Mental health and neurodiversity

One in four adults and one in 10 children experience mental illness (Source: NHS England and many more know and care for those affected by it. Mental ill health is a broad issue but the costs are acute, impacting on individuals, their families, carers, wider society and the NHS (Source: NHS England). 

The NHS Long Term Plan commits to growing investment in mental health services faster than the overall budget. This includes investment into areas such as: 

• Children and young people’s mental health 
• Perinatal mental health 
• Adult mental health: common mental health 
• Adult mental health: community, acute and crisis care 

Together, through innovation and improvements, we can use this budget to enhance the quality of care patients receive and create opportunities for prevention and faster intervention so more people receive the help they need. 

We also need to give particular attention to the neurodiverse, since neurodiversity and mental health conditions often co-occur, with a number autistic people exhibiting signs of OCD, insomnia, and ADHD. (Source: NHS). Our programmes in autism and learning disability seek to address this. 

Programmes and initiatives

Early intervention on eating disorders

Together, we can respond to early eating disorder onset with rapid intervention, ensuring young people receive the treatment they need in good time.

Focus on ADHD

Together, we can implement technology to analyse ADHD symptoms, reduce waiting times and speed up diagnoses.

Reducing restrictive practice

Together we can reduce restrictive practice by supporting healthcare professionals working with mental health and learning disability inpatients.