Mental Health Awareness Week Blog 2026

On Wednesday 22 April 2026, Psychological Professionals from across the Network came together at the University of Lancashire in Preston for the Workforce Council afternoon session on Neighbourhoods, hosted by the Psychological Professions Network (PPN) North West.

The session offered a timely opportunity to reflect not only on neighbourhood models of care, but on the values, relationships and actions needed to make those models meaningful for the people and communities they serve. Importantly it was opportunity to pause, consider and plan how the Psychological Professions workforce can shape these changes.

The session was anchored around 2 keynote presentations. The first from Andy Knox, Medical Director for Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB and the second, Professor James Kingsland. Together these framed neighbourhood working as both a system shift and a relational practice.

Andy Knox’s slides invited participants to think about neighbourhoods as part of a broader move towards prevention, community‑based working and population health. Rather than focusing on organisational diagrams or service boundaries, the emphasis was on purpose, values and the conditions needed for change. Neighbourhoods were positioned as spaces where systems reconnect with communities, shifting from doing things to people towards working with them.

This framing resonates strongly as I write this during Mental Health Awareness Week, reinforcing that improving mental health and wellbeing is inseparable from place, connection and the everyday environments people live in.

James Kingsland’s slides complemented this by focusing on connection, influence and relationships at neighbourhood level. Participants were encouraged to reflect on who they already work with locally, where influence currently sits, and where there are opportunities to build new or stronger connections.

Rather than treating neighbourhoods as new structures to be filled, the session encouraged a more grounded approach: building on existing relationships, networks and community assets, and being intentional about where time and energy are focused.

This lens helped participants think practically about their own role in neighbourhood working — not just as representatives of organisations or professions, but as individuals able to open conversations, build trust and influence change.

Alongside the slide‑based discussion, the session included a facilitated workshop that allowed attendees to reflect collectively on what neighbourhood working means for the workforce. For psychological professions, this included consideration of leadership, professional identity, supervision and how expertise is sustained while working in integrated, place‑based teams.

A key message emerging from the discussion was that neighbourhood models will only succeed if space is created for relationships, reflection and shared ownership, alongside delivery expectations.

From reflection to action: making pledges

To close the session — and in keeping with the spirit of Mental Health Awareness Week — attendees were invited to make formal pledges, setting out one action they would personally take to support neighbourhood working.

These pledges ranged from committing to start new conversations locally, to strengthening existing partnerships, to being more intentional about how psychological perspectives are brought into neighbourhood discussions. The act of making a pledge reinforced that neighbourhood working is not only a strategic ambition, but a collective endeavour that depends on individual actions.

The session demonstrated the value of bringing together strategic thinking, relational perspectives and personal commitment.

PPN North West will continue to support this work, ensuring that psychological professions remain actively engaged in neighbourhood conversations and are supported to lead, connect and contribute as neighbourhood models continue to develop.

Got an update on Neighbourhoods from your area of work that you would like to share? Get in touch – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.