outcomes for Black people. But it is underfunded.

That’s why we are calling for a shift in power to communities, including funding third sector organisations to lead community-based support, and for the universal adoption of anti-racist and trauma-informed approaches to mental health care, backed up by the Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework.

28/09/2026

A major new report launched today warns that, without urgent action, over a million children could miss out on mental health treatment by end of this Parliament.

The report from Future Minds - A Mid-Term Report Card on Children and Young People's Mental Health - gives the Government's overall performance halfway through this Parliament a verdict of "Requires Urgent Improvement", warning that progress is failing to keep pace with rising need and that ministers are running out of time to deliver on their promises to children and young people.

The report paints a stark picture of a system still struggling to cope with soaring demand. More than one in five children and young people now experience a probable mental health condition, double the rate seen two decades ago, while referrals to children's mental health services have nearly doubled since 2018/19.

The Future Minds campaign is calling for the Government to use its forthcoming Mental Health Strategy for England to deliver four urgent commitments:

➡️ Triple-lock spending on children and young people's mental health, ensuring funding rises by inflation, earnings growth or 2.5%, whichever is highest.
➡️ Make children and young people's mental health a national priority across government.
➡️ Introduce and enforce access and waiting-time standards for children's mental health services.
➡️ Deliver the manifesto commitment to provide open-access mental health support through Early Support Hubs in every community up to the age of 25.

Read more and find the report on our website.

25/09/2026

Helping people with severe mental illness to find and thrive in employment was at the heart of this year’s IPS European Conference in Rotterdam.

IPS (Individual Placement and Support) is an evidence-based approach that helps people experiencing severe mental illness to find employment that is right for them, and to receive ongoing support once in work. IPS is also supports those with addictions, common mental illnesses, and groups with additional support needs.

Centre for Mental Health was delighted to be represented at this year’s conference by Julie and Zak. The theme was “shaping the future of IPS together”.

Julie and Zak delivered a one-hour workshop sharing our experiences of training IPS practitioners in employer engagement, including what we’ve learned about helping employment specialists build effective relationships with local employers to create better job matches.

They also took to the main stage, presenting to around 150 delegates and sharing an update on the IPS training journey for employment specialists in England.

For over 20 years, we've been at the forefront of IPS delivery in the UK. As well as sharing our own experience, the conference was a valuable opportunity to hear from colleagues in other countries, learn from their experiences of delivering IPS, hear about developments across Europe, and bring new ideas and perspectives back to our work in England.

A fantastic opportunity to learn, share and connect with others working towards the same goal: supporting more people with severe mental illness into employment as part of their recovery journey.

24/09/2026

Black women face a higher risk of developing mental health problems during and after pregnancy yet are less likely to get the support they need.

We submitted Freedom of Information requests to every Integrated Care Board in England asking what training or services they had commissioned to support Black maternal mental health.

We discovered a patchwork system, with inconsistent funding and support - and gaps in data meaning it’s impossible to say whether existing provision meets Black mothers’ needs.

This research is for the Black Maternal Mental Health project, led by The Motherhood Group in partnership with Centre for Mental Health and Maternal Mental Health Alliance, and we’ve published a briefing today during Black Maternal Mental Health Week

The findings raise serious questions about whether Black maternal mental health is deemed a priority at the local level.

Launching the report, Sandra Igwe MBE, Founder and Chief Executive of The Motherhood Group said:
“This briefing helps us see where the next steps are needed. Our hope now is for sustained investment in trusted community organisations, stronger partnerships with NHS services, and clear accountability for improvements that Black mothers can feel in the care they receive.”

➡️ We're calling on NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care to set clear national guidance on who is responsible for commissioning, monitoring and evaluating services for Black mothers, coproduced with Black women and communities.

➡️ And we're urging ICBs to invest long-term in community-led support from organisations Black mothers trust, and to learn from existing good practice including in delivering anti-racism and cultural competency training.

🔗 Read the briefing - link in the comments below 👇

23/09/2026

Two in five UK adults who are unemployed or economically inactive have a common mental health condition such as depression or anxiety - 4.2 million people. Many want to work, and can, with the right support. But that support is too often missing.

A new report from the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute shows just how little trust people with mental health problems have in employers – and why that matters for everyone talking about getting more people into work.

Trust is in short supply. Three in four people surveyed wouldn't trust most employers to make reasonable adjustments for their mental health if they asked. 68% don't think most employers understand how mental health affects work, and 64% don't believe most employers are willing to hire people they know have mental health problems.

We can't encourage more people into work unless employers get better at understanding and supporting people living with mental illness. Stepping up benefit sanctions won't fix that.

The report calls on the Government to:

➡️ Set clear expectations for employers through the new Healthy Working Lifecycle standard, with a clear focus on mental health
➡️ Give mayors and local leaders the powers to transform employment support in their areas
➡️ Scale up Individual Placement and Support (IPS) and put a specialist mental health Work Coach in every Jobcentre
➡️ End punitive sanctions that push people towards any job rather than the right one

21/09/2026

A new report has put a stark fact back in the spotlight: adults with severe mental illness are almost five times as likely to die before the age of 75, and die 15-20 years earlier on average.

Much of this is down to physical illnesses that can be prevented or treated. Adults with severe mental illness are almost four times as likely to die from cardiovascular disease and nearly three times as likely to die from cancer.

This is why we run Equally Well UK, a network of more than 50 organisations working together so that people with mental health problems have the same right to good physical health as everyone else.

The report from Rethink Mental Illness - Closing the Mortality Gap - highlights an issue many of us have worked on together for years, and it’s good to see the evidence being put in front of decision-makers at this time.

The new cross-government mental health strategy is imminent, and NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care are developing the Modern Service Framework for severe mental illness. Its ambition is that by 2035 people will live longer, healthier and more fulfilling lives. To make that real, we're asking them to:

➡️ Set a clear national target to reduce the life expectancy gap
➡️ Publish progress against it, so we can all see whether the gap is closing

🔗 Read the report: https://www.rethink.org/campaigns-and-policy/campaign-with-us/resources-and-reports/closing-the-mortality-gap/

🔗 Find out more about Equally Well UK: https://equallywell.co.uk/

At Rethink Mental Illness, we believe everyone deserves the chance to live a healthy, fulfilling life. Our ‘Closing the Mortality Gap’ report shines a light on the complex drivers behind the mortality gap and sets out clear steps for change.

17/09/2026

A major new investigation lays bare how far emergency departments have become the default option for people in a mental health crisis - despite lacking the environment, training and capacity to give them the care they need.

Patients told investigators from the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB), of long delays, chaotic surroundings, and a lack of privacy and dignity at the exact moment they needed calm and safety.

Staff described exhaustion and moral distress at being asked to deliver specialist mental health care in spaces never built for it. Children and young people came off worst of all, and families said the safety information they offered was too often ignored.

Andy Bell, our Chief Executive, said:

"People needing urgent care for their mental health should expect high quality care when they need it most, including in emergency departments. Too often, that's not the case. This report shows that too many people in a mental health emergency are let down by a system that isn't designed to meet their needs. We urge the Government and the NHS in England to act on the report's recommendations.

It's not enough to establish separate 'mental health emergency departments'. This requires systemwide action to make all emergency departments more appropriate environments for someone in a mental health crisis, to scale up community crisis responses according to the evidence of what works, and to address gaps in local inpatient care to address delays in admissions."

🔗 Read the full report: https://www.hssib.org.uk/patient-safety-investigations/safety-issues-for-people-experiencing-a-mental-health-crisis-who-come-into-contact-with-urgent-and-emergency-care-services/investigation-1-report-2-of-2/