Mayor thanks Priory eating disorder treatment centre for its work during the pandemic

• Mayor of Merton, Sally Kenny, visits Priory Arthur House in south-west London to thank staff for their work during Covid-19
• She said staff have gone “above and beyond” for their patients during difficult circumstances
• Arthur House has been open throughout this period for those with a wide range of eating disorders
• Eating disorders have risen sharply under lockdown
• Priory Group has seen a significant rise in inquiries for its eating disorder services

The Mayor of Merton, Sally Kenny, paid a special visit to Priory’s Arthur House eating disorder service in south-west London to thank staff for their work in keeping the treatment centre fully open to patients throughout the pandemic.

The Mayor met service manager and psychotherapist Andreea Huttly to thank her, present a certificate of thanks, and to raise awareness of the work which services like Arthur House have been doing in the borough during Covid-19.

Mayor Kenny said: “My visit here is just to say thank-you. I have been visiting people, organisations and services in Merton to present a certificate of recognition for what they have been doing during Covid. The pandemic has added an extra layer of strain especially on residential services and so this is just to say thank-you for the important work you do and contribution you have made

Andreea Huttly said: “We were delighted to welcome the Mayor and have her recognise our work. It is hugely appreciated, and we know she enjoyed her visit and we will display her certificate with pride. We have been busy throughout Covid, both for inpatients and day patients. Many of those with eating disorders have found lockdown particularly difficult because of isolation at home and a lack of support systems around them.

“We have worked incredibly hard to keep our patients safe and to be creative around our work, because lockdown has meant several changes to the way we deliver some of our therapies.”

In 2020, Priory Group saw a 46% increase in the number of enquiries it received regarding treatment for eating disorders at its private clinics, compared to 2019. This included a 61% increase in the number of enquiries about anorexia nervosa, a 26% increase in the number of enquiries about binge eating disorder, and 16% increase in the number of enquiries about bulimia nervosa. 

Sabrina Cator, service development director for Priory’s private healthcare services, said: “Arthur House is an incredibly important service for those needing residential and day care for eating disorders. I am proud of what it has done, and continues to do, to keep patients safe and facilitate their recovery, and get their lives back on track. To have the Mayor take time out of her day to visit and acknowledge this is amazing. It has given the service an incredible lift and we appreciate it. Arthur House is an excellent service which further strengthens our existing services across UK hospital sites including Life Works in Woking, and Priory’s Roehampton Hospital among others.”

Arthur House is an innovative, CQC-regulated, residential eating disorder service based in Wimbledon Park. It provides an alternative to traditional eating disorder treatment in hospital via an experienced team of specialists with expertise across a wide range of eating disorder conditions.

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Notes to editors

Photo attached of Mayor and Andreea Huttly.

About Priory Group

The Priory Group is the leading provider of behavioural care in the UK, caring for around 30,000 people a year for conditions including depression, anxiety, drugs and alcohol addiction, eating disorders and self-harming. The Group is organised into four divisions – healthcare, education and children’s services, adult care and the Middle East.