BASW signs joint letter urging more transparency and consultation in Mental Health Workforce Plan

BASW has joined four other organisations in writing to the CEO of Health Education England (HEE) and the NHS’s National Mental Health Director about the lack of attention to social workers and allied health professionals in the publication of Stepping Forward to 2020/21: Mental Health Workforce Plan for England.

The letter expresses BASW’s concern over the negative effect on the public from focusing on a small section of the mental health workforce while ignoring the considerable contribution made by the wider workforce.

BASW, along with the signatories, are the urging HEE and NHS to engage and collaborate with all professions and experts from the wider mental health workforce moving forward to ensure the strategy provides an accurate and agreed reflection of their potential contribution and provides the best outcomes for service users.

The letter is signed by BASW alongside the British Psychological Society, the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, the UK Council for Psychotherapy and the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, and can be viewed here