ABSTRACT
Mental health care services today are building on the standards and guidance set out in the National Service Framework (NSF) for mental health (DoH, 1999). The NSF provided an evidence-based foundation for more patient-focused mental health services. The Framework's stated aim was to ``raise standards, tackle inequalities and meet the special needs of women, men and different ethnic groups''. It set the foundations for increased impetus towards promoting single-sex accommodation, better responses to violence and abuse, better crisis housing and tackling inequalities in secure provision for women.
