A record number of people made a recovery from mental ill health due to NHS talking therapies last year, rising seven per cent since the service began in 2012/13, according to new data from NHS Digital.

In 2016/17, 525,000 people completed a talking therapies course with NHS England's Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme, of which 49.2 per cent completing treatment for anxiety and depression recovered from their condition.

Alongside the improved recovery rate IAPT has seen other improvements such as nine in 10 patients starting treatment within six weeks and 98.2 per cent of people getting care within 18 weeks.

Claire Murdoch, director of mental health for NHS England, welcomed the report, stating that the health service is “reversing years of under-investment” to tackle mental illness. She added: “More people are getting faster access to increasingly effective NHS mental health care. On key measures like rising funding, high recovery rates, lower waiting times and increased referral numbers, NHS talking therapies are delivering better outcomes for adults with mental ill health.”

The improvements are set to continue, as putting mental and physical health on a par remains NHS England's aim. Since 2013 mental health has seen £1.6 billion in extra funding, and from April 2018 local trusts will have to set aside more of their budget for mental health care.