Mental Health Time for Action Foundation are leading a newly formed campaign to challenge the Government to continue to fund the Mental Health Investment Standard (MHIS).
“There is a fundamental problem in the distribution of resources between mental
health and physical health. Mental health accounts for more than 20 per cent of the
disease burden but less than 10 per cent of NHS expenditure. This is not new. But
the combination of chronic underspending with low productivity results in a treatment
gap that affects nearly every family and all communities across the country.” Darzi
review
The Mental Health Investment Standard (MHIS), set by NHS England, is a way of
making sure that Integrated Care Boards (ICBs – the organisations that bring the
NHS together locally to improve population health) increase their spending on mental
health each year.
Most local mental health funding is not ring-fenced, meaning each
Integrated Care Board determines its own mental health budget from its
overall funding allocation. This means that neither the government nor NHS
England determines how much funding goes to mental health services in
local areas. However, local areas are expected to meet the ‘mental health
investment standard’, which requires increases in local mental health
spending to be at least as large proportionally as overall increases in local
health funding. NHS England reports that it has met this standard nationally
every year since 2015/16. Local areas met the standard in 2021/22 and
2023/24, but not in 2022/23 (see the NHS mental health dashboard).
The NHS Long Term Plan included a pledge to give mental health services
a growing share of the NHS budget, worth at least £2.3 billion a year by
2023/24. The King’s Fund has said funding for mental health services is not
keeping up with demand and is not evenly distributed across the sector.
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7547/
There are concerns from a number of voluntary organisations regarding the potential
stopping of MHIS which would severely impact MH services and care . Dr Sarah
Hughes, chief executive of mental health charity Mind, said: “The loss of
the Mental Health Investment Standard (MHIS) would be catastrophic.
Without it we risk going back to a time where mental health is bottom of the
list for funding and mental health budgets are raided to plug gaps
elsewhere.” https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/11/22/nhs-mental-health-funding-risk-wrangle-cut-waiting-lists/
Therefore we are seeking reassurance and a commitment from the Health and Social Care Secretary
Wes Streeting that MHIS will continue to be implemented to address the current disparity in the NHS between mental health and physical health. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/mental-health-achieving-parity-of-esteem/
Mental Health – Time for Action Chair Rachel Bannister said:
“I had the opportunity to engage with (Sir) Keir Starmer during his tenure in opposition, during which he articulated a robust commitment to prioritising mental health. It is therefore profoundly concerning to learn this week that the government may not extend the Mental Health Investment Standard (MHIS). The absence of sustained support for such initiatives could significantly hinder our ability to make meaningful advancements towards achieving parity of esteem in mental health.”
If you’d like to support us, here are some ideas of what you might consider
doing :
• Complete the NHS 10 year consultation plan and
share the importance to your network in completing
• Contact your local MP
• Speak or write to the Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting
Example of questions to ask :
What is the Labour Government plan for MHIS?
How will the Labour Government address the disparity of esteem
between physical and mental health services? What will be the impact on
already over stretched MH services if MHIS is abolished ?
• Attend DAMH meetings online to plan, discuss and share further ideas for action
Read this report from the BMA “It’s broken”: Doctors’ experiences on the frontline of a failing mental healthcare system
Mental Health - Time for Action Foundation 