BREAKING NEWS: Share of mental health spend to fall again
Health and social care secretary Wes Streeting has announced mental health share of NHS spending will drop for the third consecutive year.
Wes Streeting (c) Alamy
In a House of Commons statement today, Streeting said the proportion of overall NHS spend allocated to mental health in 2026-27 is forecast to be 8.4%, 0.28 percentage points lower than in 2025-26.
Streeting said: ‘This is a consequence of significant additional investment in other core areas, including those that benefit mental health services such as the substantial amounts going into NHS technology and digital transformation, general practice, community-based services and neighbourhood health centres.’
Real terms spending on mental health is forecast to rise by around £140m to a record £16.1bn.
|
Mental health share of NHS spend |
|
|
2022–23 |
8.87% |
|
2023–24 |
9.0% |
|
2024–25 |
8.78% |
|
2025–26 |
8.68% |
|
2026-27 |
8.40% |
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Andy Bell, chief executive of the Centre for Mental Health, said: ‘At a time when more people than ever are seeking help, mental health cannot continue to receive a shrinking share of funding.
‘Investment in new facilities is positive but without sustained funding for the workforce and frontline services, new centres risk becoming empty shells. If the Government is serious about boosting the nation’s mental health and expanding community support, mental health must receive a fairer and growing share of NHS funding.’
Rebecca Gray, mental health director speaking on behalf of the NHS Confederation and NHS Providers, said: ‘Today’s figures show a drop in planned share of total NHS spend allocated to mental health for the third year running. The obligation for ministers to report to Parliament annually on this data supports a long-standing recognition by successive Governments that underfunding mental health is not just bad for patients but for wider communities and for the economy.
‘Having effective mental health services is central to ensuring well performing neighbourhood-based healthcare to deliver against the Government’s ambition for a shift towards toward community based, preventive, and early intervention support. Without this, that shift risks being jeopardised.’
