Lobby your County Councillor to stop mental health cuts of £1.6million

Oxfordshire County Council propose to make mental health cuts of £1.6million. This would reduce the Council’s share of funding for mental health services in Oxfordshire over the next 3 years for people with serious mental illness.

Here at Restore, we’re concerned that these cuts would be the breaking point for many struggling with mental ill health in our county. These proposed cuts would not directly impact ourselves until 2020 but it is obviously a decision that we at Restore and our partners in the Oxfordshire Mental Health Partnership cannot agree with.

Along with our five partners in the Oxfordshire Mental Health Partnership and eight other organistions, Restore has written to Oxfordshire County Council’s elected members with concerns. You can read the letter here

The plans are currently in draft form, and the County Council is consulting on these proposals. We would like your help!

What could you do?

• You could input into this consultation individually
• You could encourage friends and family to do the same; and
• You could share this page and Restore’s social media posts with friends and family

How could you help?

• Contact your local Oxfordshire County Councillor—you can find out who they are and what their email address and phone number will be here: https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/council/about-your-council/oxfordshire-councillors/your-councillor
• Contact your MP—you can find out who they are and what their email address and phone number will be here: https://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/mps/
• Write in to the consultation email to express your views –the consultation email is: [email protected]

Further details are available at: www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/budget

What points might you want to make in your email or letter?

We know that short, personal comments will be listened to more than something mass-produced. If you are able to send in some comments, here are some key points which you might want to include in your response:

–          Oxfordshire needs more funding for mental health, not less

–          A £1.6m reduction over 3 years will mean a significant reduction to services for the residents of Oxfordshire

–          The Oxfordshire Mental Health Partnership helps 5,000 people each year

–          Services will have to be cut, and this will have significant impact in terms of residents wellbeing, homelessness, family breakdown, and increased healthcare costs

–          The Council should consider making cuts in other areas, not in Mental Health

–          If service users can give examples of how they personally, or their loved ones, have benefited from the OMHP, all to the good

The deadline for the formal consultation is 6th January, but the Council meeting at which the proposal will be voted on is not until 14th February, so there will still be opportunities up until that date to influence the decisions of the County Councillors.

Do contact Tom Hayes if you have any queries or concerns at [email protected].