Andy Bell

Illustration of two people chatting in a library. Text: Mental health is made in communities. We’re celebrating what local councils are doing to support mental health around the country.

Illustration of a children's swimming lesson. Text: Tell us about your local initiatives that are making a difference.

🏘️ Local councils play a pivotal role in creating the conditions for our mental health to thrive.

We've shared a range of examples from across the country of council projects and policies which are boosting mental health locally. Want to share yours? tinyurl.com/v9jdv7ue

Could you lead our communications?

Want to shape the conversation around mental health - and drive change for those who need it most?

💼 We're looking for an Associate Director of Communications (Maternity Cover) - learn more and apply: www.charityjob.co.uk/jobs/centre-... #CharityJob #Communications #MentalHealth

Illustrations of local community initiatives: two people chatting in a library; two people working on an allotment patch; a children's swimming lesson; two people in a park, one is in a wheelchair. Text reads: Local councils are doing amazing work to boost mental health. Tell us about your local initiatives that are making a difference.

📢 Local councils can’t make us all mentally healthy. But they can give us the best possible chance of having good mental health.

💡 Across the country, councils are taking action to boost mental health locally. We've drawn together some examples of these projects and policies: tinyurl.com/v9jdv7ue

What does the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey tell us about nation's mental health? - Centre for Mental Health Andy examines the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey, the biggest national survey of mental health among adults living in England

"Our mental health is getting worse. And younger generations are being especially hard hit. What we now need to understand is why, and what can be done to reverse it."

@andybell-centremh.bsky.social considers what we can learn from the new Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 👇 tinyurl.com/3skckzc4

Looking Again: The Quilt, the Gaze, and Queer Remembering David Woodhead reflects on the memories, legacies, and queer histories provoked by viewing- gazing upon- the AIDS memorial quilt in 1994 and in June this year.

Stood before the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt at Tate Modern and felt fury and sorrow coil together. Grief for those lost.
Rage at the silence that let it happen

My blog on remembering—not passively, but defiantly.
Grieving loudly. Loving fiercely. Refusing erasure.
thepolyphony.org/2025/07/02/q...

Ten-year health plan misses the mark for mental health - Centre for Mental Health We've responded to the Government’s ten-year health plan, calling for a more ambitious vision to transform the nation's mental health

The new ten-year health plan makes some positive proposals to improve mental health care - but it falls far short of the transformative vision we need for the nation’s mental health.
Our response in full 👇🧵 www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/news/item/te...

📢 We’re pleased that, after robust challenge from disabled people, charities and politicians, the Government has decided to amend these changes so that people who currently receive PIP are not affected by the cuts. 🧵

Government must lead the way in turning around deteriorating mental health in England, says Centre for Mental Health - Centre for Mental Health We respond to the new Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey, which shows that mental health problems in England have risen

⚠️ Today's new Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey shows that mental health in England has deteriorated in recent years. Rates of common mental health problems have risen sharply, from 17.6% in 2007 to 22.6% in 2024.

We're urging the Government to take action to turn this around tinyurl.com/32wwvhmv

📍The geography of disability benefit cuts & jobs

Some of the places with the highest rates of claims have fewest vacancies to go round.

Cuts will make sick and disabled people poorer.

From @data.ft.com

www.ft.com/content/51d2...

An older Black man is sitting in a wheelchair in a relaxed space having a cup of tea and a slice of cake. He is smiling and in conversation with another older person. Text: Growing the grassroots: The impact of South East London Mind's engagement with voluntary and community organisations

📢 New report: Larger charities can tackle mental health inequalities by working alongside grassroots organisations 👇

Our evaluation of @selmindcharity.bsky.social‬'s programme shows how grant funding enabled community groups to effectively support marginalised communities: tinyurl.com/y8z6979y

"How do I see a doctor?” Screening for mental health problems so that refugees can get the help they need buff.ly/8VGxwLE

Excellent as always from @rrowanolive.bsky.social‬

🧵 THREAD

PIP literally saved my life. Now I fear Labour's benefit cuts will take it all away

Dad-of-four Mike tells Big Issue how his uses the PIP benefit to pay for the therapy that keeps his depression and suicidal ideation at bay.

Changing culture, one voice at a time: MPs speaking out on mental health

“13 years ago, for the first time, sitting MPs spoke about their own experiences of mental illness. Led by Kevan Jones, four MPs detailed past and present experiences of depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, and perinatal depression. Before it, no MP had ever spoken in this way. Indeed, until that same year, people who had been subject to the Mental Health Act were barred from ever standing for Parliament.”

“Thanks to their efforts and those of many thousands of people in other walks of life who have done the same, it is now more possible than ever for people to share their experiences of mental distress without fearing being treated badly or shunned. While this is sadly still not the case for everyone, we’ve come a long way in just over a decade.”

“In her speech, MP Jen Craft called out the othering of people with mental illness which has held back mental health policymaking. Too often, people with mental illness only reach the attention of policymakers when a lack of support leads them to emergency services or the criminal justice system. It’s the same othering that means access and waiting time standards for mental health care are not given the same priority as those for physical health treatment.”

🗣️"People who speak out about their experiences to challenge the othering of mental ill health make a difference one step at a time. They help to foster the culture change that will make mental health equality a possibility one day.”
@andybell-centremh.bsky.social
Read in full 👉 tinyurl.com/y3h8s5pp

Black woman with shoulder-length hair is speaking to a person. Text: Changing culture, one voice at a time: MPs speaking out on mental health

🗯️ 'Changing culture, one voice at a time'

Reflecting on MP Jen Craft's recent speech sharing her lived experience, @andybell-centremh.bsky.social explores the power of MPs speaking out about mental health to fight stigma and foster culture change:
www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/changing-cul...

Disability benefits cuts will have 'catastrophic impact' on mentally ill people

The government's plans to cut disability benefits such as PIP will have a “catastrophic impact” on people’s finances and mental health.

Welfare reforms could worsen health and deepen inequality.⚠️

An impact assessment by our member, @healthfoundation.bsky.social, shows that the government's reforms could make things even worse for the health of millions of vulnerable adults.

🧵1/2

‘mental health A&Es’: Are they really the answer to long waits for urgent care?

Quote: On the face of it, it looks like a good idea. Many existing emergency departments are not safe or suitable places for someone facing a mental health crisis. People in a mental health crisis face much longer waits in A&E than others, and many report negative responses from staff in mainstream crisis services.

Quote: But is a separate ‘mental health A&E’ really the answer to these problems? One of the big difficulties is that we simply don’t know. There is no model to draw on, nor research or evaluation to back it up. Where should these facilities be located? Close to existing A&Es or elsewhere? Who should staff them, and where are those staff going to come from?

Quote: A&E is a place where people with a mental illness have a right to go – just as much as anyone else. And that means not only accepting and meeting the needs of people in a mental health crisis, but adapting the environment and routines of emergency departments to enable that.

🗯️ Are ‘mental health A&Es’ really the answer to long waits for urgent care?

@andybell-centremh.bsky.social sets out the questions that still need resolving, and calls for an evidence-based approach to crisis care that works for everyone who needs it: tinyurl.com/mryhmxhj

Love this thread. suffice to say the middle aged and elderly have been wringing their hands about the feckless young for well over 100 years

Bringing mental health care to the criminal justice system: The development of Mental Health Treatment Requirements - Centre for Mental Health Mignon French explains how Mental Health Treatment Requirements can provide vital support to people entering the criminal justice system.

"By working together, we can build a system that heals rather than punishes."

@mignonrf.bsky.social explains how, by addressing untreated mental health needs among people entering the criminal justice system, Mental Health Treatment Requirements (MHTRs) can change lives and break cycles of crime 👇

RCPsych, joined by leading health and social care organisations, is calling on MPs and the UK Government to reject plans to extend police powers - to detain and restrain people in crisis - to medical practitioners, under reforms of the Mental Health Bill in England and Wales.

Psychological distress over 30 years in Great Britain: the times they are a changin’ (or are they?) buff.ly/qpu4p0f

🧵 THREAD

#MentalHealth #PsychologicalDistress #Surveys #GB #30years

Mental health A&E centres to open across England The plans would allow people in acute mental distress to get treatment in hospital while also reducing A&E wait times.

🗞️ Today we've been speaking about new #MentalHealth crisis centres 👇
While it's clear that people in a mental health crisis need more timely & effective support, it's not so easy to separate out mental & physical health needs - often people in a mental health crisis also need urgent physical care.

YouTube video by Pip Pop & A Pandemic Pip pop and a pandemic

You can learn more about Pauline's story, living with schizophrenia, and her struggles with PIP, in this short film 👇
www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlEo...

Pauline and PIP: The real-life implications of proposed changes to Personal Independence Payment

“For most people, the thought of losing their benefits is just too frightening to contemplate”

🗣️ “For most people, the thought of losing their benefits is just too frightening to contemplate”

Tracy Willits @yorkstjohn.bsky.social considers the deeply worrying effects of proposed changes to #PIP for people living with severe mental illness: tinyurl.com/tb6w4asj #PersonalIndependencePayment

Pauline and PIP: The real-life implications of proposed changes to Personal Independence Payment - Centre for Mental Health Tracy Willits considers the deeply worrying effects of proposed changes to PIP eligibility for people living with severe mental illness

"The benefits system isn’t working. This is an opportunity for the Government to change the system for the better."

Tracy Willits shares Pauline's experience of trying to access #PIP, and sets out the worrying implications of proposed changes for people with severe mental illness.

Promises to fund mental health services at the same level as physical health have yet to be kept Parity of esteem is still a political talking point, but action has lagged.

📢 “We’ve still got a system which defaults towards physical health. Mental health waiting times continue to be relatively hidden, and that is ultimately what holds us back. Waiting time standards, rightly or wrongly, shape where funding goes" - @andybell-centremh.bsky.social for @newstatesman.com 👇

Experiencing mental illness and substance use shouldn’t stop you from accessing the care and support you need. But this is too many people’s reality.

The @centreformh.bsky.social's new report calls for more integrated, compassionate care for all.

www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/publications...

Writing about addiction invites judgement and stigma. Yet I hope my blog reminds us that even in the darkest days, there is always hope #LGBTQ+ #mentalhealthequity #recovery @centreformh.bsky.social @durhamimh.bsky.social @andybell-centremh.bsky.social @aldersonday.bsky.social @literarti.bsky.social

Quote from David Woodhead: "Drugs made me feel connected to the world and to people in ways I had never experienced, easing the sadness I had always known. Stopping drugs was entirely different. There was no relief or certainty in my decision. During early recovery, I slept in my friend’s spare room, screaming in my sleep...  Progress was slow, but by day 99, I began to feel human again. "

Quote from David Woodhead: "A decade of sobriety. With love and support, a combination of services and opportunities, and a dogged and open-minded determination, a new life can be found, one of learning and self-discovery, and better mental health, proving that sometimes things don’t turn out as badly as we might once have feared."

🗣️ "Drugs made me feel connected to the world and to people in ways I had never experienced, easing the sadness I had always known."

@davidwoodhead.bsky.social shares his reflections on a decade of sobriety, the impact of substance use, and the support that enabled his recovery: tinyurl.com/5n8erfjr

Having both mental health and substance use difficulties shouldn’t stop you from accessing care. But this is too many people’s reality. We’re calling for more integrated & compassionate care.

Having both mental health and substance use difficulties shouldn’t stop you from accessing care. But this is too many people’s reality. We’re calling for more integrated, compassionate care so that everyone can get the support they need.
www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/publications...