Mental Health JSNA

Evidence base

This section provides links and a brief summary of a robust evidence base. For example, peer-reviewd studies, systematic revies, evaluations of interventions and best practice guidelines from national sources.

This section provides links and a brief summary of robust evidence base. This would usually come from national sources (e.g. Government departments, Office for National Statistics, NICE, NHS Evidence).

All evidence must be relevant to the strategic issues (box 6).

Examples include:

Peer-reviewed studies
Systematic reviews
Evaluations of interventions
Best practice guidelines

Issue number 1 = highest priority
1	Source	Department of Health and Social Care
	Title incl. web link	Suicide prevention strategy for England: 2023 to 2028 Suicide prevention strategy for England: 2023 to 2028 - GOV.UK
	Summary	Encourages local authorities to lead multi-agency partnerships and develop tailored action plans. Advice includes: Use local data to identify risk groups Build partnerships across health, social care, police and voluntary sectors Address social determinants like poverty, debt and isolation.
	Source	NHS England
	Title incl. web link	Self-harm and suicide prevention Self-harm and suicide prevention \| NHS England \| Workforce, training and education
	Summary	S series of frameworks developed by Health Education England and the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health. It includes competency frameworks for practitioners and offers e-learning resources for professionals and volunteers.
2	Source	Mental Health Foundation
	Title incl. web link	Tackling social inequalities to reduce mental health problems: How everyone can flourish equally MHF-tackling-inequalities-report.pdf
	Summary	States that international and UK experts agree that action to reduce the prevalence and impact of mental health problems must occur in sectors beyond mental health. The UN Special Rapporteur on Health has said that mental health must be reflected in policies concerning general health, education, poverty reduction, violence prevention, etc. The World Health Organisation has said that action to address social inequalities and “improve the conditions of daily life” throughout the life course can help to improve the mental health of the population and reduce the risk of mental health problems.
	Source	Centre for Mental Health
	Title incl. web link	Policies for better mental health CentreforMH_PoliciesForBetterMentalHealth.pdf
	Summary	A briefing that makes the case for a cross-government mental health policy test to ensure a net-positive impact of all policies on mental health. Policy testing and impact assessments are widely used in local, regional and national government to improve policy production and decision making. Policy testing has been linked to positive health impacts and could have prevented policies which are detrimental for people with mental ill health.
3	Source	Local Government Association
	Title incl. web link	Mental health Mental health: how do you know your council is doing all it can to improve mental health
	Summary	Local authorities should lead through Health and Wellbeing Boards and promote joined-up strategies across NHS, councils, VCSEs and service users. Use Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships or Integrated Care Systems to coordinate efforts.
	Source	NHS Confederation
	Title incl. web link	Maximising the potential of digital in mental health Maximising the potential of digital in mental health \| NHS Confederation
	Summary	Digital technologies, platforms and applications have an important role to play in improving the mental health of the population and the delivery of health services. Highlights digitals role in early intervention, reducing inequalities and scaling access. It calls for collaboration, clarity and coordination across systems.
4	Source	NHS England
	Title incl. web link	NHS helps tens of thousands of people with mental health problems into work NHS England » NHS helps tens of thousands of people with mental health problems into work
	Summary	Over 40,000 people supported into work via employment advisors. Combines therapy with career coaching to reduce anxiety and depression.
	Source	NHS Confederation
	Title incl. web link	Ensuring appropriate employment support for people with mental health problems BRIEFING_Ensuring appropriate employment support_FNL.pdf
	Summary	Emphasises parallel clinical and employment support. Advocates for individual placement support (IPS) and social prescribing. Notes the link between unemployment and suicide risk