Dear friend,
October has been an important and busy month as we marked both World Mental Health Day and Black History Month, two moments that highlight the urgent need for equity, compassion and sustained action in mental health.
We were proud to partner with Mind to launch The Big Mental Health Report 2025 which sets out the state of the nation’s mental health and makes a compelling case for a joined up national strategy. In his latest blog, our CEO Andy Bell explores what it will take to reverse the decline in public mental health and create lasting change.
We also supported the parliamentary launch of the Black Mental Health Manifesto, which brought together experts in Black mental health to discuss how to advance the manifesto’s key asks. The event coincided with the third reading of the Mental Health Bill in the House of Commons, where we have been advocating for stronger protection of people’s rights and dignity, particularly for those from racialised communities.
This month also saw the publication of Bridging the Gap with Barnardo’s Inner Resilience and Development (BIRD) service. We’ll be discussing its findings in more detail at our upcoming webinar on Thursday 13 November.
Within NHS mental health services, there have been significant developments. The NHS Medium Term Planning Framework offers little sign of the urgent turnaround needed in mental health provision, while our response to the NHS workforce consultation calls for a stronger, better supported mental health workforce.
Thank you for your continued support and for being part of our work to create better mental health for everyone.
