Data analysed by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, shared with HSJ, shows that mental health funding has dropped in four STP footprints as a proportion of the total allocations given to the CCGs in each patch between 2015-16 and 2016-17.

The data comes from NHS England’s mental health dashboard, which was published last year to show how commissioners fare against finance and performance indicators.

Nine more STPs have increased their investment in mental health by less than 2 per cent and a total of 15 have done so by less than 3 per cent.

Increasing mental health spending at least in line with increases CCGs’ overall budgets is NHS England’s key measure for assessing whether commissioners are upholding the policy of “parity of esteem” for mental and physical health.

While none of the individual CCGs in the four STPs were actually decreasing their total mental health spending, the college’s analysis shows that many of them were failing to increase their spending as mandated by national guidance.

Map: Percentage change in mental health planned spend from 2015-16 to 2016-17 by STP area

Key

  • Red = negative percentage change
  • Amber = less than 3 per cent increase
  • Green = more than 3 per cent increase

Map produced by the Royal College of Psychiatrists

Topics

Exclusive: Where mental health spending misses national target