Published on: 28 October 2025
North Derbyshire’s Mental Health Liaison Team, part of Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, has earned official recognition by the Psychiatric Liaison Accreditation Network (PLAN) for a third time in a row. 
PLAN is a prestigious quality improvement and accreditation network for psychiatric liaison services across the UK. The accreditation focuses on facilitating quality improvement and development in liaison psychiatry services through a supportive peer-review model, enabling communication, and the sharing of best practices between services.
Situated at the Chesterfield Royal Hospital, the team provide advice, support and a signposting service to patients over the age of 18, where potential mental health and/or drug and alcohol issues are identified.
Following referral from a health professional in Accident and Emergency (A&E) or a ward within the general hospital, the team offer a high-quality intervention, assessment and discharge process. This process will cover all aspects of mental health – including drug and alcohol use and self-harming.
The team have met several rigorous standards that PLAN assess for, including:
- Safe and effective psychiatric liaison care across inpatient and community settings
- Ongoing service development through reflective practice and peer-led review
- Engagement with patients and staff to ensure care is responsive and person-centred
- Contribution to national best practice, with the team previously recognised for their innovative dementia diagnostic pathway and outreach work.
Tumi Banda, Director of Nursing, Allied Health Professionals, Quality and Patient Experience at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, congratulated the team on their re-accreditation.
He said: “The Mental Health Liaison Team should be proud of their achievement. The team go above and beyond to provide the best mental health support for patients. This national recognition marks another achievement for the team, highlighting their excellence across a range of dedicated services to meet the needs of our communities.”
Amy Harcombe, Service Manager for the Mental Health Liaison Team North at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, praised her team for all their hard work and efforts making the accreditation possible for a third time.
She said: “This re-accreditation is a big milestone and re-affirms the team’s commitment to high-quality care across mental health services, and I am incredibly proud of the team for their hard work and dedication. A special thanks goes to the Leadership team and our Research Project Manager for working tirelessly to gather all the necessary evidence and information required to meet the PLAN Standards. Your commitment has hugely paid off.”
For more information about the Trust’s psychiatric liaison services please visit the Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust website.
