A-Z of mental health
Information and advice on a huge range of mental health topics
The All Party Parliamentary Group on Mental Health
The All Party Parliamentary Group on Mental Health (APPGMH) is a group of MPs and Peers from all political parties who are interested in mental health.
The group meets in parliament about five times a year and hears from guest speakers including psychologists, psychiatrists, GPs and other medical professionals, people with mental health problems and Ministers responsible for policies, such as welfare reform or criminal justice.
The APPGMH is chaired by Charles Walker MP and the vice chairs are Andrea Leadsom MP and Alison Seabeck MP. Mind, Rethink Mental Illness and the Royal College of Psychiatrists support the group with administrative tasks.
- Meetings in 2012/13: Spotlight on provision and access
- Meetings in 2012/12: Inquiry on NHS Reforms
- APPGMH Archive
- MPs and Staffers guide to mental health
Meetings in 2012/13: Spotlight on provision and access
The APPGMH's meetings this year will focus on the provision of mental health services and access to them. The aim is to determine how well services are meeting the needs of people with mental health problems and where improvements could be made to: crisis care services; schizophrenia care; and services for BME communities.
- February 2013: Schizophrenia Commission meeting:
The APPGMH met to discuss the findings of the Schizophrenia Commission's report: 'The Abandoned Illness'. The notes from this session will be available to download soon. - October 2012: Crisis Care services. In 2011 Mind’s ‘Listening to Experience’ report found that while good care does exist, too often people faced barriers in accessing help and were not treated with dignity or respect. A year on, the APPG wanted what know what good crisis care looks like: what services are currently available to people when they need emergency care? Do services meet people’s needs and help them recover? Do they treat their patients with dignity and respect?
Meetings in 2011/12: Inquiry on NHS reforms
In 2011/12 the APPGMH carried out an inquiry on the impact of NHS reforms on mental health services. The inquiry took evidence from people with mental health problems; voluntary sector service providers, including Mind; health professionals and the Minister for Care Services.
In July 2012 the APPGMH launched its report of the inquiry. The report sets out why mental, physical and social care services need to be better integrated, and makes recommendations to improve the commissioning of mental health services.
Download the APPGMH's NHS reform inquiry report >
APPGMH Archive
In 2008 the APPGMH surveyed MPs, Peers and their staff members to find out how much they understood about mental health, and how many of them had direct experience of a mental health problem.
One in five of the MPs who responded said they had had a mental health problem. 80% of MPs and Peers said they were interest in mental health issues.
Download the full mental health in parliament report >
MPs and Staffers guide to mental health
Mind, Rethink Mental Illness and the Royal College of Psychiatrists have produced a booklet which sets out practical ways for MPs and staffers to support constituents with mental health problems.
The booklet is endorsed by the APPGMH.