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 a 16% increase in the number of enquiries about bulimia nervosa. Facing an eating disorder is an uphill battle for those who are suffering, that is why getting in contact with professionals like an Eating Disorder Therapist or a clinic can provide that much-needed support and awareness for those who want to do and be better.

Sabrina Cator, service development director for Priory’s private healthcare services, said: “Arthur House is an incredibly important service for those needing residential and daycare 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 hospitals via an experienced team of specialists with expertise across a wide range of eating disorder conditions.