Peterborough sees increase in people accessing mental health services
Peterborough saw an increase in people accessing mental health services last year.
Figures showed that, at the beginning of the 2024/25 financial year, 167 people were accessing Adult Mental Health services compared to 194 at the end of the final quarter.
There was also a rise in those accessing Older People Mental Health services, up from 46 to 56 across the financial year.
The city council delegates the delivery of mental health services and specified statutory duties for people with mental health needs aged 18 years and over to the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust (CPFT) through a partnership agreement.
An annual report on the service and financial performance of this partnership agreement with the CPFT noted that the council invested £1.6 million into it last year and expected this figure to increase in the future.
“Funding for 2025/26 is likely to be increased by an inflationary amount yet to be decided,” the report stated.
“The Deed of Variation is currently being reviewed and will be finalised alongside the contract extension proposed.
“The contract is made up of staffing costs and a management overhead comprising shared staff management at Head of Service and above, training overhead and an ancillary amount.”
In terms of performance, the proportion of Peterborough adults in contact with secondary mental health services in paid employment, aged 18-69, was 8% compared to a national target of 12.5%.
This was an improvement from the position published by NHS England in 2023/24 (3.4%), but the regional average was higher at 14%.
The council was also behind target with the proportion of adults in contact with secondary mental health services living independently with or without support, with a target of 75% but only achieving 29%.
This was another improvement from the position at the end of 2023/2024 (12.5%), but again the regional average was much higher at 51.4%.
The council’s Prevention, Independence and Resilience Scrutiny Committee is recommended to endorse the annual report of the Mental Health Section 75 Partnership Agreement at a meeting on November 4.