Community mental health services to expand with 159 new centres

Up to 159 new NHS mental health facilities are to open across England as part of a £343 million expansion designed to provide earlier support in communities and reduce pressure on emergency departments.

The government said the programme, described as the biggest redesign of mental health services in a generation, will include 100 community mental health centres and 59 dedicated mental health emergency departments.

The first facilities are expected to open from autumn 2026, with further sites following from March 2027. Fifty-seven facilities will be new builds, while 102 will involve the conversion of existing sites.

The community mental health centres will offer walk-in support without a referral, with the government saying they are intended to make it easier for people to access help before their mental health reaches crisis point.

The centres will bring mental health and specialist teams together with GPs, councils, voluntary organisations and families, with links to housing and employment support.

The 59 mental health emergency departments will provide same-day specialist support for people experiencing a crisis who are medically fit and do not require treatment in A&E. They will work alongside ambulance and police services and provide assessment and onward connections to inpatient treatment, support at home or community services.

The expansion will more than double the number of dedicated mental health emergency departments in England, taking the total from 23 to 82.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said: “Nobody should be left to struggle with their mental health alone. But every day, thousands of people are waiting months for help, then finding the only door open to them is a busy A&E.

“These new centres will be a lifeline for so many. They will bring NHS services closer to home, making it easier to get support before problems get worse, and ensuring those in crisis get the right care in the right place.

“On the steps of Downing Street, I said we would build a country that acts sooner when people need help. Today is just the start of making that a reality.”

Health and Social Care Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Too many people are only getting mental health support when they reach crisis point, after struggling for far too long to get the help they need.

“These new community mental health centres will help people get support earlier and closer to home, making it easier to get the right care before problems escalate. And when someone does need urgent help, new mental health emergency departments will be able to make sure they are seen quickly by specialist teams in the right setting.

“This is how we can turn the tide on mental ill health - preventing more people from reaching crisis, cutting waits for care and building an NHS which is there for everyone when they need it.”

The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) welcomed the investment but said the expansion should also be used to broaden how mental health is understood and supported.

ADASS president Phil Holmes said: “ADASS welcomes this news; we are pleased that Government recognises the vital need for investment in mental health support to improve the quality of life, prospects and length of life of people experiencing mental health issues. Over the last two decades we have seen growing disparity in investment in physical health and mental health, this commitment goes some way to improve this position.

“We are particularly pleased to see Government’s commitment to investment in community mental health centres offering people easier and more timely access to support when they need it, removing some of the barriers to access that exist today. Prevention and early intervention, extending beyond traditional NHS care and treatment, is an area that ADASS has long lobbied for and it formed part of our evidence submission to the Health and Social Care Committee tasked by Government to consider progress against the Community Mental Health Framework in 2025.

“With this investment comes a great opportunity to expand and transform the way we understand and support mental health giving more credence to trauma-informed, person-centred care and support rooted in a social model. The services we build must go further in recognising the cause of mental health and the impacts of loneliness, unemployment, poor housing and poverty – now is the time to widen the range of support to people, families and community recognising the wider determinants of health and the unequivocal role they play in mental health.”

The plans have also been welcomed by mental health organisations, although some stressed the importance of ensuring the new services are accessible and properly integrated with existing provision.

Brian Dow, deputy chief executive at Rethink Mental Illness, said: “Everyone should be able to access mental health support in their local community, when and where they need it.

“The expansion of neighbourhood mental health centres is a vital step towards making this a reality, building on the promising results of existing pilot sites.

“By bringing together treatment and wider support services under one roof, these centres can transform experiences of care, helping people to access support earlier and preventing them from reaching crisis point.”

Mark Rowland, chief executive at the Mental Health Foundation, said: “Many of the drivers of poor mental health are issues like problem debt, unemployment, and living in insecure, poor-quality housing. Addressing these concerns helps prevent poor mental health and makes recovery more successful.

“By bringing together services in community hubs, the NHS and other services can take an earlier and holistic approach to mental health. Easy access to joined-up, same-day support will make it simpler for people to navigate between different services. It will allow people to get help sooner, stopping poor mental health and other challenges they face from getting worse.”

Mind also described the plans as a potential shift towards a neighbourhood-based model of mental health support.

Tom Pollard, head of policy, public affairs and campaigns at Mind, said: “This is a promising step towards more people getting the mental health support they need, when they need it. Too often, we hear from people struggling to access overstretched services whose mental health worsens because of this.

“These plans signal a much-needed shift towards a neighbourhood approach, with preventative, open-access mental health support rooted in communities and integrated with other local services. If fully realised, this could transform the quality and accessibility of mental health support. We hope to see the government build on these principles in the upcoming mental health strategy.”

The government said the programme forms part of its wider ambition to shift mental health care from crisis response towards prevention. Its forthcoming mental health strategy will consider the role of schools, employers, local government and the voluntary sector alongside NHS services.

Lynn Perry, chief executive at Barnardo’s, said: “The mental health of far too many children and young people is at crisis point. We urgently need to shift focus from response to prevention - helping children and young people get the support they need before reaching crisis point.

“That’s why we welcome the rollout of new mental health centres that are embedded into the neighbourhoods that need them, and hope that the needs of children and young people are placed right at the heart.

“This is an important step towards giving every child and young person the opportunity to grow up healthier, happier and able to thrive, with support that improves outcomes for life.”

The government has allocated £187 million to trusts for the initial 100 community mental health centres and £156 million for the 59 new mental health emergency departments. Final locations remain subject to design, procurement and business case approvals.

Professor Subodh Dave, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “We welcome this recommitment to investing in mental health services, which has the potential to help more people access support earlier and closer to home. To maximise its impact, it will be important to build on past learnings and ensure these new services deliver genuinely joined-up care for patients, without compromising quality.

“New neighbourhood services and same-day emergency care pathways should simplify access to support by reducing repeated assessments and fragmented care. Mental health is a key component of neighbourhood healthcare, and this model must be developed to meet the needs of people with severe mental illness, as this will help to ensure they receive the right care at the right time.”