England has set an evidence based mental health strategy which encompasses where and how people are cared for and with what aims and goals in view. It has ensured that policy is well rooted in the known epidemiology of mental disorders, that policy does not only focus on those with severe mental disorders who need specific care, but also on those with less severe disorders in primary care, in the workplace and in prisons, and also on the integration and interface of mental health services with other agencies. It has also rooted policy within a coherent framework of prevention mental health promotion, primary, secondary and tertiary prevention and prevention of mortality), and is driving that policy by measuring health outcomes as well as inputs and processes.