In Paris this June, leaders from 31 countries called for a bold shift: to make mental health everyone’s business, not just the concern of health ministries.
Christophe, a peer-support worker in France’s Housing First programme, sees that shift already happening on the ground. As part of an integrated team bringing together housing, mental health care, social services and, crucially, lived experience, he works with people who have experienced homelessness, many of whom also live with mental health conditions.
“I support people with mental health conditions through my own experience of recovery,” he says. “People can’t take care of their mental health if they do not have access to stable housing. The Housing First model gives them a foundation – literally – and then we build recovery together,” he explains.
“My role is to give hope and to empower people, because recovery is not a straight line. It takes time, and every person’s path is different.”
This approach embodies the spirit of the outcome statement of the Regional High-level Conference on Mental Health in All Policies – held in Paris on 16–17 June 2025 and co-hosted by WHO/Europe and the French Ministry of Health and Access to Care. The Paris Statement offers a new framework for embedding mental health across public policy.
Employment as a pillar of recovery
While housing is a cornerstone of recovery, so too is meaningful work. France’s “Working First” programme illustrates how employment policy can actively support people living with mental health conditions, and how workplaces can become environments for healing, not harm.
Jerome, a former participant in Working First, describes his journey from despair to self-determination: “In 2017, when I joined Working First, it was because I was saying to myself: stop your nonsense, get a job,” he recalls. “They weren’t just flattering me to make me feel better. Their sincerity helped me a great deal – and that helped me recover.”
Working First connects people with psychosocial disabilities to jobs, while offering individualized support tailored to their needs. For Jerome, the sincerity and respect shown by staff made all the difference.
“There was no pressure to follow a certain path. I asked for some kind of autonomy, and even though they offered more intense support, I refused – and they respected that.”
Jerome believes that societal attitudes must change alongside policy. “We still suffer from paradoxes. People think someone with a disability is weak or incapable – but in my experience, some of the most balanced people I’ve met live with disabilities. We need to stop measuring people’s value by whether they appear ‘normal’ and start respecting what recovery really looks like.”
A practical model
With 1 in 6 people in the WHO European Region living with a mental health condition, and 1 in 3 receiving no treatment, the need for joined-up, people-centred support is urgent. France’s Housing First and Working First models reflect how mental health support can be integrated into housing, employment and social care systems – with striking results.
The Housing First programme offers immediate housing, followed by tailored support. This means that during moments of crisis, the focus remains not on removing the person from their home, but on supporting them where they are.
“We build recovery plans with the person during times of stability, so when a crisis happens, we’re ready,” Christophe explains. “Housing gives us an anchor. It allows people to sleep, eat, feel safe – and begin to reflect on their mental health.”
And through Working First, employment becomes not only possible but transformational for those who have struggled with long-term exclusion. “Recovery is not just about treatment. It’s about being part of society again and about all the steps you go through to rebuild yourself,” says Jerome.
“Supported housing and employment reflect the shift needed to truly promote recovery and social inclusion for people with mental health challenges. More broadly, public policy must address all factors that influence mental health – including violence against children and women, addiction, education, housing, work, leisure, sport and culture,” says Frank Bellivier, Ministerial Delegate for Mental Health and Psychiatry, Ministry of Health and Access to Care.
He adds, “At the ‘Mental Health in All Policies’ conference in Paris on 16–17 June, this cross-sectoral approach was not only affirmed as essential, but demonstrated through concrete examples shared by ministries from multiple countries. This was the encouraging message – and the key to the event’s success.”
Wider call to action
The Paris Statement, adopted by participating countries, outlines key directions for change:
- aligning funding and accountability across sectors
- actively involving people with lived experience in all phases of policy
- promoting social inclusion through public services and urban planning
- supporting mental health in digital spaces, especially for young people
- moving away from coercion toward voluntary, rights-based models of care.
“WHO/Europe’s strength lies in bringing people together and facilitating the sharing of knowledge – across borders, across sectors and across perspectives. Through this conference and the Paris Statement, we’re supporting countries to move from isolated policies to coordinated systems. What we’re seeing in France, through models like Housing First and Working First, shows that this approach works – and WHO is proud to assist countries in making it happen,” said Ledia Lazeri, Regional Adviser for Mental Health at WHO/Europe.
France has declared mental health its “Grande cause” for 2025, reinforcing a whole-of-society commitment to mental well-being.
As countries across the European Region act on the Paris Statement, both Christophe and Jerome offer a clear message: recovery is not a siloed journey – it is a societal responsibility.
“Mental health doesn’t stop at the psychiatrist’s office door,” says Jerome. “It’s in your workplace; it’s in the way people treat you; it’s in how the system respects – or fails to respect – your life.”
When mental health is built into every policy, recovery becomes more than possible; it is expected – and supported.