Reacting to the government’s Budget statement on 30 October 2024, Vanessa Pinfold, Research Director and Cofounder at McPin, said:
While McPin was encouraged to see significant financial commitments to the NHS and an injection of £1.6bn of funding into core research (particularly medical science, biotechnology and engineering) we have two ongoing concerns.
Firstly, mental health research needs to cover the bio-psycho-social spectrum and involve communities that are directly affected to set the research agenda and deliver it. This includes life sciences but many other disciplines too.
We hope to see this funding provide more opportunities for research led and co-produced by people with lived experience.
People with lived experiences have insider knowledge of how services work. They have experienced the brokenness and have innovative ideas on how to fix them.
Senior Researcher at McPin
A senior research at McPin said:
“I work with my lived experiences as a researcher. I believe lived experience research is vital in the research landscape – it turns the narrative of mental health on its head.
People with mental health issues can work and thrive at work, when the environment is supportive. People with lived experiences have insider knowledge of how services work. They have experienced the brokenness and have innovative ideas on how to fix them.
People with lived experience have empathy and solidarity for others experiencing mental health struggles. They do not want anyone to suffer. This passion, this enthusiasm means research they do is destined to make a real difference to every-day life.”
We are extremely disappointed that Labour may still push ahead with the Department for Work and Pensions reforms, specifically changes to the Work Capability Assessment.
Secondly, we are acutely aware that the nation is still in the middle of a mental health crisis. £26m will be provided to open new mental health crisis centres, which is welcome news. The aim is to reduce pressures on A&E services.
However, after the Chancellor’s speech on 30 October, we are still not clear how much total funding will go to improving our mental health services.
Societal inequality has a huge impact on our nation’s mental health. We are extremely disappointed that Labour may still push ahead with the Department for Work and Pensions reforms, specifically changes to the Work Capability Assessment, as set out by their predecessors. McPin urges for clarity on Labour’s plans
Our research points towards specific and tailored interventions – these need appropriate and sustained funding.
To build a mentally healthier nation, we need sustained and holistic investment in our children and young people’s mental health. The budget rightly focused on children and young people’s education, social care, skills, training and employment pathways but we were concerned to see that the mental health crisis among young people was not directly addressed.
In June this year we put out our Ten Asks of the Next Government, written in collaboration with young people with lived experience of mental health issues, together with academic partners.
Our research-informed asks ranged from a call for a commitment to providing personalised care for young people at risk of self-harm and suicide, to improved training for all primary, emergency, and mental health care providers.
Our research points towards specific and tailored interventions – these need appropriate and sustained funding.
