A women’s-only mental health crisis house, the first in its mental health trust, has opened, providing a space where users can seek support in a community setting.
Oriana House, owned by the Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health NHS Partnership Trust (AWP) and run by the charities Missing Link and Alabaré, opened on Wednesday in the Old Town area of Swindon.
The partnership says the house will help women by providing a “pathway to longer-term wellbeing” in a safe, and supportive space as an alternative to being admitted to hospital.
Matthew Page, AWP’s chief operating officer & deputy chief executive, said: “I just feel overwhelmed that people have achieved such a brilliant thing.”
“For too long we’ve worked on an assumption in society that mental health care is something that one organisation does,” Page added.
“But all the evidence shows when we collaborate, we provide more inclusive services to people who might not otherwise be able to access services.”
