Wednesday, 10th October marked World Mental Health Day which this Government marked with the appointment of the first ever Minister for Suicide Prevention. Two days later, I visited Northampton’s world-leading mental health facility St Andrew’s to meet and discuss the issue of mental health with their new CEO Katie Fisher. It was my first chance to see their state of the art Cliftonville site.
St Andrew’s is a charity (registered charity number 1104951) that provides specialist mental health care for people with challenging mental health issues. The charity was founded in 1838 and now employs more than 4,500 people across four locations, providing specialist care for up to 900 people. The majority of their patients are referred to them via the NHS and receive care in a number of areas such as men’s and women’s mental health; child and adolescent mental health services, neuropsychiatry; autistic spectrum disorder; and learning disabilities.
I had a very positive discussion with the new CEO in which we discussed ways society can help people with mental health issues as well as the ways in which St Andrew’s is growing and developing. I truly believe that mental health should be at a parity with physical health and I will continue to support causes and initiatives to ensure this is the reality.