How stronger social relationships can help improve the nation’s mental health
Mental health continues to be one of the most pressing health challenges facing policymakers. Recent reports have revealed that the number of children being referred to NHS mental health services in England has hit the highest level on record. Mental health problems have been estimated to cost the UK economy at least 118 billion per year.
It’s clear that the government is taking the issue seriously. They have pledged to enhance access to mental health support in several ways, including recruiting 8,500 more NHS mental health staff, investing in Young Futures Hubs, and implementing Mental Health Support Teams in every school.
These are important and necessary measures, but we must think beyond the NHS and medical interventions if we want to truly get to grips with the challenge that we’re facing.
Demos has long called for a shift towards foundational policies which directly influence the foundations we all need to live a good life, such as measures to reduce poverty and efforts to strengthen social capital. It’s been well established that a range of social factors, from poor quality housing to negative social relationships, can be risk factors for mental health disorders and can contribute to poor emotional wellbeing. Foundational policies that promote good mental health are therefore greatly needed.
The government has already made several commitments that would support a shift towards foundational policy making, such as addressing housing issues through the Renters Rights Bill and poverty through the Child Poverty Strategy. One additional area we would encourage the government to focus on is relationships and communities.
Supportive relationships are a vital protective factor for mental health. Studies have found that negative social interactions and relationships increase the risk of depression and anxiety while on the other hand, positive interactions reduce the risk of these negative mental health outcomes. Greater social cohesion in communities has also been associated with a reduction in depression and anxiety symptoms.
As well as prevention, helping people with severe mental health problems to live well was a key part of Labour’s mental health strategy review. Strong relationships are undoubtedly important here. For example, research has shown that social support from family and friends has an important positive impact on facilitating recovery from mental health problems.
The valuable role relationships can play in tackling the mental health crisis is clear, and there are several ways the government can support efforts to build social capital in a way that promotes good mental health.
One way is through investment in social infrastructure. In the UK, cuts in local council funding have caused social infrastructure, such as community centres and libraries, to face significant challenges. This has been linked to a decline in social capital which will likely exacerbate rates of loneliness and mental ill health.
In Strong Foundations: why everyone needs good emotional health – and how to achieve it, we argued that the government can build the foundations of good mental health partly by enhancing the social support people have around them. To do this, the government should provide greater support to local government and relevant civil society organisations to create spaces that enable relationship building and community cohesion.
To enable people with mental health problems to live well and have supportive relationships, greater efforts to tackle the stigma associated with mental illness are also needed. While we’ve come a long way in reducing stigma, it still remains – recent research by Mind found that over half of people in the UK say they still feel shamed for living with a mental illness. Research by Rethink Mental Illness also found that 88% of people living with severe mental illness reported that discrimination is still widespread in the UK. It’s been shown that stigma can increase the risk of people with mental health problems experiencing social isolation and difficulties with relationships. This can negatively impact the social support someone suffering from a mental health problem has around them.
Increasing access to the “building blocks” of a healthy life has been a key part of Labour’s health mission. The government should continue to look at ways it can better leverage the role of relationships and social capital as key building blocks of good mental health. This is crucial for both preventing mental ill health and helping those with mental health problems to live well.