THESE are the steps that the Welsh Government should take to work towards reducing the number of people suffering with mental health problems, and supporting those who do, according to a leading mental health foundation.

The Mental Health Foundation published their manifesto, titled Making Prevention Happen, on Tuesday, February 16. It comes as the current 10-year strategy is nearing its end in 2022.

What is in the manifesto?

They are calling for a number of things to be adopted by the Welsh Government. These include:

• Cross-government strategy on preventing mental health problems

This means to take action to increase protective factors for good mental health and reduce the risks of experiencing poor mental health. They believe that prevention should be the key foundation for the strategy.

• Tackling inequalities

This forms a part of the cross-government strategy and focuses on the inequalities that are found in Wales which can lead to mental health decline. This includes poverty, age, rurality and race. They believe the government should work on highlighting and reducing the inequalities, focusing both on measures which will benefit everyone, and those targeted at specific groups, and allocates resources according to levels of need.

• Make all public services trauma-informed

With this, they should adopt standards of practice, guidance and training on trauma-informed approaches. Under this definition trauma refers to events or a set of circumstances that are experienced as harmful or life-threatening and that have lasting impacts on mental, physical, emotional and/or social well-being.

Traumatic experiences include interpersonal trauma such as bullying, abuse, domestic violence and childhood traumas such as abuse, neglect, abandonment and family separation.

In the manifesto they state: “We want to see all public services in Wales adopting trauma-informed approaches. Listening, empathetic services that place the person at their centre should become the norm for schools and other education settings, workplaces, health and social care services, emergency services and criminal justice services. All government departments responsible for these services should ensure that standards of practice, guidance and training are available and implemented across Wales.”

• Widening of access to ‘social prescribing’ of arts projects, peer-to-peer projects and access to nature

Many social prescribing projects are provided by the community and voluntary sector, who have seen their incomes fall in 2020 due to Covid-19, whilst the need for such support has increased. They would like to see more referred to these non-clinical settings to help with their mental health. They also believe that these projects help the individual to take control of their health and wellbeing.

The Mental Health Foundation said: “Our peer-to-peer projects have found that peer led approaches that ’walk alongside’ people, and move away from pathologising approaches, are effective in supporting people with a range of needs. However, more research is required to improve the evidence base, and more investment is needed to ensure that social prescribing is available throughout Wales.

“The next Government should work with local authorities, the NHS and the third sector to increase support and access to social prescribing projects in Wales. More funding is required to increase the availability of social prescribing, and the research capacity to extend and strengthen its evidence base.”

• Addressing rural mental health by assessing, identifying and increasing the availability of mental health and wellbeing support

They believe rural mental health and wellbeing is an issue in Wales, including issues such as recruitment and retention of health and social care staff and access to digital technologies. One in three people in Wales are classed as living in a rural area.

The foundation said that rural mental health and wellbeing is influenced by many factors including education, access to services, income and deprivation. “Factors such as age are important – the population of rural Wales tends to be older on average, meaning that rural health and social care services are dealing with comparatively higher levels of chronic diseases and age-related disability. Rural communities also tend to see the outward migration of young people who may seek education and employment opportunities in more urban areas; this, in turn, impacts on the availability of support (and opportunities) for young people.”

“We want the next Government to prioritise rural mental health and to assess, identify and increase the availability of mental health and well-being support; this should include the mobilisation of local resources and peer-to-peer solutions.”

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What has been said by the foundation?

Jenny Burns, associate director for Wales at the Mental Health Foundation said: “The pandemic has impacted on all our lives, including our mental health and well-being. However, deep inequalities exist in our society which means some people will be hit harder than others.

“Our recent pandemic research undertaken with Swansea University showed that teenagers – some of whom will be able to vote for the first time this year - feel under extreme pressure as the pandemic continues, and those who were from less advantaged homes are struggling most of all.

“We want the new Government to commit to a new prevention strategy for mental health that recognises that early years, housing, education, employment, health and social care can all work together to protect well-being and reduce the risk of experiencing poor mental health.

“To be successful, it will require all government departments to work together and take ownership of mental health and well-being in order to improve the outlook for people in Wales following such difficult times.”

What does the Welsh Government say on their mental health work?

In a press conference earlier this week, minister for mental health and wellbeing and the Welsh language Eluned Morgan confirmed that there would be more funding put into mental health.

She said: “We've said from the beginning mental health services must remain essential so they haven't been stopped.

"In the next financial year, we will be increasing the amount we spent by £40 million - that takes us to £780 million we spend per year on supporting people with mental health issues. That support is there and we urge people to reach out for support.”

Make Prevention Happen, Mental Health Foundation’s manifesto for the Welsh Parliament Election 2021, can be found on the website at www.mentalhealth.org.uk/wales-manifesto/en