A major new report from the Centre for Mental Health has warned that local, regional and national governments must confront structural racism if they are to prevent worsening mental ill health among racialised communities.
The report, Shifting power, commissioned by the London Anti‑Racism Collaboration for Health and the citywide mental health partnership Thrive LDN, argues that racism functions as a daily stressor that harms mental health throughout life – from childhood to older age. It says that an increasingly hostile political climate and the rise in overt racism are compounding fear, exclusion and trauma across many communities.
According to the report, racism is woven into the structures that determine people’s health. It shapes:
- access to secure employment,
- the quality and security of housing,
- inequalities in green space, transport and neighbourhood safety,
- and access to timely, culturally appropriate healthcare.
As a result, mental health inequalities cannot be solved solely through clinical interventions. The report argues that preventative public health approaches, grounded in social justice, are essential to reducing harm.
The report highlights significant failures in current mental health support. It says:
- Mental health services are frequently not culturally sensitive,
- Racialised communities often face discrimination and prejudice when seeking help,
- Many experience delays in accessing early support,
- Contact with mental health services can itself cause further trauma.
This results in unequal access to treatment, poorer outcomes and deep mistrust of mental health services.
Shifting power makes clear that addressing racial trauma and preventing mental ill health requires system‑level reform, not simply adjustments to individual clinical pathways.
Key recommendations include:
1. Make racial trauma a core public health issue
Racism must be recognised as a driver of harm and addressed as a central priority in public health strategy.
2. Shift power to communities
Local authorities should share decision‑making power and resources directly with racialised communities, funding third‑sector and community‑led organisations to deliver support grounded in lived experience.
3. Embed anti‑racist and trauma‑informed practice
Public health workers, primary care teams and system leaders should receive ongoing training so that anti‑racist approaches become part of everyday practice, not an optional extra.
4. Make primary care culturally safe
GP practices and frontline mental health services must embed approaches that reflect people’s cultural backgrounds, experiences and fears.
Andy Bell, Centre for Mental Health Chief Executive, commented:
“Racism is toxic to the public’s mental health. At every level of government, action to tackle racism and its consequences is urgently needed. Turning around racial inequalities in mental health requires concerted action to address their causes, and a shift in power to put communities in the lead.”
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