THE government plans to help two million extra people gain access to mental health services as part of a five-pronged attack on waiting times.

The new waiting time guarantees that have been released today are:

• For an urgent referral to a community based mental health crisis service, a patient should be seen within 24 hours from referral, across all ages

• For a very urgent referral to a community based mental health crisis service, a patient should be seen within four hours from referral, for all age groups

• Patients referred from Accident and Emergency should be seen face to face within one hour, by mental health liaison or children and young people‘s equivalent service

• Children, young people and their families/carers presenting to community-based mental health services, should start to receive care within four weeks from referral. This may involve immediate advice, support or a brief intervention, help to access another more appropriate service, the start of a longer-term intervention or agreement about a patient care plan, or the start of a specialist assessment that may take longer and

• Adults and older adults presenting to community-based mental health services should start to receive help within four weeks from referral. This may involve the start of a therapeutic intervention or a social intervention, or agreement about a patient care plan.

Minister for Mental Health Nadine Dorries said: “I am absolutely committed to supporting everyone’s mental health and these proposals are a crucial step forwards in ensuring vital treatment can be accessed quickly.

“This work complements our mental health recovery action plan – supported by £500 million – which ensures we offer the right support over the coming year to help people with a variety of mental health conditions.

“We have also provided £2.3 billion a year – the largest increase in mental health funding in NHS history – to expand and transform services in England, which will help 2 million more people to access mental health services by 2023/24.”