The Care Quality Commission has published its State of Care report, an annual assessment of health and social care services across England. 

Mark Winstanley, Chief Executive of Rethink Mental Illness, said:

“Everyone across the mental health sector is working desperately hard to keep services afloat in the face of rising demand and there is progress being made. But as this report testifies, as do the experiences of people up and down the country, access to care is too limited and the quality of that care is under strain.

"Sustained funding is part of the solution, plus the training of more mental health professionals to work in the sector, but this on its own won’t improve the quality of care. We also need to see promised reform of the Mental Health Act to improve people’s rights and we ultimately need to reduce demand on mental health services by challenging the societal drivers of mental illness, which is why a cross government approach to mental health is desperately required. If you can imagine someone being discharged from hospital to a cold home with little money for food, estranged from friends or family, it is no surprise that they will remain at risk of crisis.” 

Read more about the quality of health and social care across England in the CQC's annual report.