NHS England’s Clinical Director for Mental Health, Geraldine Strathdee has welcomed the launch of a new mental health resource which describes what personalised, coordinated care and support looks like.

Mental health services should consider “who I am, what’s important to me, how I wish to be supported and how people behave with me” – according to the new resource launched today by Think Local Act Personal (TLAP) and National Voices.

“No Assumptions – A Narrative for Personalised, Coordinated Care and Support in Mental Health” describes the critical outcomes and success factors in the care, support and treatment of people who use mental health services, from their perspective.

Mrs Geraldine Strathdee said:  “I very much welcome the launch of this new programme, which is a ‘must read’ for anyone commissioning and delivering mental health services. People with lived experience of mental ill health tell us what fundamentally matters to them, and the type of collaborative, empowering, effective and safe care they want.

“As we have seen this past year, there is no more powerful advocacy for mental health care in England, than the voice of users telling us about their experiences and how they manage full lives while living with mental health conditions.

“This resource also provides examples of ‘what good looks like’ in practice and how services can reach the NICE quality standard for user experience. I very much look forward to hearing more from patient voice to help us realise our new ambition which is to provide integrated physical and mental health care in settings and conditions.”

The narrative will help NHS and council commissioners and providers of services to organise person-centred care and recovery-oriented support for mental and physical health and to know when they are achieving it.

It was commissioned and endorsed by NHS England, and will be shared with the 13 other national system-leading organisations in the integrated care and support collaborative, including the Department of Health, ADASS, LGA and the health and social care regulators.

No Assumptions has been co-produced with people who have lived experience of mental illness from TLAP’s National Co-production Advisory Group, together with organisations including the National Survivor User Network, Mind, Rethink Mental Illness and Certitude. It includes a number of case studies that show how good personalised, coordinated care in mental health services can be achieved around England.