Mental Health (Higher Education Institutions)

Lord Johnson of Marylebone Excerpts

Thursday 11th June 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Minister for Universities and Science (Joseph Johnson)]

It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Madam Deputy Speaker, and to have the chance to debate this important topic.

Ensuring the wellbeing of students is very important for our higher education institutions. I know that they take their responsibilities in this area exceptionally seriously. As the hon. Member for Walsall South (Valerie Vaz) made clear, students have also highlighted how important this issue is for them. However, tackling mental health is a priority not just for higher education. The Government will continue to take mental health as seriously as physical health. It is estimated that funding for mental health will increase by £302 million in 2014-15. Total mental health spending is rising from just over £11.3 billion in 2013-14, to just over £11.6 billion in 2014-15. That is an increase of 0.6% in real terms. We have made it clear that spending on mental health should increase in real terms. NHS England has published planning guidance for 2015-16. This makes the expectation clear that each clinical commissioning group should see spending on mental health services increase in real terms in 2015-16.

It is right that higher education institutions, as autonomous bodies independent from the Government, have the responsibility to ensure the wellbeing of their students. This includes their mental health. They have clear legal responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 to support their students, including those with mental health conditions. Institutions are best placed to determine what welfare and counselling services they need to provide to their students. That will vary according to the needs of each particular student body. Students who, as the hon. Member for Walsall South mentioned, are paying up to £9,000 in fees should be able to access the high quality support they need to sustain and complete their studies. Our universities are in sound financial health. We have, and will continue to have, a world class higher education system. This has been achieved and maintained during a period when higher education has been opened up both to greater numbers and an increased diversity of students.

[Boris Johnson (Uxbridge and South Ruislip) (Con)]

I thank my hon. Friend and brother for giving way. On diversity of students, is it not absolutely vital to maintain this country’s high profile in those vital markets, particularly India, where we have seen a sad falling away in the number of students coming to Britain?

--- Later in debate ---

[Joseph Johnson]

I thank my hon. Friend for his helpful intervention. We do, of course, encourage diversity of students. We encourage diversity in all groups that are under-represented: people from disadvantaged backgrounds and those from the most disadvantaged sections of society. We also welcome the diversity that comes from international students and hope that the numbers from the country he mentioned stop declining in the years ahead and begin to rise.

Universities are adult environments, where the expectations on students are different from those at school. As such, it is only right that students take responsibility, working with the institution, for their own welfare. However, I know that universities are very mindful of the fact that many of their students, particularly those who have moved away from home for the first time to study, will be undergoing a significant transition and may need extra help. Universities provide a wide range of support. In recent years, there has been an increasing awareness in higher education of the need to offer support services to students, and I welcome the efforts the sector has made to develop guidance and support materials, including from a range of sector and medical bodies.

The hon. Lady mentioned the Open University. We must indeed spread good practice, which is why I welcome the recent publication by Universities UK of a good practice guide on student mental wellbeing in higher education, published in February. This is a practical resource for senior higher education leaders and managers and aims to support institutions in building and improving their provision for students with mental health problems.

There are many examples of the support that universities have in place. They have induction systems to help students understand university life, and support is available to reassure students that there are people to turn to if they are experiencing difficulties.

[Mr Kevan Jones (North Durham) (Lab)]

I wish to make a point relevant to the debate. Does the Minister think that some work ought to be done in secondary schools to prepare people for higher education in terms of wellbeing and mental health?

[Joseph Johnson]

It is important throughout the education system that proper attention be given to mental health issues, and that includes the secondary education system as much as higher education.

I was mentioning some of the examples of good practice across our higher education system, and I want to cite work by the University of Wolverhampton, close to the hon. Lady’s constituency, which has recently appointed a mental health adviser. It also offers a counselling service that runs “dealing with students in distress” workshops as part of the university’s annual staff development programme. This is available to all staff, including front-line staff.

The University of Salford works with a number of services in the community, including mental health teams and charities, such as Mind in Salford, Self Help in Greater Manchester and early intervention teams. The University of Sheffield has developed postcards on which is written, “Worried about another student?”. These are aimed at supporting mental health and wellbeing and are distributed through their residences, timed for when students return in January and at the start of first semester exams.

[Kerry McCarthy (Bristol East) (Lab)]

Those are excellent examples of university initiatives, but Bristol University saw a 64% increase in mental health diagnoses in the five years between 2009 and 2014. It recruited a new psychotherapist, and the local psychiatrist now visits twice a week, whereas he used to have to visit only once a fortnight. It needs specific funding to help them cope with the increased demand. Will the Minister speak to his colleagues in the Department of Health to secure some of that funding?

[Joseph Johnson]

As I said, universities are in sound financial health. Students paying up to £9,000 in fees should be able to access the high-quality support they need to sustain and complete their studies.

The Government are providing extra support for disabled students on an individual basis through the disabled students allowance. This can provide support to students with mental health issues. In the academic year 2012-13, just over £127 million was paid in DSA to about 56,000 full-time students. All students applying for DSA undergo a needs assessment interview to ascertain their specific requirements with regard to their chosen course of study. Students with mental health difficulties can apply for the full range of support available through DSA, including specialist mentors, equipment and assistive technology, to help them overcome the barriers they face.

The proposed changes to DSA, which the hon. Member for Walsall South mentioned, will be subject to a public consultation. It is vital to remember that the changes are not about removing support, but about rebalancing the source of that support and ensuring that universities and other higher education institutions play a full role in delivering their legal duties under equality legislation. The aim will be to set clear guidelines on what the Government expect from institutions to ensure that students receive a consistent level of support and that the sector is clear where DSA is the most effective source of support. This is intended to improve the levels of support overall, including for students in receipt of DSA and disabled students who do not claim it. Under the proposed changes, students with mental health conditions will continue to have access to DSA-funded specialist support such as mentors.

The higher education sector has much to be proud of in its work to ensure the wellbeing and mental health of its students and to fulfil its duties under the Equality Act 2010. I expect the sector to continue to meet its obligations in this area and to build and develop the support it provides.

Question put and agreed to.