Staff working for MPs are ‘hidden mental health service’, charity says

Jane Kirby, Press Association Health Editor

Staff working for MPs in their constituencies are acting as a “hidden mental health service”, a charity has said.

Rethink Mental Illness surveyed 148 parliamentary staff members working at 120 offices and found many were seeing a rise in mental health work on behalf of constituents.

Almost nine in 10 (88%) have had direct experience dealing with a suicidal constituent and 53% said their own mental health has been negatively impacted by their casework.

One in five (20%) has considered quitting because of mental health cases while 54% have seen a rise in the amount of mental health casework since starting their role.

Almost half (47%) of staff said they were receiving mental health-related correspondence on a daily basis. A similar amount (52%) do not think there is sufficient training for casework involving mental illness.

One staff member told Rethink they are operating “beyond their professional remit without adequate resources or training”.

Mark Winstanley, chief executive of Rethink Mental Illness, said: “When we think of frontline mental health workers, we probably think of GPs, psychologists or social workers.

“But the reality is that this role is increasingly falling to parliamentary staff, rather than trained mental health professionals.

“Rising mental health casework is putting the wellbeing of both people living with serious mental illness and the staff supporting them on the line.

“We cannot see this worrying trend in isolation. We need to see real change in how mental health casework is managed in Parliament, alongside broader action to address the rising levels of distress that lead people to contact their MPs to try and secure the support that they need.”

When it came to the concerns of constituents, 76% of parliamentary staff mentioned disability benefit claims linked to mental illness.

Worries about the impact of national or local policy (57%) were also widely reported and 52% of staff said requests for support for others, such as a child or partner, were common reasons for contact.

Some 49% of staff said people were also reaching out about support for themselves.

Almost a quarter (24%) said constituents seeking emotional or therapeutic support directly from an MP’s office was one of the most common reasons for contact.

One constituency caseworker from the East of England said: “People are really more unwell.

“They’re not getting the help, they’re not getting early intervention, they’re not getting the right support at the right time.”

Rethink Mental Illness is recommending mandatory mental health training for MPs’ staff, formal support to help those handling challenging casework, and an established protocol for managing calls from constituents who are suicidal or experiencing significant mental distress.

Mr Winstanley said: “A change in national leadership marks an opportunity for a real shift in the Government’s approach to tackling the nation’s mental ill-health.

“We urgently need better support and guidance for MPs’ staffers but this must be paired with more ambitious longer-term action on mental health to meet the challenges so many people across the country are facing.”