New figures on the Mental Health Act in 2023/24 underline the need for whole-system reforms to address its unequal use, Centre for Mental Health said today.
While overall rates of detention under the Mental Health Act remain similar to previous years, at 52,458 a year, the data continues to show gaping disparities in use of the Act, with Black people and people living in areas of highest deprivation still nearly four times as likely to be sectioned. Black people are also more than eight times as likely as white people to receive a Community Treatment Order (which means that they are still subject to the Act when they leave hospital).
The figures reveal a stark postcode lottery, with people in North Central London being five times more likely to be detained under the Act than people in Somerset.
The Government has committed to reforming the Mental Health Act in the King’s Speech, and we welcome this commitment. We call on the Government to ensure its reforms fully implement the 2018 Independent Review of the Act and include urgently needed capital funding for mental health care to replace the outdated and unsafe buildings that are too often used for people who are subject to the Act.
Centre for Mental Health chief executive, Andy Bell, said: “These latest figures expose the unacceptable inequalities which are inherent within the outdated Mental Health Act. The current Act – now more than 40 years old – reinforces mental health inequalities, with its disproportionate use among racialised communities and particularly Black people. Changes to better safeguard people’s rights and dignity are long overdue.
“It’s imperative that a Mental Health Bill is introduced as soon as possible, so that people receive fairer, safer and more compassionate care when they’re struggling with their mental health.
“Wider reforms are also needed to tackle the racial injustices within mental health, which are so apparent in today’s data. The Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework, now mandated in every NHS mental health care provider, is a critical element of this. It must be given the priority, the time and the resources it needs to make a sustained impact on mental health services nationwide.
“Addressing racial disparities in the Mental Health Act goes beyond reforming the Act itself. It also means providing culturally competent talking therapies, building trust with community groups, and co-designing support alongside racialised communities.
“Underpinning all of these reforms, the Government must recognise the undeniable and toxic impact that poverty and deprivation have on people’s mental health. Vital reforms to legislation and services must be matched by broader cross-government action to tackle poverty, racism and inequality that cause so much poor mental health.”
