The referral task for the unit assignment will be to produce a 2,000 word report. It should be in a Non-Scientific Report format – using section headings – using a clear font (Arial 10, Times New Roman 12 or Calibri 12) and double spaced. The report format should be as follows:

1. Title page (you must provide your own title)
2. Abstract or Executive Summary (on a separate page)
3. Table of contents (which includes page numbers for the different sections/subsections and should be on a new page)
4. Introduction
5. Discussion of findings (should consist of different headed sections/subsections; subheading titles should also appear in your table of contents)
6. Conclusion
7. References
8. Appendix/Appendices. If used, appendices should be given titles and these titles should appear in the contents page. (Note you do not have to use appendices.)

The task is as follows:

Choosing either Severe Mental Illness (e.g. Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorder) OR Common Mental Illnesses (e.g. Anxiety, Depression, OCD, and so on), critically evaluate how service users are supported in their recovery and treatment processes by mental health services, private providers and third sector support organisations.

• You can briefly discuss/define what Severe Mental Illness OR Common Mental Illness means but the report must focus on critically evaluating the support service users receive from mental health services as well as private organisations and the voluntary sector in relation to their recovery. As you are looking at support in their recovery, you need to think more broadly than just treatment for the illness (clinical recovery); you need to think about what other types of support a person with a mental illness might get e.g. back to work support, assistance in training or education, social activities, and so on.
• You need to begin by demonstrating understanding of what ‘recovery’ means in relation to mental illness and then discuss what support is provided by the statutory, private and voluntary sectors to aid service users in their recovery.
• The assignment is not to discuss the signs and symptoms of mental illnesses or the impact of the mental illness(es) on service users nor do you discuss the causes of the illness or what different types of treatment involve.
• You are not to choose a specific age group or a gender, you are to choose either those with a Severe Mental Illness OR those with a Common Mental Illness, but you can choose to look at children/young people under 18 or working age adults (adults 18-64) as the services and support provided will differ for children/adolescents and working age adults.
• In your critical evaluation of the support service users receive, you are expected to draw on qualitative studies where service users speak about what they think about support they receive and what recovery means to them.
• You are to focus on the UK so data provided must relate to the UK.
• You are expected to use a minimum of 8 academic sources (peer-reviewed journal articles/academic books) to support your discussion.
• Remember good written communication is about structuring your work so that your discussion is clearly signposted and developed and you guide the reader logically from one section/subsection to the next.
• No more than 5 –10% of the assignment should be in the form of quotations. This excludes any quotes from service users/qualitative findings.
• Proofread and edit your work before handing it in and/or ask a trusted person to read it through for you.
• Your work must be word processed, double spaced and page numbered. You must also include a word count. This is part of the assignment guidelines/task so you are expected to follow these instructions.
• The portfolio must include a full Reference List of texts and sources cited in the main body. All referencing and citations must follow the Harvard style. All sources should be referenced exactly as appear here https://www.citethemrightonline.com/Basics/sample-text-and-reference-list-using-the-harvard-style. Please remember you only ever list primary sources (sources you actually read) in your reference list – Please look up secondary referencing here for how to correctly use secondary referencing in the text when you have not read the original source https://www.citethemrightonline.com/basics/How-do-I-reference-a-source-quoted-in-another-authors-work-Secondary-referencing. To access the Citethemright pages, you will need to login using your usual University login details.
• If you are unsure what recovery means in relation to mental illness, please see the last slide on the lecture that looked at anti-psychiatry and service user movements. If you search DISCOVER for ‘recovery’ AND mental illness you will find many sources on the subject. You must use a range of sources for the assignment, which must include academic sources such as peer-reviewed journals.

Suggested reading

As a background to what ‘recovery’ means in relation to mental illness, a couple of articles that might help are:

Slade, M. et al. (2014) ‘Uses and abuses of recovery: implementing recovery-oriented practices in mental health systems’, World Psychiatry, 13(1), pp.12–20. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3918008/

Whitley, R. & Drake, R.E. (2010) ‘Recovery: a dimensional approach’, Psychiatric Services, 61(12), pp.1248–1250. https://ps.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/ps.2010.61.12.1248

For background sources on what recovery means from the service users’ perspective:

Brown, B. & Baker, S. (2018) ‘The social capitals of recovery in mental health’, Health, 24(4), pp.384-402. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327943319_The_social_capitals_of_recovery_in_mental_health/link/5bce26a6a6fdcc204a01179a/download

Law, H. & Morrison, A.P. (2014) ‘Recovery in psychosis: a Delphi study with experts by experience’, Schizophrenia Bulletin, 40(9), pp.1347–1355. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4193718/

Pitt, L. et al. (2007) ‘Researching recovery from psychosis: a user-led project’, Psychiatric Bulletin, 31(2), pp.55-60 https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/psychiatric-bulletin/article/researching-recovery-from-psychosis-a-userled-project/09A8F5D2EBDA6C0D15DF9AEE34FD9273

Wood, L. & Alsawy, S. (2018) ‘Recovery in Psychosis from a Service User Perspective: A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis of Current Qualitative Evidence’, Community Mental Health Journal, 54(6), pp.793–804. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10597-017-0185-9

Then there is also:

Aughterson, H., Baxter, L. & Fancourt, D. (2020) ‘Social prescribing for individuals with mental health problems: a qualitative study of barriers and enablers experienced by general practitioners’, BMC Family Practice, 21(1), pp.1-17. https://bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12875-020-01264-0

Baxter, L., Burton, A. & Fancourt, D. (2022) ‘Community and cultural engagement for people with lived experience of mental health conditions: what are the barriers and enablers?’, BMC Psychology, 10(1), pp.1-15. https://bmcpsychology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40359-022-00775-y

Baxter, L. & Fancourt, D. (2020) ‘What are the barriers to, and enablers of, working with people with lived experience of mental illness amongst community and voluntary sector organisations? A qualitative study’, PLoS ONE, 15(7), pp.1-20. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0235334

Buchanan, D.R. (2020) ‘Five years ago I was on suicide watch…now I’m in college gaining a qualification’, Journal of Further and Higher Education, 44(6), pp.843-855, DOI: 10.1080/0309877X.2019.1612861

Brettell, M., Fenton, C. & Foster, E. (2022) ‘Linking Leeds: A Social Prescribing Service for Children and Young People’, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19 (3), pp.1-16. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031426

Chauhan, N., Leeming, D. & Wattis, J. (2022) ‘”It’s a Big Family Here.” Becoming and Belonging in a Service Providing Employment-Related Support for People with Mental Health Problems: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis’, Community Mental Health Journal, 58(2), pp.277-287. DOI: 10.1007/s10597-021-00819-4

Dayson, C., Painter, J. & Bennett, E. (2020) ‘Social prescribing for patients of secondary mental health services: emotional, psychological and social well-being outcomes’, Journal of Public Mental Health, 19(4), pp. 271-279. Doi:10.1108/JPMH-10-2019-0088

Forrester-Jones, R. et al. (2018) ‘Including the ‘Spiritual’ Within Mental Health Care in the UK, from the Experiences of People with Mental Health Problems’, Journal of Religion and Health, 57(1), pp.384-407

Gilbert, E. et al. (2013) ‘Social firms as a means of vocational recovery for people with mental illness: a UK survey’, BMC Health Services Research, 13(1), pp.270-278. https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6963-13-270

Hassan, S.M. et al. (2022) ‘An exploration of young people’s, parent/carers’, and professionals’ experiences of a voluntary sector organisation operating a Youth Information, Advice, and Counselling (YIAC) model in a disadvantaged area’, BMC Health Services Research, 22(383), pp.1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-022-07800-1

Morant, N. et al. (2021) ‘Vocational rehabilitation via social firms: a qualitative investigation of the views and experiences of employees with mental health problems, social firm managers and clinicians’, BMC Psychiatry, 21(1):566 https://europepmc.org/article/pmc/8590221

Quaye, H. & Rennoldson, M. (2020) ‘”Technically well, but not really”: carers’ constructions of recovery from psychosis’, Journal of Mental Health, 29 (3), pp. 256-262

Rennick-Egglestone, S. et al. (2019) ‘The impact of mental health recovery narratives on recipients experiencing mental health problems: Qualitative analysis and change model’, PLoS ONE, 14(12), e0226201. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6910821/

Slade, M. et al. (2015) ‘Development of the REFOCUS intervention to increase mental health team support for personal recovery’, British Journal of Psychiatry, 207(6), pp.544-550

Tickle, A., Brown, D. & Hayward, M. (2014) ‘Can we risk recovery? A grounded theory of clinical psychologists’ perceptions of risk and recovery-oriented mental health services’, Psychology and Psychotherapy 87 (1), pp. 96-110

Wilson, C., King, M. & Russell, J. (2019) ‘A mixed-methods evaluation of a Recovery College in South East Essex for people with mental health difficulties’, Health & Social Care in the Community, 27(5), pp. 1353-1362

Also for background there is the Centre for Mental Health report by Bell, A. & Allwood, L. (2019) Arm in arm: The relationships between statutory and voluntary sector mental health organisations. Available at: https://www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/sites/default/files/2019-07/CentreforMH_ArminAm_VCSECommissioning.pdf

Naylor, C., Taggart, H. & Charles, A. (2017) Mental health and new models of care: lessons from the vanguards. Available at: https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/sites/default/files/field/field_publication_file/MH_new_models_care_Kings_Fund_May_2017_0.pdf

And the report by the Mental Health Foundation (2020) What Works For You? A Qualitative Research Study. Available at: https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/sites/default/files/MHF%20What%20Works%20For%20You%20.pdf

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