Centre for Mental Health

What we do

We aim to achieve change through research and analysis, piloting and evaluating new approaches and promoting good practice, bringing in examples from the UK and abroad. We will continue to champion the voice of the service user in mental health care.

The mental health of offenders has long been neglected. Prisoners have high levels of mental ill health, yet few get adequate treatment or support. Recent reforms in prison health care have improved the quality of care for offenders with severe mental health problems, but serious gaps remain. We have identified a number of priorities for the most urgent improvement:

1. Diversion and the Bradley Review

People can be diverted at ANY stage of their route through the criminal justice system. Diversion is the process to ensure that people with mental health problems who enter (or are at risk of entering) the criminal justice system are identified and provided with appropriate mental health services, treatment and any other support they need. We are working on a range of projects to identify how services can best implement diversion practices.

2. Youth Justice Liaison and Diversion: a pilot scheme

We have set up a national pilot to ensure that children and young people with mental health and other problems get the help they need as soon as they enter the youth justice system. It will take place in six sites across England and review the evidence of what are the most effective ways to address mental health needs.

3. Unlocking pathways to forensic mental health services

We are working with the National Mental Health Development Unit on forensic mental health services, in particular medium secure psychiatric services for offenders sent from court and transferred prisoners. We will demonstrate the care pathway between prisons and the forensic estate, uncover and illustrate current problems and blocks, and identify solutions to improve systems.

4. Employment for people leaving the criminal justice system

We have brought together our two main work areas to identify effective practice and develop pathways into employment for people with mental health problems in the criminal justice system. We are exploring how the principles of Individual Placement and Support can be applied in the criminal justice system.

Networks

Here are some of the criminal justice networks that our staff are involved in.

The Mental Health and Criminal Justice Third Sector Liaison Forum

We are members of this forum, which is a collective of several mental health and criminal justice organisations, all of whom have the shared aim of improving the lives and opportunities for rehabilitation of people involved in the criminal justice system. The Forum has a particular focus to work together and share best practice and ideas, to support better mental health and emotional well-being.

WHO - Health in Prison Programme

Sean Duggan, Joint Chief Executive, sits on the steering group for HIPP. HIPP's main purpose is to support Member States in improving public health by addressing health and health care in prisons, and to facilitate the links between prison health and public health systems at both national and international levels.