Urgent answers needed on funding for ‘Right Care, Right Person’ mental health strategy

The Secretary of State must end uncertainty about funding for the delivery of RCRP, say MPs. The committee is concerned that police forces across the country are proceeding with implementation regardless of the readiness of health systems and questions over where the necessary funding, estimated at £260 million, will come from.

The Committee also raises concerns over what appears to be ‘a total lack of evaluation in terms of health outcomes or services’. MPs are calling for robust monitoring and evaluation to be put in place ‘to ensure patient safety, consistency and that people don’t fall through the cracks.’

Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee Steve Brine MP said:

“I’m encouraged that NHS England is asking all Integrated Care Boards about the challenges they anticipate on providing these services and what resources will be needed. This work cannot happen quickly enough.

“We’re calling on the Government to provide much needed certainty about funding for the roll-out of RCRP in this month’s Autumn Statement on the key question about whether new funding will be provided, or whether it will need to be found from existing budgets.

“It is right that people experiencing a crisis receive the right care from the most appropriate person. However, measures to evaluate the success of this new national model from a health perspective appear to be missing. It’s not enough to know that the changes will save police officer hours, they must also be demonstrably serving the interests of the patients who rely on mental health services in their hour of need.”

Further information

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Image: UK Parliament/Tyler Allicock