Inclusion and community: the work of a cross-sectoral UK programme to deliver inclusion policy

INTRODUCTION: In the UK, action across government on social inclusion has been a key feature of mental health policy since 2004. Its effective delivery at local level depends upon integrated action with and between services, their users, mainstream agencies and communities. DESCRIPTION: UK policy to address the exclusion faced by people with mental health problems was set out in the report of the Social Exclusion Unit in 2004 [1] and subsequently in a report of the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit [2]. Implementation of this policy has been led by the National Social Inclusion Programme (NSIP) [3]. Addressing the social exclusion faced by people with mental health problems in many life domains and removing barriers to their participation as active citizens in the multiple communities of which they are a part requires action which is highly integrated and co-produced, across government, within mental health services and with the communities that they serve. The session describes the experience of NSIP in meeting this challenge with-in the complex organisational environment of England’s health and social care system. It reviews the outcomes of the programme and describes the structured mix of national, regional and local action programme that has been necessary to these outcomes. It details the importance of innovative leadership, cultural change in the workforce and new forms of engagement with communities in bringing about inclusion outcomes. It outlines the national and international development of networked university/service partnerships as a means of achieving these goals through evidence and practice.