Our vision, values and strategy
We are Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust.
We provide a wide range of adult mental health and learning disability services to a population of 1.8 million people across Kent and Medway, as well as specialist services for adults in Sussex and Surrey.
Each year, we care for over 2,000 people in our hospitals and support more than 54,000 people in the community.
We are proud to employ over 3,600 staff from 66 nationalities, serving increasingly diverse communities across both rural and urban areas.
As part of the Kent and Medway Integrated Care System, we work in partnership with other health and care organisations to plan and deliver joined-up services that improve lives across the region.
In February 2022, we retained our ‘Good’ overall rating from the Care Quality Commission and were rated ‘Outstanding’ for being effective and caring.
We know that demand for mental health support continues to grow, and that the needs of our population and our workforce are changing. Mental illness is now the second-largest cause of disease burden in England, and for people with serious mental illness, two in three deaths are caused by preventable physical health conditions.
To continue meeting these challenges and delivering on our ambitions, we are working to deliver our three-year strategy (2023-2026), which sets out how we’ll improve outcomes, reduce inequalities, and provide compassionate, high-quality care for every person we support.
Our values
Our values define our trust's culture, direction, and purpose. We shaped these values together with our people, patient and partners. They shine a light on the path we need to take to make sure our communities thrive with the support of high-quality mental healthcare from our trust. These values were co-developed in 2025 as part of our trust identity priority and launched in October 2025.
We are caring
This is where it all begins and where we make a real difference, for everyone. We're here to care, truly care. That means seeing each other, listening and knowing we're all valued.
We look after each other because happy people give the best care. Every win, big or small, matters - it's someone's progress. And even when things get tough, we'll always be kind, always listen and always respect.
We are inclusive
We can only deliver high-quality care by being inclusive in every way. Being inclusive means actively promoting diversity, respecting the knowledge, experience and skills we all bring to the table, and recognising and celebrating individual strengths.
We know that if we seek out and hear everyone's voices we will make the best decisions – not just for our people, but for our patients, their loved ones and wider partners too.
We are confident
Confidence is knowing you can speak up when something matters and knowing you will be heard, not judged. If we see something, we say something and we will be heard.
We believe in our skills, our knowledge and the amazing difference we are making as our work improves lives. We take pride in what we do, as individuals and as a team – doing well together for each other and our patients.
We are curious
Being curious is looking beyond the surface, asking 'why' and 'what if' to truly understand the needs of our patients, of each other and the challenges we face.
It makes us life long learners, open to new ideas and innovations to improve what we do. It empowers us to challenge how things are done to provide the best care possible.
Looking ahead, our 2026 - 2031 strategy
Our 2023 - 2026 three-year strategy came to an end in March. It has helped us make important progress and build stronger foundations for improvement.
Over the past two years, we’ve listened extensively to staff, patients, partners and communities, alongside using data, insight and our new improvement approach to shape our next five-year strategy.
Following discussion at our March Public Board, we are now making some final refinements ahead of publication.
Our new strategy, Doing Well Together, will set out a clear and focused direction for the Trust - with a stronger emphasis on delivery, measurable outcomes and improving access, safety, quality and experience for the people we serve. Ultimately it will enable us to achieve our ambition to help people in our communities live well.
We will publish the full strategy shortly, alongside more information about what it means in practice.
In the meantime, our 2023 - 2026 strategy remains available:
Download our 2023 - 2026 three-year strategy
Download our 2023 - 2026 three-year strategy in easy read format
Find out about our Green Plan
To find out more about how we’re working towards a greener, more sustainable future, read our Green Plan here.
