Data reveals strain placed on Crawley ambulances by crumbling mental health services

Figures released by Labour today show that 41,940 calls were made to South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust regarding people experiencing mental health emergencies in 2021/22.

In the last decade, the Government have cut a quarter of mental health beds across the country, leading to thousands of local people being stuck on waiting lists for treatment. Often, when experiencing a crisis, people call 999 and are taken to A&E – where they often have to wait days for treatment.

During the 2021/22 period, ambulance staff and paramedics took 31,158 mental health sick days, a rise of 54% since before the pandemic.

Following a difficult winter, ambulance services have experienced unprecedented delays and strain. A lack of investment in mental health services is only increasing this.

Labour have a preventative plan for mental health services, putting patient care first and getting waiting lists down. The next Labour Government will recruit thousands more mental health staff, guaranteeing treatment within a month, providing access to a mental health professional in every school.

These figures demonstrate just how much our community is suffering after 13 years of Conservative Government.  Our fantastic frontline NHS staff deserve better – as do patients. Only Labour will put the mental health needs of our community first, opening mental health hubs for children and young people locally and making sure that all of our local schools have access to a mental health professional – prevention in action.