The opening of Heather Close Centre, signals the beginning of an exciting new chapter for mental health care in Lewisham and beyond.
Through extensive engagement and collaboration, we’ve been listening carefully to our service users and carers, our partners and our staff. We have also partnered with local community and voluntary organisations to help ensure our services reflect the needs and culture of our diverse borough, especially our local Black communities.
Alongside the lessons we've learned from past projects and evidence from organisations providing similar services in the UK and elsewhere, this is helping us transform how we work and enhance the way we deliver our services.
Together, we have co-produced a new approach to care that is already making mental health services in Lewisham more accessible, responsive, and better aligned with the needs of those we serve and their families.
Key aims for Heather Close Community Mental Health Centre:
• Joined up: The Heather Close Centre brings together community and primary care mental health teams to provide a more integrated approach that is easier for people to access and centred around their needs.
• Accessible: Adjacent to the Centre is Mountsfield Recovery House that provides round the clock extended care (in Guest Beds) for those in need for up to one week - helping them avoid a potential stay in hospital.
• Co-designed: A key strength of the Centre is that it has been designed with service users, carers, staff, and partners - encouraging and enabling involvement at all stages. This helps ensure the service reflects what people actually need and value.
• Culturally competent: Many local voluntary and community groups are now working with us to deliver some of our services. This partnership is helping us understand and meet the different cultural needs of local people. We hope it will improve our services and make them easier to access for everyone we serve.
Our ten core principles
Our approach in developing the Heather Close Centre and its services was guided by ten core principles. These were inspired by the knowledge, expertise and advice of our service users and carers, staff and partners about what’s most important for them:
1) Trusting relationships
Everyone feels safe and cared for by the people providing support. People are supported to have ongoing/longer term relationships with staff who work hard to get to know them, what matters to them and earn their trust.
2) Continuity of care
People are not passed from one team or service to another. The same people support you whether you are at home, in crisis or need to stay in a bed .
3) Neighbourhood-based
People can get the help and support they need close to where they live and in their own community
4) Open access
People can get help when they need it, where they need it, there is no criteria or referrals needed. It is easy to get a bed when you need it, and easy to leave when want to.
5) Close to primary care and system partners, collaborating with VCSE
There will be good links between your mental health care with your GP and other organisations or charities that provide support. They will work together.
6) Co-produced with community and people with lived experience
People and families who use the services will be part of designing them and delivering them.
7) Services actively promote belonging and citizenship for all
People who use services are seen as a whole person, just as important as anyone else in their community and are valued for who they are. Their human rights are upheld and protected, and they will be supported to do what matters to them.
8) Promoting freedom autonomy and choice
People are in control of their own care and make choices
9) Do no harm
The services provided are aware that many people will have experienced difficult things in their lives and will ensure they cause no further harm
10) All means all
These services are for everyone. Nobody is excluded. We will work hard to respect and respond to the reasonable adjustments people need
Six reasons why we’re different
1) Neighbourhood based
• Newly refurbished mental health centre now open at Heather Close in Hither Green.
• Rooted in the community – our partnership with the Independent Advisory Group (IAG) and local VCSE organisations is helping ensure services meet the diverse cultural needs of those we serve.
2) Relationships at the heart
• Central to our approach is explicitly describing relationships as the first line intervention.
• We aim to build a trusting relationship between the person, their family and network and the care team, working with system partners to make sure we offer holistic care.
3) Shaped by community feedback and evidence based
• The Centre has been developed based on ongoing engagement with service users, carers, staff and communities, plus evidence and best practice nationally and internationally.
4) A new, improved offer
• 24/7 care in the community featuring a neighbourhood-based service offering extended opening hours (8am – 8pm Mon to Fri & 9am – 5pm at weekends) with accessible crisis support and the opportunity to utilise guest beds for extended care.
• Enhanced collaboration with local VCSE partners.
• Services delivered by an integrated and expanded multi-disciplinary team, co-located with the primary care mental health team.
5) Introducing a Membership Model – key principles
• Provide ongoing support and resources as mental health management is often a long-term process.
• Build a strong community where individuals can connect, share experiences, and find mutual support.
• Integrate work and work-related activities as a key component of recovery - promoting skills development and meaningful engagement.
6 Long term commitment to new ways of working
• Aim to share and spread our success and learning across Lewisham and beyond.