Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Written Statement of 5 December 2024 on Plan for Change: Milestones for mission-led government, HCWS285 and the Chapter on An NHs Fit for the Future, if he will publish plans to reduce waiting times for mental health services.

Our 10-Year Health Plan will inform the future vision and delivery plan for mental health services in England. Earlier intervention remains a key focus of the plan, with the aim of reducing pressure on mental health services.

The Government is delivering new and innovative models of care in the community. We have launched six neighbourhood adult mental health centres that are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to bring together community, crisis, and inpatient care.

NHS England’s Planning Guidance for 2025/26 makes clear that for this year, to support reform and improvements, we expect all providers to reduce the variation in children and young people accessing services and improve productivity.

We are also improving data quality so we can support providers in understanding demand across their areas. Since July 2023, NHS England has included waiting time metrics for referrals to urgent and community-based mental health services in its monthly mental health statistics publication, to help services target the longest waits.