Councils need to do more to tackle the ‘invisible barriers’ that stop people with mental health difficulties from accessing leisure centres and gyms, a mental health charity has said.

A new report by Centre for Mental Health and commissioned by Rethink Mental Illness found that people with mental health difficulties face major barriers to fitness and leisure opportunities, including a lack of social support.

Exercising our Rights found that people living with severe mental illness have a 15–20-year shorter life expectancy than those without, largely due to poor physical health.

It said that offering support to carers and involving people with mental health difficulties in service design was crucial to overcoming barriers. It also called on councils to ensure their fitness and exercise services are equally accessible to people living with a mental illness.

Andy Bell, chief executive at Centre for Mental Health, said: ‘People with mental health difficulties deserve equal access to fitness and exercise opportunities. Listening to people’s views and experiences is essential to ensure that leisure services meet their needs equitably. This should be a normal part of what leisure services do, not a one-off exercise.’

Mark Winstanley, chief executive at Rethink Mental Illness, added: ‘Leisure centres, gyms and local councils can play an important role in creating more supportive environments, and we urge them to implement the recommendations in the report we’ve produced with Centre for Mental Health to make this a reality.’

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