Some businesses take their workplace mental health responsibilities very seriously. It was extremely insightful to talk to leaders of Talon, JCDecaux, Clear Channel Outdoor, Ocean Outdoor today, about what they’re doing to support employees’ mental health.

​Today, I wrote to the Health Secretary, Steve Barclay, regarding my growing concerns about the limited powers of the ongoing inquiry into the deaths of up to 2,000 patients in mental health hospitals in Essex Partnership University Trust over the past 20 years.

The inquiry has only received the co-operation of less than 30% of named staff, who are essential witnesses in the deaths that are being investigated, leaving families in limbo and further compounding their grief.

I have called on the Health Secretary to give the inquiry the full statutory powers required to ensure families get answers and that lessons can be learned for the future. Read my full letter here:

As Mental Health Awareness Week comes to a close, I’ve been highlighting Labour’s bold plan for improving services across England, with prevention and early intervention at its heart.

On my visit to Maudsley Hospital, I spoke to the incredible Aji Lewis, who has tirelessly campaigned for Seni's Law to transform patient safety across the country. 

I spoke at a Parliamentary reception for Mental Health Foundation and joined Baton of Hope in Parliament, for a meeting with the Speaker to discuss their work on suicide prevention.

And finally, speaking to students South Thames College, I spoke about my role as Shadow Cabinet Minister for Mental Health, holding the Government to account for failure in Mental Health services across England.

Patients experiencing a mental health crisis often find themselves stuck in A&E. 

The Health Secretary should be ashamed.

Today, I asked the Health Secretary when will he finally get his act together and back Labour's plans to recruit thousands of additional staff to bring down waiting times?

See my question here

It was fantastic to be out in the gorgeous Peak District to support my friend and High Peak's next Labour MP, Jon Pearce. We first visited the Glossop Arts Project to see the amazing work they do, using art to support young people's mental health - of course, we had to indulge in the offer of a free toastie and cuppa too!

On the doorstep afterwards, we spoke to so many people fed up with the Tories, both locally and in Westminster. There are council elections coming up in May and Labour has every chance to take full control of the council here! The views were incredible, the people lovely, and I can't wait to be back!

​Today marks World Bipolar Day, which raises awareness and reduces the stigma surrounding bipolar disorder. One-in-fifty people in the UK live with bipolar disorder yet many struggle to access the services they need to get a proper diagnosis.

Living with bipolar disorder can have a devastating impact on the people struggling with the illness as well as an impact on their loved ones, which is why it is vital that people are able to get a diagnosis early. 

We need a Government that will get serious on bipolar disorder.

Labour will put prevention and early intervention at the forefront of our approach to mental health. The next Labour Government will recruit 8,500 new staff to ensure mental health treatment within a month for all who need it.

​

On Eating Disorder Awareness Week, I spoke a debate in Westminster Hall on challenging the stereotypes and assumptions around eating disorders. 

​Across the UK, there are as many as 1.25 million people living with an eating disorder.

Eating disorders have considerably high mortality rates, with anorexia claiming the most lives of any mental illness. Yet, with timely and appropriate treatment, people can go on to live healthy and fulfilling lives.

We need a Government that will get serious on mental health and eating disorders.

Labour will put prevention and early intervention at the forefront of our approach to mental health. We will place a mental health specialist in every school and place an open access hub for young people in every single community.

Our latest research, shows that in 2021/22, the total number of days lost to poor mental health has doubled to more than 730,000 over the last decade. This comes at the same time that there has been a drop in the number of neighbourhood police officers by 6,000 and of Police Community Support Officers by 8,500. 

These absences equate to over 2,000 police officers being off sick each day, last year alone, due to poor mental health.

It is clear that this Conservative Government has presided over 13 years of neglect and staff shortages that have left our public services at breaking point.

The next Labour Government will recruit 8,500 more mental health professionals, ensuring a million more patients get treated each year; and we will rebuild neighbourhood policing, delivering a package of 13,000 extra neighbourhood officers and PCSOs, putting police back on the beat.

Read the full story here

​Our exclusive data reveals that children in a mental health crisis spent more than 900,000 hours in A&E in England, last year. The total delays across England, in the past year alone, equate to 103 years of waiting time. This is a huge rise, up four-fold in the last decade.

The figures, made public through Freedom of Information requests, show the staggering number of hours that children have spent in a mental health crisis in Emergency Departments.

With nowhere to turn, children with a mental illness are left to deteriorate – at which time A&E is the only place left for them to go. Emergency Departments are incredibly unsuitable settings for children in crisis, yet we’re witnessing increasingly younger children having to present to A&E in desperation.

The next Labour Government will prioritise a truly preventative plan for mental health services and will put patient care first. We will ensure access to mental health professionals in every school and put an open access hub in every community, in addition to guaranteeing mental health treatment within a month for all who need it, by recruiting 8,500 new mental health staff to treat a million additional patients a year by Labour’s first term in office., funded by closing tax loopholes.

Read the full article here

For Children's Mental Health Week, I've written for LabourList about Labour's bold, transformative plan to deliver mental health care for children and young people. With children waiting days in A&E in a mental health crisis and more than one million people being turned away from mental health services without being seen, it is vital that we transform care by putting prevention at the heart of our plan.

This Government should not cut corners when it comes to young people’s mental health. Good mental health starts in childhood. Labour’s vision for future generations is one where mental health conditions are treated early. Adverse childhood experiences are the greatest driver of mental illness in adulthood – it’s just common sense to get mental health treatment right for young people in order to transform the future of the country’s mental health.

The next Labour Government will ensure access to a mental health professional in every school, and we will put an open access mental health hub in every community. Every child should have the ability to raise concerns about their mental health with someone they trust, in an environment in which they feel safe. All of this will be funded by ending tax breaks for private schools.

Read my full article here