Chloe Smith MP seeks urgent meetings with CCG and NSFT over funding cuts to Mental Health Support Line

Chloe Smith, Member of Parliament for Norwich North has today written to the Norwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) seeking an urgent meeting following the announcement that Norwich and Central Norfolk Mind Charity will not continue to receive funding for their mental health line.

 

Chloe is seeking urgent meetings on behalf of the charity with the CCG and NSFT to see whether additional funding can be found.

 

The announcement on 15^th February confirmed that the Norwich and Central Norfolk Mind Charity will not continue to receive funding after 31^st March 2016. Since 1^st August 2015, the mental health support line has taken near to 5,000 calls, a service which Norwich Mind has argued has kept many people out of acute mental health beds and A&E.

 

Chloe comments: “I am extremely concerned to hear this news and I am seeking urgent meetings with Norwich CCG and the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust to discuss this decision and what other alternatives might be available.  Central government has made funding available so that mental and physical health are to be treated equally, and I want to make sure this happens in Norwich.”

 

Last year Norwich Mind were also threatened with the possibility of lack of continued funding from the CCG.  Chloe successfully campaigned on their behalf to for funds to be continued.