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Welsh government draft budget secures an extra £20m for mental health services (20 October 2016)

Date: 20/10/2016
Duncan Lewis, Legal News Solicitors, Welsh government draft budget secures an extra £20m for mental health services

Welsh mental health charity Mind Cymru has responded to the Welsh government’s proposal of an extra £20 million in funding for mental health services in Wales, published in a draft budget on Tuesday (18/10/16).

Senior Policy and Campaigns Officer at Mind Cymru, Rhiannon Hedge, said:

“We are really pleased with the draft budget proposal to ring fence an extra £20 million for mental health services in Wales.

“Mental health is an area that has been historically under-funded – and in the run up to May’s Assembly election, we called for parties to commit to increasing the level of funding for mental health services by at least two per cent in real terms each year for the next five years.

“One in four of us in Wales will be affected by mental ill health at some point –
and this extra money will help some of the most vulnerable people in our communities.

“The financial incentive for increased funding is clear – not having speedy access to the right treatment often results in the deterioration of people’s mental health, requiring more costly support needs further down the line.

“With mental health problems costing the Welsh economy £7.2 billion each year, we can’t afford not to invest more in prevention and treatment to ensure everybody living with a mental health problem in Wales gets the support they deserve.

“Much more needs to be done in coming years across all government sectors – and we know from our own research that provision in many areas of mental health is extremely patchy, such as access to talking therapies and support for those in a mental health crisis.

“We welcome today’s spending commitment – and will continue to campaign until the level of mental health spend in Wales matches the needs of the population.”

Earlier in October, the Welsh Assembly published its Together for Mental Health Delivery Plan for 2016-2019. Director of Mind Cymru, Sara Moseley, welcomed the plan and said:

“Mental health and wellbeing affects every aspect of people’s lives, and so we’re glad that Welsh government is focusing on outcomes for people with mental health problems, whatever their age.

“It’s particularly important that mental health services are integrated in Wales, so we are pleased to see a commitment to a more holistic approach to improving people’s mental health.

“However, we do still have some concerns – the timescales set out in the plan are very tight, and it is clear that very rapid action will be needed if it is to be implemented.”

Ms Moseley also said that Mind Cymru was “very concerned that mental health services are significantly under-funded in Wales” and the plan did “very little” to address the problem.

The £20m additional funding announced in the draft budget on Tuesday will be ring fenced for mental health services in Wales.


Duncan Lewis Mental Health Solicitors

Duncan Lewis is the UK’s largest provider of Legal Aid mental health services and can advise mental health patients on a wide range of issues – including access to NHS mental health services and detention under the Mental Health Act.

Duncan Lewis mental health solicitors regularly visit NHS hospitals to advise on mental health law – and are available across England and Wales at short notice for hospital and police station appointments.

In some cases, Duncan Lewis mental health solicitors may be able to advise the nearest relative or carer of a mental health patient on a range of issues, including initiating treatment reviews where appropriate.

For expert legal advice on mental health law, call the Duncan Lewis Mental Health Solicitors Helpline on 020 3114 1124.

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