The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted on both IAPT services and the populations they serve.

Impact on IAPT services

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, all IAPT services moved to non-face to face delivery of therapy, using telephone or video appointments and webinars. Some examples of these are outlined in the ‘Digital’ and ‘Media and marketing’ sections of these resources.

The Centre for Mental Health, working collaboratively with NHS trusts and NHS England, has devised a toolkit for local areas to calculate a forecast of additional demand for mental health services as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its current forecast is that across England there will be an increase of 20% of the population that will need either new or additional MH support as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The precise impact is unknown, and predictions are difficult, but these estimates have been produced to aid further consideration of the specific demographics of communities and to determine the services that may be required.

Anxiety & depression

• Over 1 million Londoners without pre-existing mental health conditions are predicted to develop moderate to severe anxiety, with 25% requiring access services (293,400 people)
• Over 1.5 million Londoners without pre-existing mental health conditions are predicted to develop moderate to severe depression, with 25% requiring access services (401,400 people)
• Over 1.2 million Londoners with pre-existing mental health conditions are predicted to develop moderate to severe anxiety, with 49.9% requiring access services (605,387 people)
• Over 1.5 million Londoners with pre-existing mental health conditions are predicted to develop moderate to severe depression, with 61% requiring access services (621,214 people)