In-patient Mental Health Services (Children and Adolescents)

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd October 2013 Commons Chamber

[Alan Johnson (Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle) (Lab)]

Last week, Dr Martin Baggaley, medical director of the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, said that mental health services in England are unsafe and in crisis. At the same time, BBC News and Community Care magazine printed the results of a freedom of information request to mental health trusts around the country, which revealed that 1,500 mental health beds had closed since 2011. The Royal College of Psychiatrists is among the many expert organisations that have expressed concerns about poor in-patient mental health provision, particularly for children and adolescents. In response, the Minister of State, Department of Health, the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Norman Lamb) who I am pleased to see is present, said that he was determined to end the institutional bias against mental health. This debate presents an opportunity for him to do something in pursuit of that noble objective.

There is increasing demand for mental health services, and all the research shows that early intervention is essential to prevent mental health problems developing in later life. One in 10 children aged between five and 16 suffer from a diagnosable mental health disorder, half of which, with the exclusion of dementia, start before the age of 14. Yet, although the Government claim to be increasing expenditure on health, child and adolescent mental health services in England have been grappling with unprecedented cuts to their funding over the past two years.

Many MPs will know that from their experience in their constituencies, where social care and education funding, which is such an important part of CAMHS budgets, is having to be reduced dramatically. The charity YoungMinds found that since 2010 two thirds of local authorities in England have reduced their CAMHS budget. The contrast with physical health budgets is a stark manifestation of the institutional bias against mental health.

The West End unit in my constituency was the only in-patient mental health facility for Hull and the East Riding. It closed in March while a consultation on CAMHS—which, incidentally, gave no opportunity for respondents to voice an opinion on whether the unit should remain open—was still under way. So much for “No decision about me, without me”.

Can the Minister confirm that the guidance to section 244 of the National Health Service Act 2006 concerning consultation states:

“No final decisions—even decisions in principle—must be taken until the public has been consulted and the results of the consultation have been considered by the NHS body”?

When I raised that appalling breach of the Government’s own guidance on consultations, I was told that West End was closed by the unaccountable monolith otherwise known as NHS England. It changed the specification for tier 4 services and the West End in-patient unit that provided high-quality services in Hull and the East Riding for 20 years closed as a result.

I felt sure that Hull could not have been the only area affected, so I submitted a parliamentary question asking how many in-patient mental health units had ceased to operate.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

In my constituency 33% of young people have depression. That rises to 50% among those who are unemployed. Does the right hon. Gentleman’s area have the same concerns as I have in my area? We have taken steps in Northern Ireland to address the issues, and perhaps the Government need to do the same here.

[Alan Johnson]

This debate is about services in England, but I confirm that part of the problem is the fact that there is a rising need for adolescent and child mental health services and a decreasing capacity to deal with that need.

I asked the Minister in a parliamentary question which other areas had been affected and which units had ceased to operate. I was told by the Minister that no units had ceased to operate as a result of this change and nor were any closures expected when the change was introduced on 1 October. As I said, the unit in Hull closed in March. The change had already happened. Will the Minister take this opportunity to correct that answer?

Not only did West End close in March, but we are beginning to hear of closures across the country, including in Devon and Somerset, where my right hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr Bradshaw) has been pursuing this issue vigorously with the chief executive of NHS England, who confirmed in a letter to him that other units had closed as a result of the change to tier 4 specification well before the spurious 1 October date.