TWO MPs have praised their local NHS Trust after it was announced as a finalist in the mental health provider of the year category at a prestigious national awards event.

Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (CWP) is one of six national finalists at the prestigious Health Service Journal (HSJ) awards, which will take place on Wednesday 6 November in London.

Chris Matheson MP, City of Chester, said: “I am thrilled to see the CWP once again being recognised for the outstanding services it provides. Being shortlisted for the Mental Health Provider of the Year award is a testament to the dedication of staff who work extremely hard on a daily basis to help so many people from our community.

“I am proud that we have such a caring and innovative organisation here to provide these vital services, and I congratulate everyone at the CWP on this honour.”

Fellow Labour MP Mike Amesbury, Weaver Vale, added: “I’m pleased that the hard-working health professionals in our NHS are getting the recognition they deserve. For too long mental health has been treated as a Cinderella service, with not enough funding being invested in identifying and treating mental health conditions compared to physical health issues.

“I’m pleased to see that the people working on the front lines to deliver these services are being recognised for what they do day in and day out.”

Adding her own thoughts to the news was CWP chief executive, Sheena Cumiskey, who was delighted to learn that the Trust has been recognised in this way.

Sheena Cumiskey said: “I am absolutely thrilled to hear that we have been shortlisted in the Mental Health Provider category of the Year at this year’s HSJ Awards. This is testament to the hard work of all the people who make CWP special. The strength of the partnership between our mental health, community physical health, learning disability and social care services enables us to meet the needs of our local communities by truly providing person-centred care, helping people to be the best they can be.”

“This recognition tops off a wonderful couple of years for the organisation. In 2018, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated the Trust as “outstanding” for caring, the only NHS mental health services provider in the North West to achieve this rating. This year, we have launched CANDDID, a centre of excellence which brings together education, training and research in the fields of neuro-developmental disorders and intellectual disabilities.

“In addition, the Trust was recognised as a top performer nationally in the Community Mental Health Survey 2018, opened our new Coronation Road workplace hub (a new integrated workspace for health and care services in Ellesmere Port) and the Trust has launched a brand new All Age Disability Service in Wirral, aiming to improve experiences for people in the area with a disability or mental health condition.”