Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust (SHSC) is proud to announce the launch of Phase One of the Gleadless and Heeley Neighbourhood Mental Health Centre, a pioneering initiative designed to transform mental health care for people in the local community.
The centre is a collaborative project between SHSC, Heeley Plus PCN, Heeley Trust, Rethink Mental Illness, Synergy VCSE Mental Health Alliance, Sheffield Flourish, and Sheffield City Council.
Located at Newfield Green Clinic, the centre will initially bring together teams from Community Mental Health and the Primary Care Mental Health Heeley Plus Team, serving adults aged 18 and over registered with a Heeley Plus Primary Care Network (PCN) GP.
This is the beginning of a two-year pilot programme aimed at delivering more accessible, personalised, and integrated mental health support.
Funded by NHS England, the centre is part of a national pilot aligned with the NHS 10-year Plan to evolve into a Neighbourhood Health Service, placing care closer to where people live. It offers a “no wrong door” approach, ensuring that people receive the right care at the right time. This includes improved referral pathways, reduced waiting times, and enhanced continuity of care.
The development of the centre has been co-produced with over 400 local residents, including service users, carers, staff, and community organisations. Engagement has included public meetings, workshops, and community group sessions, making sure that lived experience and local insight shape every aspect of the new service. This work will continue as the project moves to phases two and three.
The centre is a collaborative project between the NHS, Sheffield City Council, and voluntary sector organisations and a significant portion of the funding for the project has been invested into the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector, supporting peer support roles, crisis cafés, and hospitality beds.
Phase one establishes the foundation for integrated care. Phase two will expand services later in 2025 to include an expanded offer from Newfield Green, with walk-in access, crisis support, and additional VCSE-led services. Phase Three will introduce hospitality beds as an alternative to inpatient admissions.
James Drury, Director of Strategy at SHSC said: “We have taken a first step to make it quicker and simpler for people to access mental health care in Gleadless and Heeley. I’m excited to see the project develop as we introduce neighbourhood mental health care to Gleadless and Heeley. This is an innovative way of working for us and our partners, the relationships that have been built have already taught us valuable lessons that we’re using to ensure people receive the care that they need, when they need it.”
Tammy Raines, Expert By Experience on the project, talked about the importance of working with service users and people in the community when designing the new service: “From the beginning of this project people with lived experience of mental illness have been built into the design of the new service. Over 400 people have been listened to and fed into the service. The work of Sheffield Flourish, who have great links with people who use mental health services, has been vital here and shows the strength of organisations working in partnership, each bringing their strengths to deliver a new way of working that will benefit people in Gleadless and Heeley.
