Mental health charities offer cautious welcome for autumn budget

Mental health charities have welcomed the mental health measures in last week’s budget, though with some reservations.

Mind described the budget as a “mixed picture” for mental health. It expressed approval for the £26m extra funding for mental health crisis centres, but said that sustained investment was required for the whole mental health system. Minesh Patel, associate director of policy and influencing at Mind, said: “Yesterday’s budget didn’t deliver the scale of change needed to truly deliver on those missions and create a mentally healthier nation.”

Patel said the increase to minimum wage and the proposals on workers’ rights were “positive news” for people with mental illness, but added that there was a lack of clarity about whether the government intended to go ahead with the changes to the work capability assessment proposed by the previous government. Those changes would have raised the threshold at which people were considered incapable of working, and therefore eligible for benefits.

Mind also welcomed the announcement of the pilot Young Futures Hubs, open access support hubs for young people in every community, designed to benefit their mental health and help reduce the risk of offending. Patel noted, however, that the government ‘failed to provide crucial details on their nationwide rollout or specific implementation plans.’

People waiting for mental health services have been ‘overlooked’

The Centre for Mental Health had a similarly mixed response. “We welcome the government’s promise of much-needed increases in NHS funding. It is imperative that mental health services get their fair share of this essential investment,” said CEO Andy Bell. “As the government-commissioned Darzi report highlighted, the mental health estate has some of the most outdated and unsafe facilities, so it’s crucial that new capital funding is ring-fenced to modernise mental health services.”

Bell added, however: “While we welcome the pledge to boost hospital appointments and tackle long waiting lists, we’re concerned that the one million people waiting for mental health services have yet again been overlooked. This is a false economy with so many people waiting for urgent treatment to enable them to continue their education and working lives.”

Like Mind, Bell welcomed the increase in the minimum wage, as well as the promise of funding for social housing, describing  “safe and secure housing” as “one of the foundations of good mental health.”

He was disappointed at the lack of investment in public health, saying that the public health grant, significantly cut since 2015, “must be urgently restored to protect the public’s mental health.” He added: “Increasing tobacco taxes is a welcome public health measure, but it must be combined with support for people to quit smoking.”

The charity Young Minds was particularly positive about the increased spending on the mental health of young people. Laura Bunt, the charity’s chief executive, said: “We welcome the government’s announcement of significant increases to investment in school budgets and SEND provision, as well as the boost to NHS funding. We hope this investment will go some way to ease the pressure on staff, reduce the long waiting times that many young people face and provide a foundation for the reform these systems desperately need. But we know funding alone will not be enough.”

She added: “With record-breaking numbers of young people in need of support, tweaks to the system will no longer work – we need major reforms that seek to address the root causes of why so many young people are struggling.”

The promise to deliver the Young Futures hubs was also a positive move, said Bunt: “We welcome the funding announced today for trailblazer Young Futures hubs, but we have some concerns about their framing as a crime prevention initiative. We will be watching closely to make sure they deliver for young people.”