Most on the crisis-service planning group wanted to extend a social services counselling service which was already in existence. It was mainly users and representatives from the voluntary sector who pushed for a service intrinsically different. But users crucial ally within Leeds Social Services was Jeremy Pritlove, a user development worker credited for swinging the planning group to accept a separate user-led service working alongside mental health services already available. It always seemed quite clear to me that the aim was to create a unique service which complemented those already on offer, reflects Pritlove. Since Dial House became up and running Leeds mental health service s main role is to provide Dial House with its own array of skills and experience.
Social services takes care of pay-roll issues, tax and all the bureacracy.
This means I am not having to do it all and can concentrate more on working with guests, says Croner. In the future mental health providers will be eager to assess whether Dial House offers a creditable complement, if not an alternative, to hospital care. We have no doubts that we will be able to prove our worth, asserts Croner. Everybody knows that at the moment the psychiatric system is untenable because of too few psychiatric beds. Anywhere that offers additional support is valuable.