Our briefing on mental health

Local Healthwatch have engaged with people across the country so that they could develop an understanding of local mental health support, and have then documented their findings and recommendations. Some have used their statutory powers to carry out visits to mental health wards in order to find out inpatients' views.

While this briefing is not a comprehensive study, it highlights examples of work local Healthwatch have done with mental health commissioners and providers to ensure that more people receive the mental health support they require. It also provides helpful insight for decision-makers into the current challenges people face in accessing the support they need. 

This briefing shows how engaging people in improving care and support makes a real difference in enabling mental health services to deliver for people.