Shaping the future of care together: the Government's Green Paper on social care

Response from Mind

Mind welcomes the publication of the Green Paper on social care (14 July 2009) and the opportunity to participate in a timely and much-needed debate about the future of social care in England. Social care services are vital to managing long term mental health problems and to preventing crises, as well as supporting recovery, social inclusion and independence for people with lower level needs. It is therefore essential that mental health is not a secondary consideration in the development of any new system.

We are concerned that the Green Paper does not address the considerable barriers to accessing care and support which many people with mental health problems face now. As well as articulating a long term vision for a social care system which better serves the needs of users, there is an urgent need for the Government to take short and medium term action to increase access to a wider range of preventive social care services. This will prove more cost-effective for Government and local authorities in the long run, based on a global cost-benefit analysis.

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