The survey of over 14,000 people found a third of people (33%) waited three months or more for their first treatment and four in 10 people said they did not receive any support while they waited.
Interim director of mental health at the Care Quality Commission, Jenny Wilkes, said: ‘Too many people are waiting too long for the care they need – and experiencing a deterioration in their mental health while they wait. This, coupled with pressures such as high workforce vacancies, is causing a bottleneck of supply and demand – and people's health and often their ability to contribute to society is suffering as a result.'
Over four in 10 (42%) said their mental health had deteriorated while waiting for care, down from 44% in 2023. This rose to 71% for those waiting over six months.
Those accessing Older People's Mental Health Services (OPMHS) reported more positive experiences with almost three-quarters (73%) saying they always felt listened to by NHS staff. However, almost half (48%) were not asked if they needed help accessing care down from 49% in 2023.
More young people using Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) needed support in access cases (30% in 2024 compared with 22% in 2023). The number of young people getting help for their physical needs dropped to 26% from 32% in 2023. A third of people (33%) accessing CAMHS did not know who to contact in a crisis, down from 38%. Over a third who accessed crisis care (36%) said they did not receive the support they need and 36% said no support was given to their families or carers during the crisis. Nevertheless, the majority (87%) of young people using CAMHS felt involved, to some extent, in their care planning.
Three quarters (77%) of all respondents weren't signposted to help or advice with cost of living, even though this can be a significant driver of mental health issues.
While 1 in 10 (10%) reported they weren't treated with dignity and respect, people who accessed care on the phone reported a worse experience in accessing services, getting the appropriate support and having a choice about how their care would be delivered.
Workforce issues remain an issue with the vacancy rate across the mental health sector being 9.9%, with over 10,000 empty mental health nursing posts.
Nearly half (44%) of people were asked if they needed support to access care, an increase of 3% from last year, and of those that did need support almost a third (32%) felt the support they received completely met their needs, also an increase of 3% from last year.
Interim chief executive of NHS Providers, Saffron Cordery, said: ‘Welcome work has been under way in recent years to deliver new models of community mental health care, but given past underfunding and lack of prioritisation of mental health services, we need sustained focus and long term funding to make further progress.'
Rebecca Gray, mental health director at the NHS Confederation, said: ‘NHS mental health providers are working hard to reduce waiting lists and better support people while they wait. Sadly, due to the financial pressure the NHS is facing, some trusts are having to consider further raising the thresholds for care or closing services. While commitments to greater mental health support in schools and the roll out of hubs for young people are positive, they will take time and the need for many currently waiting is urgent.'
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘The findings of this report are concerning. People with mental health issues are not getting the support or care that they deserve, and this Government is committed to changing that by improving mental health care across the spectrum of need.
‘As part of our mission to shift care out of hospitals and into the community, we have increased investment in mental health services by £320m in real terms compared to 2024/25 - on top of funding to build new community crisis centres, supporting patients by giving them access to care closer to home.
‘We are also recruiting 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult services to help ease pressure on busy mental health services, and our reform of the Mental Health Act will ensure patients with serious mental illness receive more personalised treatment, giving them a greater say in their care.'
