Reform Should Be Supportive, Not Punitive

The following news release was sent along by the Mental Health Foundation, referring to the UK government’s recent paper on welfare reform:

The Department for Work and Pensions today published the Welfare Reform green paper, outlining plans to get 1 million of the 2.7 million people currently on incapacity benefit back into work within 10 years.

Dr. Andrew McCulloch, Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation said:

The plans laid out in the green paper are broadly positive. We know that many people with mental health problems want to work. However, we would stress the vital importance of the provision of appropriate support, and properly trained staff. Forcing people back to work too soon could create fear and anxiety about loss of benefit if someone becomes unable to cope after a return to work. Mandatory interviews and sanctions would also be experienced as stressful for a lot of people with mental health problems. There is a danger these issues could produce a psychological trap. Claimants should be entitled to advocacy if needed. This kind of support will go further than punitive measures.

Changes to the Personal Capability Assessment are sorely needed. We would encourage government to give this gateway mechanism careful and thorough consideration in order to make it fair and appropriate to the issues faced by those with mental health problems.

David Crepaz-Keay, the Foundation’s Senior Policy Advisor for Patient and Public Involvement said:

We need to ask questions about why so many people with mental health problems are excluded from work in the first place. Until employer discrimination is tackled, we will be fighting an uphill struggle getting people who want to work into jobs. Otherwise, benefit reforms of this nature mean you’ll have the ludicrous situation of people who are too ill to work inappropriately employed in entry-level jobs, alongside people who are too well to be unemployed claiming benefits.

The Mental Health Foundation is the leading UK charity working to improve services for both people with mental health problems and people with learning disabilities. It is the only charity to fund and work with both service users and providers and plays an important role in funding research and new approaches to prevention, treatment and care. The Foundation’s work includes allocating grants for research and community projects; contributing to the public debate; educating policy makers and healthcare professionals and striving to reduce the stigma attached to mental illness.

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