The Sanctuary
Providing A nationally recognised model of good practice in mental 24 hour health crisis support, providing accessible 24 hour support in mental the community for those experiencing anxiety, panic attacks, health crisis depression and suicidal thoughts, and who are in crisis. support It’s personal: a history of The Sanctuary The idea for The Sanctuary came from Nicky Lidbetter, Chief Officer and Founder of Self Help Services, a registered mental health charity established in 1995. Over 20 years ago, Nicky suffered with severe panic attacks. Like many people, she rushed to A&E fearing that she was losing control. Whilst there, she was reassured by hospital staff that there was nothing physically wrong with her, but the whole experience left her feeling frightened, unsure and, critically, still experiencing mental distress. Nicky, like many others who had turned to A&E in a crisis when they couldn’t cope, felt that this wasn’t the appropriate place for someone to be when experiencing Nicky Lidbetter, Self Help Services Chief Officer, with colleagues from Greater Manchester Police’s A Division. a crisis and that more could be done.
About The Sanctuary We spotted that there was a huge gap in crisis provision, so funded The Sanctuary ourselves, for a year, as we were confident that we could develop an evidence base. Along with colleagues from the University of Manchester (who undertook a service evaluation for our Manchester Sanctuary) we were successful in doing this and within 18 months, three NHS commissions were to follow and the Sanctuary Wigan & Leigh, Bolton and Manchester became mainstreamed. In less than two years, The Sanctuary has become a nationally recognised beacon of good practice, contributing to what Nicky and Self Help Services has coined the ‘Stepped Care Model of Crisis Provision in Mental Health’, which delivers the right intensity of crisis service within the community for each type of crisis prevention. This includes providing an alternative to the clinical model of care, working with emergency services to prevent A&E admissions and preserve blue light responses whenever possible.
National recognition The Sanctuary is a nationally recognised model of best practice for mental health crisis support and has been endorsed by a number of high profile influencers throughout the country. “I am writing to thank you for the fantastic work you are doing in Greater Manchester to improve mental health crisis care... When I first proposed the idea of a Crisis Care Concordat, I knew that I wanted to create a blueprint that could genuinely be used and adopted locally.” “The brilliant work you are doing in Greater Manchester is testament to that vision, and I am delighted with the progress you are making... I am also impressed to read about your Sanctuary services in Manchester, Wigan and Bolton, which work to support people who are having difficulties with their mental health.” MP Norman Lamb, Minister of State for Care and Support [in a letter to Tony Lloyd, Feb 2015] “Improving the way the police and health services deal with people experiencing a mental health crisis is a priority for this Government. A vital part of achieving better outcomes is the work of organisations such as the Sanctuary, which provide a crucial service at a time when many vulnerable people need the most help. I am looking forward to visiting the Sanctuary to learn more about its important work.” MP Mike Penning, Police Minister for the Home Office
“The Sanctuary projects provide essential help to patients living with primary mental health conditions in their time of need. Overnight crisis relief enables patients to get through the hours of darkness and is an invaluable asset. Innovative services such as The Sanctuary are crucial as they greatly relieve pressure on accident and emergency (A&E) departments and medical staff by preventing unnecessary hospital admissions.” Mark Parker, from North West Ambulance Service
“The suicide research group in the School of Psychological Sciences, University of Manchester, strongly encourages the crisis support work undertaken by Self Help services. It can really make a huge difference for people who are in crisis, and who may be having thoughts about suicide or self harm, to have people who they can turn to, and most importantly, people who they can talk to in confidence.” Dr Trish Gooding, Director at the School of Psychology, University of Manchester
The referral process Our sanctuaries are open all night, every night from 8pm through to 6am. That’s because we believe it is at night, when most services are closed, that those in crisis really need our support. They provide a place of safety and support, in a non-clinical environment, where clients can speak to trained Self Help Services staff who have experience of living with a mental health difficulty. Some clients might find a conversation with a Sanctuary worker by phone is sufficient to get them through their crisis, whilst others may wish instead to come to The Sanctuary. Whilst at The Sanctuary, clients can access support tailored to their individual needs; no two crises are the same and as such, a bespoke, tailored service is delivered.
The Sanctuary is available to all local residents or those registered with a GP in Greater Manchester (including Salford, Trafford, We now Tameside and Glossop), Wigan & Leigh, and Bolton. provide a 24 Clients can access their local Sanctuary as follows: hour mental Manchester: 0161 637 0808 health crisis Wigan & Leigh: 01942 410 522 line Bolton: 0300 303 0581
Following the overwhelming success of its existing overnight services, Self Help Services has been commissioned to provide The Sanctuary 24 hour mental health crisis support line in Manchester, Salford, Trafford, Tameside and Glossop. Launching in August 2015, The Sanctuary telephone crisis line will be a new daytime service, operating from 6am until 8pm, allowing us to offer 24 hour crisis care provision. The Sanctuary 24 hour mental health crisis support line will offer telephone assessments, screening and interventions to assist people who are dealing with emotional crisis, Dr Wirin Bhatiani, Chair of the Bolton Clinical Commissioning Group; Rachel Douglas- referring people to overnight Sanctuary Clark, NHS Commissioning Manager; Tony Lloyd, the Greater Manchester services and other mental health and social Police and Crime Commissioner and interim Mayor of Greater Manchester; Jo Harding, Specialist Services Manager at Self Help Services. care providers within the community. Working in true partnership Demographics We’re proud to be working in partnership with clinical commissioning groups across the North West, along with emergency services, GPs, other third sector providers and groups in the community to ensure 43% Age: ranges that people receive the right support at the right Male from 18 – 80 time. Working alongside Greater Manchester Police 57% years and North West Ambulance Service, we have helped Females to protect some of the most vulnerable people in society, and preserved A&E departments for those experiencing medical crisis.
20% other Key statistics ethnicity The Sanctuary has supported nearly On average, clients who use The Sanctuary 80% White experience a British 1000people experiencing a mental health crisis since September 2013 37%decrease in their distress rating. A report by the University of Manchester revealed that 10.6% of the people we supported identified as LGBT
43%of people would have gone of people who had used 7% to A&E, called an ambulance The Sanctuary would have of25% the men we supported or the Police had it not been self-harmed or attempted for The Sanctuary. were aged between suicide if they had not had 30 – 40 years old* access to it. *the 30 to 44 age group had the highest suicide rate from 1995 to 2012 (ONS, 2015) Awards and the media • Shortlisted for the Crisis Care Award in 2015 by the Mental Health Providers Forum. • Showcased on an ITV Granada special edition on mental health services, raising awareness of mental health support which is helping people through the night when other services aren’t available. • Featured by The Guardian as part of their mental health crisis service spotlight,
celebrating best practice in crisis support Nicky Lidbetter with strategic leads from across Greater Manchester at the available throughout the country. signing of Greater Manchester’s Crisis Care Concordat in December 2014.
If you are interested in finding out more about The Sanctuary and our other crisis services please contact us on: email: [email protected] Phone: 0161 226 6775 Twitter: @selfhelpservice Facebook: facebook.com/SanctuarySHS