Sussex Staying Well Services

Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, on behalf of NHS Sussex, is commissioning a community-based mental health crisis support service—Staying Well—to provide an alternative to Emergency Departments. The service will offer a safe, psychologically informed environment for individuals aged 18+ experiencing mental distress or self-defined crisis, including those not meeting secondary care thresholds.

Delivered jointly with VCSE partners, the service focuses on prevention, peer support, and bridging gaps between primary and secondary care, in line with the NHS Long Term Plan and Mental Health Five Year Forward View. The NHS Long Term Plan and Mental Health Five Year Forward View requires 24/7 community-based crisis response services, redesigned across whole systems to ensure delivery of a seamless support services that lessen and/or avert a mental health crisis, reducing the need for acute support services.

The Crisis Care Concordat includes the aim of easy access to support and a quick response from service providers and in particular reach marginalised or seldom heard groups, offering a service to people who would otherwise be disqualified, or would either avoid or choose not to engage with statutory health services. Historically most people experiencing mental distress outside of GP working hours have found themselves struggling to find support and often end up accessing Emergency Departments (EDs) or contacting Police and Ambulance services.

The Staying Well service in Sussex is a joint service offer from both VCSE providers and Sussex Partnership Foundation Trust (SPFT). The Staying Well service provides an alternative to EDs by offering support to people with mental health difficulties, and those experiencing self-defined crisis, a space for people to build upon their existing skills and identify their strengths to support their recovery offering the opportunity for people accessing the service to learn and support each other through peer support or staff-led groups.

Some people who experience mental health crisis do not have a formal diagnosis and have on-going difficulties that do not meet the secondary mental healthcare threshold. A Staying Well service can support them, alongside their GP in bridging the gap between primary and secondary care.

SPFT are Commissioning, on behalf of NHS Sussex, an alternative, but complimentary service, to the statutory services currently on offer for people who are in mental distress and self-defined crisis, with the aim of reducing the need of people to attend ED and to gain support and reduce the use of emergency and acute mental health services by preventing crises escalating. The Service will offer a safe, supportive and psychologically informed environment that is conducive to reducing emotional and psychological distress, promoting independence, and assist in the recovery for everyone, aged 18 and over, who is in mental health distress or experiencing a crisis, including a self-defined crisis whose needs are not best met by other available services.

Staying Well is a departure from traditional models of care and service delivery as it focuses on community engagement, and accessibility for all and a preventative approach, rather than diagnosis and treatment. Additional information: The authority has identified Way through as the most suitable provider based on their ability to deliver high-quality, integrated, and accessible services that meet the needs of the population. This notice is published in accordance with the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023.