Centre for Mental Health

a better way

for the criminal justice system

a better way is our campaign to highlight our concerns and provoke political, media and public debate about the approach we take to mental health in the criminal justice system.

We want to change the way people think about mental health and criminal justice and set out a better way of working.

A better way features several major reports, including:

• Short-changed - about the regional variations in funding for prison mental health care
• From the Inside - prisoners' views and experiences of health and mental health care in prison
• The police and mental health - a briefing paper looking at how the police and health and social services can work better together
• In the dark - the mental health implications of Imprisonment for Public Protection
• On the Outside - Continuity of care for people leaving prison
• Diversion - the benefits of diversion, particularly in value for money
• A Missed Opportunity? - The Community Order's Mental Health Treatment Requirement follows up the MHTR paper we published in January 2008 and calls on the Government to issue clear guidance on the use of the MHTR
• Securing Employment for Offenders with Mental Health Problems - Towards a Better Way
• The Chance of a Lifetime - Preventing early conduct problems and reducing crime
• Blurring the Boundaries - The convergence of mental health and criminal justice policy, legislation, systems and practice