Newly elected Liverpool City Region Mayor, Steve Rotheram discussed the importance of effective mental health provision at a University of Liverpool Management School hosted event.
The former Walton MP, who appeared alongside University Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Civic Engagement, Professor Michael Parkinson, spoke about the need to transform public attitudes towards mental health, estimated to effect one in four people in the UK.
He considered the correlation between mental health and social policy issues such as housing and education and referred to his election campaign, where improving mental health provision was highlighted.
Steve Rotheram said: “There are changes and challenges for policy makers around the mental health services on offer, which interconnects with other social issues including housing and education.
“Political parties have to commit to mental health services and I am delighted that Labour has made pledges in its manifesto which aim to tackle mental health and improve the services that are available.
“I would like to thank the University of Liverpool for organising and hosting this event and for inviting me to speak.”
The Working Conversations Conference: What would an effective mental health service look like? was organised by Dr Pippa Hunter-Jones and Liz Crolley to share research and engage in knowledge exchange with the wider community.
The academics, alongside Postgraduate Researcher, Katie Neary; BA Marketing student, Ella Burgoyne and Psychological Therapies Unit practitioner, Steve Flatt, are working on a collaborative five year project that seeks to re-vision and re-model mental health services to more effectively meet current and future needs.
Service commissioners, providers and GPs also delivered speeches and interactive sessions around improving mental health provision.
The event was opened by Management School Director, Professor Julia Balogun and also featured talks by comedian, physicist and writer, Neil Hughes; GP Dr Neil Paul; poet and playwright, Emma McGordon and clinical psychologist, Dr Suzi Curtis.
Each spoke of their own personal experience of mental health and their views on the most effective ways to achieve better provision.