Black people four times more likely to be detained under Mental Health Act, report finds

A new report reveals the profound inequalities ethnic minority groups face in their ability to access mental health services, their experiences of them, and the subsequent outcomes.

This year’s Annual Report of the Director of Public Health looks at the mental health inequalities faced by people from ethnic minorities in Wandsworth. 

The report, titled Enough is Enough, calls on local health services and all members of the Wandsworth community to work together to create meaningful change.

Evidence shows that, compared to those from White ethnic backgrounds, people from Black African and Black Caribbean groups are more likely to access mental health services through the criminal justice system than through their GP.

These groups are less likely to receive a referral to talking therapies and are twice as likely to have police involvement during inpatient admissions than people from white ethnic backgrounds.

Its is four times more likely for a black person to be detained under the Mental Health Act and be subject to community treatment orders than a white person.

The report also looks at work being done by organisations, services and individuals in Wandsworth to improve outcomes for ethnic minorities and calls for these to be supported to expand, grow and further evolve.

Wandsworth councillor Graeme Henderson said: “This is an impactful report that does not shy away from delivering some hard-hitting truths. It is a call to all of us to work together to create a fairer, more compassionate borough and deliver the changes that our ethnic minority communities need and deserve.”

Pictured top: Wandsworth council (Picture: Sian Bayley)