Our Aims

Establish a new approach to support family and friends (commonly referred to as carers) of patients treated under the Mental Health Act (MHA)

• Identify the expected benefits, barriers, and facilitators to a one-to-one carer peer support programme in England.
• Identify how a previous carer peer support programme developed in Germany (the EX-IN programme) can be adapted to the issues experienced by carers in England during the MHA treatment of their relative/friend.
• Design the carer peer support programme for use in England, with input from carers, service users, NHS professionals and other stakeholders.
• Test the feasibility of the designed carer peer support programme using a “train-the-trainer” model for training carer peer supporters.
• Identify the implementation costs of carrying out the carer peer support programme through health economy evaluation.
• Report findings in academic journals and publications designed for service users and carers and produce guides about the peer support programme for carers and policymakers.