Significant Mental Health Service

Description

NHS Frimley ICB ("the Commissioner") sought to commission Citizens Advice Berkshire to provide a Significant Mental Health Service. This service has been commissioned as a model that supports access to an advisory service for all people with a significant mental health problem in the least restrictive, de-stigmatising way, whilst supporting the implementation of a 'recovery' focused approach at all times. The aims and objectives of the service include: • Evidence of alleviation of distress caused by concerns associated with debt, benefits, housing and employment issues through the user satisfaction surveys and any outcome management tools. • Access to support and advice in a timely manner to directly address socially determined triggers for a mental health crisis. • To improve the quality of life for adults with a mental health illness through access to a specialist service tailored to the client group, providing free, independent, confidential, and impartial advice for people who due to their illness are inhibited from using general advisory services at that point in time. • Support, educate and raise awareness to ensure people with mental health problems are appropriately supported within general advisory services. • Support clients to obtain additional and appropriate benefits to assist independence, support quality of life and recovery. • Manage and reduce the debt burden of clients with a mental illness. • Support resolution of housing or employment issues that may have a negative impact on their independence and mental well-being. • Raise local and national awareness of the types of problems encountered by clients of the service. • Reduce anxiety and stress by ensuring that clients that would benefit from support are able to access an advisor, or supported to do so, prior to escalation of their issues having a detrimental effect on their mental health. Lot 1: NHS Frimley ICB ("the Commissioner") sought to commission Citizens Advice Berkshire to provide a Significant Mental Health Service. The Commissioner is directly awarding a contract to the existing provider Citizens Advice Berkshire in accordance with the criteria outlined in Regulation (14) (2) (c) "delaying the award of the contract or modification to satisfy the requirements of regulations 6 to 13 would be likely to pose a risk to patient or public safety" of the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023 Urgent Award Situation. The total value of the contract for the 12 month contract term is £120,000. 00. The contract period is 1st July 2024 - 30th June 2025. The service delivers a specialist advisory service to clients with significant mental health problems in the community who are unable to access, or be successfully supported by more generic community services, namely Citizens Advice (CA). If people can be supported by mainstream CA services, this will be the first point of contact and support. The service delivers a high level of specialist expertise in relation to debt, welfare benefits, housing, and employment (in conjunction with IPS) advice to patients with significant mental ill health and is an essential part of the supportive infrastructure, maintaining people's independence and wellbeing, making this an essential service on the recovery pathway across Frimley. The service provides support to those facing the biggest health inequalities across East Berkshire and is well integrated with existing services. The reality is that without this service the existing services in the system would not have the capacity to provide the intense support required to this cohort to help people avoid homelessness, clear debts, and claim benefits to enable ongoing self-management. There would likely be crisis escalation and further strain would be put on existing services which we know are already working at full capacity meaning this cohort would likely experience damaging outcomes. This procurement has been carried out by NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit (SCW) on behalf of the Commissioners.