Leeds ‘crisis’ teams hailed a success as mental health detainee numbers drop by a third

A PILOT project aimed at giving emergency mental health care to people in crisis in Leeds has proved so successful that it is set to become a permanent fixture in the city.

It was launched 12 months ago as health workers teamed up with police to offer an innovative ‘street triage’ service. After the successful Department of Health funded trial – which saw the number of people being detained by police under the Mental Health Act drop by a third – the Leeds Mental Health Triage is now being offered 24 hours-a-day, seven days a week. Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and West Yorkshire Police have jointly been providing the service.