Home 
News News Archive 2010 Welfare reform and recovery
News News Archive 2010 Welfare reform and recovery
Welfare reform and recovery |
 |
 |
 |
| Monday, 08 November 2010 |
|
We are delighted to publish the third article in our series looking at issues relating to work, welfare and recovery, in which consultant and trainer Chris White examines what the Comprehensive Spending Review and welfare reforms could mean for people with mental health problems. The great welfare reform debate began back in 1997 when, then Prime Minister, Tony Blair announced that single parents, disabled people, and older workers would need to pull their weight with his "rights and responsibilities" approach to welfare.[1] Now, in its "tough but fair" spending review, the new UK coalition government has announced welfare cuts totalling £18 billion in order to get "the five million plus people languishing on benefits into work and out of poverty".[2] Throughout this debate we have seen seemingly constant newspaper headlines describing people as "workshy and lazy". In September, the Daily Express proclaimed that "500,000 benefit scroungers will be made to seek work".[3] However in contrast to this image of people making a lifestyle choice not to work, many of the stories collected by the SRN Narrative Research Project highlighted the value that people placed on work and its role in their recovery. The project also highlighted that people were far from passive recipients of benefit sitting at home watching Jeremy Kyle. Many of those with lived experience of mental health problems are very well aware of the importance of activity and engagement as part of their recovery journey. This may not always be paid or full-time employment - voluntary work, user involvement and therapeutic work are all seen as valuable tools to aid recovery. One person described their therapeutic work as "very important to my recovery because I can turn round and say, 'No, I’m not a waster. I do actually try and give back to the community in my own small way.'"[4] Around 1.3 million people in the UK with a mental health condition are on benefits, with a further one million out of work and not claiming benefits. Far from being passive recipients, most people with a mental health condition who are out of work would like to be in paid employment.[5] Successive UK governments have argued that work is the healthiest place to be. Current Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith has claimed that 23 per cent of people currently receiving benefits would be found fit for work[6] once the new Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) benefit is rolled out across the UK (to replace Incapacity Benefit and Income Support paid on incapacity grounds for new customers). At the same time it is important to ensure the right employment opportunities exist, as highlighted by the World Health Organisation’s recognition that work can play an important role both in promoting or hindering mental wellness.[7] The Highland User Group has described employment as giving recovery "a positive approach…something to aim for,"[8] but as a previous SRN discussion paper argued, "not just any work or employment will support recovery, it needs to be the right work for that person, and within a workplace which is flexible and supportive."[9] Over recent years there has been a great deal done to try and reduce stigma towards mental health in the workplace and to improve mental health practises at work, particularly in Scotland. The Scottish Government has funded the 'see me' campaign and established the Scottish Centre for Healthy Working Lives, which aims to provide information, training and resources to employers on a range of health issues including good mental health practices in the workplace. From 25th October, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will introduce a single work programme 'Work Choice'. Launching the programme, Minister for Disabled People, Maria Miller, said: "Nearly half of all disabled people work and many more want to work but have not had the right support. Work Choice will provide that support for more severely disabled people who want to move into employment."[10] 'Work Choice' promises to offer the tailored, individual support that may be needed to help people move successfully back into work. However, it still remains to be seen whether or not employers will be willing to employ people who have been out of the workplace for a long time. The Scottish unemployment rate is now 8.6%, higher than the UK average rate of 7.7%. Between June and August this year unemployment in Scotland increased by 13,000 to 231,000. A further 239,550 claim Incapacity Benefit with around 110,000 of those due to a mental health problem. Whilst there is evidence to suggest that employment is good for recovery, getting into employment may prove even more difficult in the current economic climate. In the meantime people living on welfare benefits will need to come to terms with the realities of the welfare reform programme and the effects of further cuts. Over the course of the next four years every person receiving benefit because they are unable to work due to illness or disability will have their benefit reassessed. They then face either being moved over to ESA or, if they are found fit to work, onto Jobseekers Allowance (JSA). Trials began this October in Aberdeen and Burnley to start moving people over to ESA, and it is expected that the process of reassessing everyone will begin next April. If Iain Duncan Smith’s prediction is accurate, this will mean almost 25,000 people in Scotland with a mental health problem losing their Incapacity Benefit, and having to reapply for Jobseeker’s Allowance, and meet the rigorous conditions attached to receiving JSA. In the October Spending Review, Chancellor George Osborne also announced that from 2012 single people under 35 will not be able to claim full housing benefit and will only be paid a shared room rate. Currently people over 25 are entitled to full housing benefit. If this proposal goes ahead it is likely to mean that people affected will either face losing their home and moving into shared accommodation or having to pay a significant contribution towards their rent. This is a worrying prospect for many people given the clear links between shared housing and depression, anxiety, sleep problems and strained relationships.[11] This change to housing benefit rules may very well have a significant impact on recovery as housing problems are frequently cited as a reason for a person being admitted or re-admitted to inpatient mental health care.[12] Welfare changes are not just likely to affect people living independent lives. The Spending Review also announced that the mobility component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) would end for people in residential care. People living long-term in hospital or residential care already lose many of their benefits. The DLA mobility payment can be important to recovery and social inclusion, it can allow people the freedom to be able to visit friends and families and take trips out of hospital. Removing the mobility payment may well have a negative impact on individual recovery if it in fact leads to less freedom, and more social exclusion. The government has claimed that its cuts are ‘tough but fair’, and whilst it is the case that many people may be better off, both financially and in relation to their health, it is clear that many people require the right levels of support both to move into work and when they are clearly not in a position to work. Future welfare reforms will undoubtedly be unsettling for people with mental health problems. However, it is clear that employment remains an aspirational aim for the majority of people with mental health problems. There is clear evidence that with the right levels of tailored, individual support using an Individual Placement and Support (IPS) approach, employment can both support and sustain personal recovery fulfilling people’s hopes and ambitions for the future.[13] [1] http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4720727.stm. [2] Queen's Speech - 25 May 2010. [3] Daily Express, Wednesday 27 October 2010. [4] Journeys of Recovery, Scottish Recovery Network, 2009. [5] Perkins et al, Realising ambitions: Better employment support for people with a mental health condition, DWP 2009. [6] Daily Mail, 25 October 2010. [7] Mental health and work: Impact, issues and good practices, WHO, 2000. [8] Highland Users Group (2005) Employment and Mental Health. The issues we face when looking for employment. Inverness: Highland Users Group. [9] Pippa Coutts, Mental Health, Recovery and Employment, SRN Discussion Paper Series: Paper 5. [10] http://ablemagazine.co.uk/government-introduces-work-choice-for-disabled-jobseekers/. [11] Full house? How overcrowded housing affects families, Shelter, 2005. [12] Johnson R, Griffiths C, Nottingham T (2006). At home? Mental health issues arising in social housing. London: NIMHE. www.socialinclusion.org.uk/publications/GNHFullReport.doc. [13] Removing Barriers:The facts about mental health and employment, Briefing 40, Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, 2009. |
NEWS
| Play to raise awareness of recovery: 7th June 2012 |
21 May Falkirk and District Association for Mental Health (FDAMH) Arts and Media Group present their first ever drama production, 'We are all Bobby'. |
| New SRN research explores the experience of recovery over time |
16 May Since the first discussions about bringing recovery based approaches to Scotland began, one thing has always been clear: that people's personal narratives - the stories and experiences they share - are central to understanding and encouraging mental health recovery. |
| Black women, recovery and resilience |
16 May In a specially commissioned article for SRN, researcher and psychiatric survivor Dr Jayasree Kalathil explores the issues of recovery and resilience from the perspective of black women interviewed for a 2011 study by Survivor Research and the Mental Health Foundation. While the article focuses on recent data from England, there are important lessons to be learnt everywhere, including Scotland. |
 |
 |