Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that community mental health hubs and schools are well linked with existing family support services.

The aim of the community mental health hub pilot sites is to be able to support the full range of adults’ needs that are important to recovery, without the need for onward referrals, or for people to navigate the complicated networks of support that they need when experiencing significant challenges to their wellbeing. Each pilot site will work in conjunction with voluntary, community, and social enterprise organisations, as well as other services that provide support to people, such as housing providers and family support services.

We will also roll out Young Futures hubs in every community, providing open access mental health support for children and young people in every community. In addition, there are currently approximately 65 locally funded early support hubs in England open to those aged 25 years old and under. During 2024/25, the Department is running a Shared Outcomes Fund project, backed by £8 million, to boost and evaluate the impact of 24 of these existing early support hubs.

We are currently working with colleagues at the Department for Education and NHS England to consider options to deliver our commitment to provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school in England.