The Maternal Mental Health Alliance have launched a new briefing (commissioned by the Maternal Mental Health Alliance (MMHA) and produced by Centre for Mental Health), which explains the steps needed to support maternal mental health and highlights the key areas in need of immediate action.
On page 8 of the report, one of the Key areas for action talks about the role of VCS organisations and how ICS can work with them:
"Statutory health and care services are not always able to reach everyone who needs support with their mental health. For the most marginalised and oppressed groups in society especially, voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations and user-led groups provide more accessible and relevant support (Commission for Equality in Mental Health, 2020). Peer support and mutual aid groups are essential elements of an equitable and holistic approach to maternal mental health.
Services delivered by VCS organisations work well when they are embedded in local or national clinical services. This helps to ensure there is a clear referral pathway and parents receive the information and support they need.
VCS organisations must be funded fairly for delivering perinatal mental health support, with sustainable investment that allows them to develop their capacity and maximise their potential as well as to deliver services through contract income.
Voluntary and community sector organisations are not only essential providers of mental health support. They also play an important role as advocates for their communities, and they hold vital information for population health management strategies and service planning. Systems can benefit from working in partnership with VCS organisations in the planning of perinatal mental health services. This requires funding streams that enable organisations to build the capacity to engage independently in service development processes.
Integrated care boards should reach out to relevant VCS organisations to include them as partners in decision-making about perinatal mental health support. As in other areas of health care, this should mean VCS organisations are included within systems’ governance structures, population health management strategies, and service design processes (Gilburt and Ross, 2023)."