Committed campaigner to give Coventry keynote

As The Network’s editor, Jonathan Baillie, reports, other topics in a wide-ranging programme will range from joint development work with the Building Research Establishment of tests to ensure that products for mental healthcare settings are fit for purpose, to estates modernisation, seclusion space use and design, and care environments for children.

This year’s Design in Mental Health (DiMH) conference, exhibition, and awards dinner – the latter takes place on the evening of the show’s first day – is being held from 21-22 May in the Ericsson Exhibition Hall at a new venue, Coventry’s Ricoh Arena, after a switch from the show’s former location, the National Conference Centre in Solihull, to accommodate the event’s significant growth. While those facing mental ill health have often carried the additional burden of social stigma, the past 4-5 years’ intense focus on mental illness, and revelations that many high profile figures have suffered, have seen a shift in perceptions and a more open, informed dialogue. One high profile figure who has done much to raise mental illness’s profile in an attempt to improve both understanding and treatment is Norman Lamb, the MP for Norfolk North, who will give a keynote speech on the conference’s second day. Having previously served – following his election to Parliament – in senior political roles at the Department for Trade and Industry and The Treasury, he became Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary in 2006. Following the 2010 General Election, he served first as Chief Parliamentary Advisor to Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, and then as junior Minister at the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills, before his promotion to Minister of State for Care and Support.

A pioneering reformer