A NORTH-EAST police force is set to be at the forefront of a new mental health service designed to keep sufferers out of cells.

The Home Office and the Department of Health have joined forces to open up a tendering process to provide community-based safe places for people suffering mental health crisis.

Cleveland Police is among ten forces across the country that have been identified by the government as needing support when dealing with mental health issues and help to avoid using police station cells to hold people who have not committed any crime.

The force was a pioneer for the street triage project, setting up one of the two original schemes that inspired the rest of the country to look into the concept.

According to Home Office figures, police cells were used as a place of safety in Cleveland on 119 occasions in 2014/15.

Temporary Chief Constable Iain Spittal said: “It is essential that people experiencing mental health crisis rapidly receive care and support from health professionals as opposed to being detained within police cells. Locally we have worked very closely with health colleagues to significantly reduce the number of people kept safe in police cells.

"The street triage scheme is an approach that works and we continue to support. We are also seeing improved joint working following the opening of the 24/7 Crisis Assessment Suite at Roseberry Park Hospital.”

Police and Crime Commissioner for Cleveland, Barry Coppinger added: "Cleveland piloted triage, which I funded, before it was officially piloted via the Home Office, and I welcome the vote of confidence in our work and the extra resources to develop further any work around early intervention.”

The Department of Health has pledged £15 million to fund new places of safety and refurbish existing sites across the ten force areas, where occurrences of police cells being used is at the highest levels.

The bidding process has been opened up to health trusts, local authorities and the voluntary sector to provide new and innovative 'safe places'.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: “Mental illness is not a crime - we want to end the scandal of people in crisis being unnecessarily locked up in a police cell. This funding will mean local areas can invest in creating safe places so people get the best support.”

And Home Secretary Theresa May said: “I have always been clear that people experiencing a mental health crisis should receive care and support rather than being held in a police cell.

“While progress is being made, in some areas there is still a long way to go to improve outcomes for people with mental health needs.

“We are legislating to ensure a police cell is truly a place of last resort for vulnerable people suffering mental health crises.”