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Extra £1bn annual funding to help mental health patients back into employment (16 February 2016)

Date: 16/02/2016
Duncan Lewis, Legal News Solicitors, Extra £1bn annual funding to help mental health patients back into employment

The Prime Minister has announced that tens of thousands of people with mental health conditions will be supported to find or return to work.

David Cameron has hosted a mental health roundtable at Number 10 and met with CEOs of major UK companies to agree new workplace standards on mental health – including an extra £1 billion a year for the NHS to help put mental and physical health on equal footing.

People with mental health conditions will be supported to find or return to work as part of a major new drive to transform treatment in England – nearly three in every five people with mental health conditions are currently unable to work, despite evidence showing employment can be a crucial part of treatment.

To end the disparity, the Prime Minister has announced that action will be taken across government, the NHS and private companies to treat potentially debilitating mental health conditions at an earlier stage, through improved access to care – and those already struggling with mental health issues will be supported back into work or to find employment.

Prime Minister David Cameron said:

“Mental health is a major problem in our country and it must be properly addressed – by providing this extra £1 billion a year for mental health care, we will make sure it gets the attention in the NHS it needs.

“But I want to go even further and end the status quo that sees more than half of people with mental health conditions unable to find a job – ensuring tens of thousands are able to find or return to work over the next five years.”

The extra £1bn a year will be used to support one million more people with mental health problems to access high quality care that they are not receiving.

The Prime Minister said the funding was an important step towards delivering the government’s commitment to put mental and physical health on an equal footing – the new approach is based on recommendations from the Mental Health Taskforce, an independent, expert panel chaired by Mind CEO Paul Farmer.

The Taskforce recognised clear links between work and good mental health and the need for more people to be able to access treatment at an early stage, so they can avoid long-term unemployment. Latest figures show only 43% of people with mental health conditions are in employment, compared with nearly four-fifths of the general population and two-thirds of people with other health conditions.

As a result, there will be more emphasis on talking therapies for people suffering from conditions like anxiety or depression – which will be almost doubled, so that 800,000 people receive the support they need as a result of a £308m investment.

There will also be more mental health experts in job centres to embed the link between employment and mental health – and £50m will be spent to double the reach of programmes finding work for people with mental conditions.

Mind Chief Executive Paul Farmer, who led the Taskforce, said:

“This is a landmark moment for mental health care in this country – a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform services and support for people with mental health problems.

“We are saying to the NHS, to government, to industry, to local leaders and to the public that mental health must be a priority for everyone in England.”

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said:

“We have made monumental strides in the way we think about and treat mental illness in this country in the last few decades — from a society that locks people away in asylums to one giving mental health equal priority in law.

“But we must accelerate progress even further – our shared vision of a seven-day mental health service means people will get the care they need when they need it, and will help us do much more to prevent mental illness in the first place. “
Duncan Lewis Mental Health Solicitors
Duncan Lewis is the UK’s largest provider of Legal Aid mental health services and can advise mental health patients on a wide range of issues – including access to NHS mental health services and detention under the Mental Health Act.

Duncan Lewis mental health solicitors regularly visit NHS hospitals and police stations to advise on mental health law – and are available nationwide at short notice for hospital and police station appointments.

In some cases, Duncan Lewis mental health solicitors may be able to advise the nearest relative or carer of a mental health patient on a range of issues, including initiating treatment reviews where appropriate.

For expert legal advice on mental health law, call the Duncan Lewis Mental Health Solicitors Helpline on 0333 772 0409.

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