5 February 2014
A step towards closing the gap
Lots of positive work has happened since the ‘No Health without Mental Health’ strategy was published, but there is a lot more still to do.
12 December 2013
The false economy of cuts to crisis care
Just weeks after exposing pressures on acute beds in mental health services, today there are further warnings about spending cuts in community teams across England.
26 November 2013
Knocking mental health stigma for six
The breaking sports news on Monday was that that the England cricketer Jonathan Trott was leaving the Ashes Tour due to a stress-related illness.
22 November 2013
Practical tips for talking to your MP about mental health
We have had many MPs write for our blog during Parliament Week. Below are the reasons why I think it is important.
22 November 2013
Talking to your MP on your terms
As a local champion I have raised issues brought to me by service users, their carers and the local voluntary sector agencies.
22 November 2013
A louder voice for mental health
This week, five MPs have written blogs for Centre for Mental Health on the importance of a range of mental health issues in their constituencies.
21 November 2013
The fight for real choice in treatment
Mental health issues come up frequently in my work as a local MP. Of the hundreds of people who come to see me at my regular surgeries many are suffering from a mental health issue of some kind or are making representations to me about someone who is.
20 November 2013
Raising expectations and improving employment support
Like any MP, I’ve had my share of constituents coming to see me about problems with their work capability assessment (WCA) for employment and support allowance (ESA).
19 November 2013
We need to transform healthcare in this country
Paul Burstow MP talks about a visitor to his constituency surgery.
15 November 2013
Giving local services users a voice
When I was elected as the MP for Loughborough in 2010, I promised that one of the issues I would focus on in parliament was mental health.
9 October 2013
Taking control of employment support
This week a major new report from Disability Rights UK has highlighted the weaknesses of the government’s major employment programmes in supporting disabled people to get and keep paid work.
27 September 2013
#mentalpatient: the end of the beginning
Yesterday two retail giants were shamed and forced into taking products off their shelves by the power of people.