Mental Health for All? The Final Report of the Commission for Equality in Mental Health

Some groups of people have far poorer mental health than others, often reflecting social disadvantage. In many cases, those same groups of people have less access to effective and relevant support for their mental health. And when they do get support, their experiences and outcomes are often poorer, in some circumstances causing harm. This “triple barrier” of mental health inequality affects large numbers of people from different sections of the population.

Mental health inequalities cause harm to individuals, families, communities and society as a whole, and reducing them will have multiple benefits: better lives, a fairer society, and a stronger economy.

While mental health has become a higher profile policy imperative in the last two decades, the deep inequalities that cause mental health difficulties, and the stark inequalities in people’s access to and experiences of mental health services, have been hidden in plain sight. The Covid-19 pandemic has brought these injustices to the surface. But it also creates a unique window of opportunity for a new start.