Government announces 100 community mental health centres and 59 mental health emergency departments, with the first sites opening from autumn 2026 and more from March 2027.
The Department of Health and Social Care and the Prime Minister's Office have announced plans for up to 159 new NHS mental health facilities across England, backed by £343 million. The press release was published on 5 August 2026 and last updated on 10 September 2026.
The plan has two parts:
The release describes the rollout as the biggest redesign of mental health services in a generation and as the first phase of a wider rollout set out in the 10 Year Health Plan. It states that around 1 in 5 people experience a common mental health condition each year, and that demand has risen sharply, particularly among children and young people.
The release says the community centres will bring mental health and specialist teams together under one roof, working alongside GPs, councils, the voluntary sector and families, with direct links into housing and employment support. Some will be newly built. Others will be in libraries, banks and other community or high-street locations.
All are to be in the heart of the neighbourhoods they serve and designed as welcoming settings with a non-clinical appearance. There are currently 6 community-based mental health centres operating in England, including one in Sheffield visited by the Health and Social Care Secretary on the day of the announcement.
The Health and Social Care Secretary said: "Too many people are only getting mental health support when they reach crisis point, after struggling for far too long to get the help they need."
The 59 new MHEDs are intended to provide fast, same-day specialist support for people experiencing a crisis who are medically fit and do not need treatment in A&E. They will be located with emergency departments and work closely with ambulance and police services.
The release says they will offer a calm, therapeutic environment where people can be assessed quickly and connected to ongoing care, whether that is inpatient treatment, support at home or community services. There are currently 23 MHEDs. The rollout will more than double that number, taking the total to 82.
The release gives the following breakdown:
The government describes this as a multi-wave plan. Final locations are subject to designs, procurement and business case approvals.
The release lists proposed sites by region: East of England, London, Midlands, North East and Yorkshire, North West, South East and South West. Some entries name a hospital or community hospital. Others name only an area, and several areas are listed with multiple sites, for example South West London (4 sites), Birmingham (3 sites), Cheshire and Merseyside (5 CMHC sites and 3 MHED sites) and North Yorkshire (4 sites). Plymouth is listed with two MHEDs, one adult and one focused on children and young people.
The 10 September 2026 update corrected some listings to geographical area because specific locations had not been decided for the Midlands MHEDs in Chesterfield and Derby and the Midlands CMHC in Leicestershire. It also corrected a Midlands MHED to Leicester Royal Infirmary and the East of England CMHCs for Norfolk.
The release says the announcement forms part of a forthcoming mental health strategy, which will look beyond the NHS to the role of schools, employers, local government and the voluntary sector. That strategy will be informed by the upcoming recommendations of an independent review into prevalence and support for mental health conditions, ADHD and autism.
The NHS National Priority Programme Director for Mental Health, Learning Disability and Neurodevelopmental Conditions and representatives of Rethink Mental Illness, the Mental Health Foundation, Mind, Barnardo's, Bipolar UK and the Royal College of Psychiatrists are quoted welcoming the plans. The Royal College of Psychiatrists said the model must be developed to meet the needs of people with severe mental illness.
The release says the first facilities are expected to open from autumn 2026, with further sites opening from March 2027, as part of a multi-wave plan.
No. The release says the 100 new community mental health centres will offer walk-in support without a referral and without a months-long wait.
People experiencing a mental health crisis who are medically fit and do not need treatment in A&E. They will be located with emergency departments and work with ambulance and police services.
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