Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans the Government has to allocate new capital investment to modernise the mental health estate, as recommended by the Independent Review of the Mental Health Act, published 6 December 2018.

Improving mental health is at the heart of this Government’s agenda and capital investment to modernise the mental health estate is a key part of the Government’s ambition to achieve greater parity between physical and mental health care.

The Government has announced investments of over £400 million in improving the mental health estate since July 2017. Most recently this included £72.3 million for Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust to develop a new adult mental health inpatient unit and £33 million to Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust for a 40-bed low secure unit for people with learning disabilities, both of which were included in the £850 million capital funding for 20 hospital upgrades announced by the Prime Minister on 5 August. In addition, the Department spent almost £19 million capital last year on central programmes to support mental health services. This includes schemes to deliver Perinatal Mental Health Mother and Baby Units to deliver more personalised care to expectant and new mums with serious mental ill health.

As set out in the new Health Infrastructure Plan on 30 September, the Government is committed to making further strategic investments to modernise mental health facilities, which will be confirmed when the Department receives a multiyear capital settlement at the next capital review.