This election has been a pivotal moment for mental health
Every year 1 in 4 of us will experience a mental health problem. Nearly 2 million are waiting for NHS mental health services, and since 2017 the number of young people struggling with mental health has doubled.
We might talk about mental health even more, but support is out of reach for so many. We’re clear when we say the new UK government must focus on mental health.
We’ve set out the steps the new UK government must take towards a future where there’s no mind left behind.
Our first steps for the new UK government
1. Reform the Mental Health Act to strengthen people’s rights, choices and control while they’re in hospital.
2. Raise the standard of mental health hospitals, making them a safe, comfortable place to recover in.
3. Fund early support hubs so young people have a place to get help before they’re in crisis.
4. Build a better benefits system for disabled people by listening to those who use it.
5. Support people with mental health problems to thrive at work.
Here are 3 simple questions you can ask your MP about mental health.
Reforming the Mental Health Act
The Mental Health Act was created 40 years ago and desperately needs updating. There’s been an independent review of the Act, we’ve had a draft mental health bill published, and the bill has been looked at by a committee in parliament. Now, at last, there is a mental health bill in parliament that will update the act.
The bill includes positive reforms, but it needs to be bolder and more radical, to strengthen people’s rights, choices, and control while they're in a mental health hospital. We’re urging MPs and peers to make changes to the bill so it’s as transformative as it can be before it becomes an act.
Raising the standard of mental health hospitals
We want the new UK government to make a plan to raise the standard of mental health hospitals. That means we want to see more staff with better training. A focus on making mental health hospitals a safe, comfortable place to recover in. And it means we want to see patients and their loved ones given a say in how hospitals are run and set up.
73% of voters back our call for more, better-trained staff in mental health hospitals. These changes aren’t just desperately needed, voters want them too.
Funding early support hubs
1 in 5 young people have a mental health problem today – that’s up from 1 in 9 in 2017. We want the new UK government to build a network of early support hubs for young people where they can get mental health support, fast.
Anyone aged 11-25 would be able to drop into a hub in their local area without an appointment or referral. The earlier a young person gets support for their mental health, the more effective that support will be.
Building a better benefits system for disabled people
We know that there’s a direct connection between mental health and poverty. But the current benefits system doesn’t give people with mental health problems proper financial support.
The new UK government has to restore trust in the benefits system. They need to stop making disabled people and people with long-term health conditions face sanctions on their benefits. And they need to listen to people using the system, with a commission led by disabled people to actually make benefits assessments work for everyone.
Support people with mental health problems to thrive at work
Mental health is the leading cause of sickness absence in the UK. 300,000 people with long-term mental health problems fall out of work every year. We want the new UK government to support everyone to thrive at work. This means modernising sick pay, implementing the Thriving at Work recommendations, and amending the legal definition of disability to better reflect the experiences of people with mental health problems.
Learn more about what we want to see from the new UK government
Want to know more about the changes we’d like to see? We’ve set out why the new UK government needs to prioritise mental health and the first steps they should take to make sure there’s no mind left behind.
Read our first steps for the new UK government
If you’re in Wales, these are the next steps that will impact you