MORE support has been pledged for women who suffer mental health problems during pregnancy or in the first year after giving birth.

Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust – which runs the Centre for Mental Health at Airedale Hospital – is setting-up a new, specialist perinatal community-based service.

The trust also plans to further develop its eating disorder provision, to enable children, young people and their families to access help earlier.

The objectives are outlined in the organisation's operational plan for 2017-19, which has just been published.

People across Airedale, Wharfedale, Craven and Bradford have been involved in agreeing the trust's priorities.

Other aims include maintaining a zero out-of-area placements policy for people in need of adult mental health hospital care – and extending it to young people – working with local and regional partners to improve services and supporting staff wellbeing and development.

Nicola Lees, the trust's chief executive, said: "The next two years will be some of the most challenging we have seen across the NHS – making sure we continue to support local people with high-quality mental health, learning disability and community services, but within tightening budgets.

"Working together with partners across the district and West Yorkshire means that we can share what works well and make better use of resources to improve and develop services, so that local people get the right care when they need it.

"All our staff are central to this, so it's vital that we continue to support their training and professional development and more importantly their wellbeing."