WINSFORD’S MP has backed calls for greater support for people suffering with mental health.

Last year, national and local government and leaders of key services in England signed the Mental Health Crisis Care Concordat, an agreement that sets national standards for mental health care.

Mind, the mental health charity, is now calling for local services to deliver on their promise to improve the support for people who are suicidal, self-harming or in psychosis.

Stephen O’Brien, MP for Eddisbury said: “I have long taken an interest in mental health issues.

“One in four constituents will experience a mental health problem this year, and countless more will be affected through friends, family, work colleagues and others in their lives “Indeed, my own extended family is no more immune and we have had to work hard to get the necessary support services over the years.”

Key organisations in Eddisbury have since come together to sign their own local declaration agreeing to achieve the Concordat standards.

Paul Farmer, chief executive of Mind, said: “Signing a local Concordat is the first step in improving services but we need to see these good intentions translated into better services for everyone in crisis.

“We need the next government to provide clear leadership and resources to make sure the Concordat’s standards are achieved and local action plans delivered so that excellent crisis care is available everywhere.”