THE University of York and North Yorkshire Police are collaborating on an ambitious project to come up with new approaches to dealing with people with mental health problems.

The initiative was recently awarded a million pound grant and will aim to change the practice and culture surrounding recording and working with people with mental health issues.

The funding has come from the £10 million Police Knowledge Fund, which aims to encourage collaboration between academics and police forces.

Led by Professor Martin Smith in York’s Department of Politics, the York project will enable frontline staff in North Yorkshire Police to better identify victims and offenders who would benefit from accessing mental health services.

Other aims of the project involve developing a training programme to ensure access to services at the right time and reducing repeat incidents.

During the project, a series of “research cafes” will be held for representatives from other organisations to discuss their experiences in managing issues. There will also be a review of recording of mental health data and self-harm.

The project will then launch national workshops to ensure best-practice is shared across the UK.

The University of York will also provide intensive training for police and health practitioners.

Professor Smith said: “According to the mental health charity Mind, one in four will experience a mental health issue in any year, and one in six will have a mental health condition at any one time.

“Over half of deaths following police contact involve people with a mental health issue, and people with mental health problems are up to ten times more likely to become victims of crime than the general population.

“Mental health involves considerable resources for both the police and other agencies, so we are delighted to collaborate with North Yorkshire Police and a number of councils to address these important issues.

“We recognise that our goal of creating better outcomes in the area of mental health requires a culture change that will start by better fitting approaches to the realities of those who work on the ground.”

Tim Madgwick, North Yorkshire Police’s Deputy Chief Constable, said: “We will be closely involved in designing and implementing the research. The expectations from the police are clear: a commitment to improving effectiveness in dealing with issues of mental health. This requires better training of police officers, which this collaboration will achieve.

“Systematic knowledge provided through research will also enable development of much better working practice around mental health through a better understanding of relationships between the police and other agencies.”

Julia Mulligan, Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire, said identifying victims and offenders who needed mental health assistance before they reached crisis point would lead to a better police service for everyone.