We will continue the joint work with Sheffield Health and Social Care National Health Service Foundation Trust (NHSFT) on service redesign in community and acute mental health services and will work with them to:

• Reduce waiting times and ensure follow up is delivered closer to home
• Increase the focus on prevention, recovery and independence 
• Ensure that people with mental ill health, learning disability and dementia are able to access health services to reduce health inequalities and premature mortality
• Develop the Community Enhanced Recovery Team (CERT), enabling patients currently housed out of city to return and reduce the need for referrals to out of city placements in the future
• Improve the levels of liaison psychiatry working within Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust A&E department supporting patients with physical and mental health co-morbidities, promoting integrated care and reducing admission levels and lengths of stay through onward referral to community teams
• Develop mental health cluster specifications and care pathways to enable a more outcome based focus to service provision
• Continue to improve the acute care pathway and improve the acute in patient accommodation
• Further improve the delivery of Community Learning Disability Services, aligning these closer with primary care
• Bring people with learning disability back to live closer to their families, and reduce out of city placements as per the Winterbourne Concordat

You can take a look at our five-year plan on our commissioning intentions here.

Your Mental Health

Useful information and resources for mental health and learning disabilities can be found in the 'Your Health' section of our website. Including a free booklet for helping you to talk to your GP about mental health, links to the Signpost Sheffield website for people with learning disabilities and their carers, and information on the Complain for Change campaign.

• Click here for the mental health page
• Click here for the learning disabilities page
• NHS Autism

24-hour Helpline

A 24-hour/seven day helpline for anyone affected by mental health issues is available. It was created in response to requests from service users and can provide valuable support and signposting for both service users and carers.

The number is 0808 801 0440 and is free from mobiles and landlines.

Dr Steve Thomas, Clinical Director for Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Dementia 

"I took up the role of clinical portfolio lead for the Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Dementia Portfolio in 2012 and have been involved in service redesign, delivery of primary care education and contract negotiation for the clinical portfolio. I am very pleased to have been appointed to the role of clinical director, alongside my colleagues, which means that there is increased clinical influence in how the CCG does it's business, not only within the CCG, but importantly with other key organisations such as the City Council. I am particularly keen to see a reduction in the inequalities we see (for example, life expectancy) in mental illness and to see mental ill health treated on a par with physical illnesses."