The President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists has warned that thousands of mental health patients in England are being treated in buildings that are ‘dangerous’ and unfit for purpose.

Given crumbling NHS buildings, leaky roofs and increasingly faulty equipment, Dr Adrian James has urged the government to fund six new mental health hospitals as part of its promise to build 48 new hospitals by 2030. He said that existing issues are leaving the most seriously mentally ill people in the country at risk of harm and hindering their chances of recovery.

The government has pledged billions in funding to build 48 hospitals by 2030. Of the first 40 hospital projects announced, only two were for mental health, according to the Royal College of Psychiatrists. The final eight projects are yet to be named but James said at least six of these should be for mental health patients, in order ‘to address the imbalance of the programme’.

He said: “Thousands of people with a mental illness in England are being treated in mental health hospitals that are dangerously old and not fit for purpose. Up and down the country psychiatrists are having to assess and treat patients in buildings that are falling apart and crumbling away. People with a mental illness will be let down unless we have buildings that are fit for purpose. The government can no longer afford to pay lip-service to parity of esteem and treat mental health as an after-thought. We need a firm commitment from government that at least six of the new hospitals will be for mental health.”

A total of 269 psychiatrist colleagues of James have written a letter to their MP highlighting their concerns over the dire state of mental health hospitals. They have also issued a warning that the number of people requiring mental health support is unlikely to fall to pre-pandemic levels.