Student Mental Health & Wellbeing Report 2013 by University of Sussex Students' Union

Student Mental Health and Well-being Report 2013

Contents Table of Figures

Executive Summary

Introduction

Survey Findings

PART 1: Personal experiences of mental health issues

1.1 Respondents’ personal experiences of mental health issues

1.2 Respondents’ with caring responsibilities for someone with mental health issues

PART 2: Attitudes to mental health 2.1 What is understood by the term ‘mental health’?

2.2 Attitudes to talking about mental health

2.3 Attitudes to declaring mental health issues

2.4 Mental health stigma and discrimination

2.5 Other comments relating to the experience and/or views of respondents on mental health and well-being

PART 3:

Mental health support at Sussex

3.1 Awareness of the support available to students with mental health issues

3.2 Use of support services available to students with mental health issues

3.3 The overall experience of respondents with mental health issues at Sussex

3.4 Other comments relating to the experiences and/or views of support at Sussex for students with mental health issues

Key findings

Recommendations

Appendices

Appendix A

Students and Mental Health and Well-being Survey

Table of Figures Figure 1: Have you ever felt so stressed out during your time at university that you felt unable to cope?

Figure 2:

What are the causes of increased pressure?

Figure 3: Table showing the differences between causes of stress for respondents with personal experience of mental health issues and respondents with no personal experience

Figure 5: Table showing the differences between attitudes to others speaking about their mental health issues for all respondents and for respondents with either some personal experience of mental health issues or no personal experience

Figure 6: Did you declare your mental health issue on your University application form? (filtered by respondents with personal experience of mental health issues when they arrived at University)

Figure 7:

Would you declare a mental health issue when applying for employment?

Figure 8: Do you think there is stigma attached to having mental health issues?

Figure 9: Have you ever felt discriminated against as a result of any mental health issues? (filtered by respondents with personal experience of mental health issues)

Figure 10: Table showing whether respondents use words socially that have connotations to mental health, the results filtered to illustrate differences between respondents with personal experience of mental health issues and respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues

Figure 13: Table showing what respondents would do if they felt their mental health issues were affecting their studies, the results filtered to illustrate differences between respondents with personal experience of mental health issues and respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues

Figure 14: Table showing where respondents with personal experience of mental health issues have accessed support from

Figure 15: How would you rate your experience of that service? (filtered by respondents with personal experience of mental health issues)

Executive Summary This report looks at the views and experiences of mental health amongst students at the University of Sussex and is based on the results of the Student Mental Health and Well-being Survey1. The survey asked questions about the respondents’ personal experiences of mental health, their attitudes towards mental health and their opinions about the mental health support offered to students at Sussex and found that: ●● 75.2% of survey respondents who arrived at University with some personal experience of mental health issues did not declare their mental health issue on their University application form. ●● 59.8% of survey respondents would not declare a mental health issue when applying for employment. ●● 87.1% of survey respondents felt that there was stigma attached to having mental health issues. ●● 26.8% of survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues had been discriminated against as a result of their mental health issues. ●● 43.8% of survey respondents would do nothing and/or would struggle on if they felt that their mental health issues were affecting their studies. ●● 11.1% of respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues had sought no support at all. ●● 70.7% of survey respondents had felt so stressed out at some point during their time at University that they felt unable to cope, 78.1% of whom would either speak to someone or already had but 21.1% of whom would either not speak to someone or were not sure. ●● Only 35.1% of survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues felt they had been adequately supported during their time at Sussex. Overall, the survey findings demonstrated a need to reduce the stigma attached to mental health, improve mental health support for students at Sussex and ensure all students with mental health issues are aware of and feel comfortable accessing that support. The survey findings also highlighted the need to provide clearer information about the mental health support available and for steps to be taken to address the difficulties faced by some students in accessing support. As a result the report makes a number of key recommendations, which the Students’ Union now hopes to work with the University towards implementing.

1 See Appendix 1

Introduction Mental health is defined as a state of well-being in which every individual realises their own potential, can cope with the ‘normal’ stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to their community2. Like physical health, our mental health can vary from time to time. One in four of us will experience at least one diagnosable mental health problem in any given year3, and studies have shown that roughly half of all lifetime mental health problems start by the mid-teens, and three quarters by the mid-20s4. Even though mental health problems are so common, there is still a strong stigma attached to mental health issues and those that experience a mental health problem are highly likely to face stigma and discrimination from others, whether from families, friends, employers or society at large. Mental health stigma and discrimination often has a negative effect on the lives of people with mental health issues5 and can prevent people from seeking mental health care6. The Time to Change campaign7 is a national campaign run by leading mental health charities Mind8 and Rethink Mental Illness9. It seeks to change both attitudes and behaviour towards mental health and aims to: ●● Improve public attitudes towards people with mental health problems ●● Reduce discrimination ●● Reduce the number of areas of life in which people experience discrimination ●● Increase the confidence and ability of people with mental health problems to address discrimination ●● Improve the social capital of people with mental health problems On a national level, there has been a significant increase in demand for mental health support amongst higher education students over the last 5 years with more students also seeking help for increasingly severe mental health problems.10 More locally, the Students’ Union recognises that large numbers of students at Sussex are affected by issues surrounding mental health and well-being, including stigma and discrimination, and that these can present an obstacle to a student’s ability to successfully complete their studies and make the most of their time at Sussex. The Students’ Union’s has therefore decided to sign up to the Time to Change pledge and to launch a campaign to raise the profile of mental health, encourage people to be more open, remove barriers and help direct students to support services and networks. By adopting this campaign at Sussex we hope to improve the knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of staff and students at Sussex around mental health in order to reduce stigma and discrimination and help overcome some of the difficulties faced by Sussex students with mental health issues. As part of this campaign the Students’ Union launched an online survey11, the results of which form the basis of this report. The Student Mental Health and Well-being Survey was aimed at current Sussex students (including students at the Brighton and Sussex Medical School - BSMS) and looked at respondents’ views and experiences of mental health and mental health support at Sussex. The survey collected responses between 27th November 2012 and 25th January 2013 and was promoted both online, in print and via social media12. There were 221 responses (175 complete) to the survey. Survey respondents tended to be female (67.8%), aged under 25 (56.7% under 21, 30% 21-24), heterosexual (69.2%) and self-identified as white British (83.2%). Only 15.1% of respondents stated that they had a particular religion or faith and 8.4% that they had any dependents (adult or child). Of the 27.4% of respondents who stated that they did have a disability that was covered by the Equality Act 2010 93.8% specified that this was a mental health issue. With regard to student status, respondents tended to be full-time (92.2%) undergraduate (87%) home (87.1%) students. There were responses from students in most schools across the University13 and a relatively high percentage (31.9%) of respondents who indicated that they received either a First Generation Scholarship, Chancellors Scholarship or Sussex Bursary14.

If you’d like any further details about the survey and its findings, or if you’d like to know more about the Students’ Union’s Time to Change Campaign, please contact the University of Sussex Students’ Union Welfare Officer Welfare Officer University of Sussex Students’ Union Falmer House Falmer Brighton East Sussex BN1 9QF (01273) 873354 welfare@sussexstudent.com

World Health Organisation, 10 Facts about Mental Health, 2011 The Office for National Statistics Psychiatric Morbidity report, 2001 4 World Health Organisation, 2011, 10 Facts about Mental Health 5 Mental Health Foundation - www.mentalhealth.org.uk/help-information/mental-health-a-z/S/stigma-discrimination/ 6 World Health Organisation, 2011, 10 Facts about Mental Health 7 Time to Change - www.time-to-change.org.uk/ 8 Mind - www.mind.org.uk/ 9 Rethink Mental Illness - www.rethink.org/ 10 Royal College of Psychiatrists, Mental Health of Students in Higher Education college report CR155, 2011 11 The Student Mental Health and Well-being Survey, 2012-2013, see Appendix 1 12 The author acknowledges that this report only represents the views and experiences of those students who responded to the survey and that those who completed the survey were self-selecting. Caution has been taken as a result when making generalisations based on these findings. 13 With the exception of Brighton Institute of Modern Music (BIMM), Institute of Development Studies (IDS), Study Group International and Sussex Centre for Language Studies 14 These scholarships and bursaries are available to eligible home students from lower socio-economic groups 2 3

Survey Findings Part 1: Personal experiences of mental health issues 1.1

Respondentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; personal experience of mental health issues

71.5% of all survey respondents had some personal experience of mental health issues with 46.2% of survey respondents stating that they had come to University with a personal experience of mental health issues and 26% of respondents stating that they had developed mental health issues since being at University15 These figures did not alter significantly when the results were filtered by gender although there was a slightly higher prevalence amongst female respondents with 49.2% of female and 44.4% of male respondents stating that they had come to University with a personal experience of mental health issues and 32.3% of female and 24.1% of male respondents stating that they had developed mental health issues since being at University. The age of respondents did appear to have some affect with significantly more respondents in the 30-39 age bracket (85.7%) reporting that they had personal experience of mental health issues upon arrival at University than any other age group. In line with national trends, the age group most likely to have developed mental health issues since being at University was respondents aged between 21-24, with 44.4% of respondents in this bracket reporting that they had developed a mental health issue since their arrival. A higher percentages of respondents who described their sexual orientation as either bisexual, gay, lesbian or queer were also more likely to have arrived at University with some personal experience of mental health issues (61.9%) compared to those respondents who identified as heterosexual (43.4%). Conversely however, those respondents who identified as heterosexual were more likely to have developed mental health issues since their arrival (30.1%) compared to those respondents who identified as either bisexual, gay, lesbian or queer (23.8%). When asked whether they have ever felt so stressed out during their time at University that they felt unable to cope 70.7% of all survey respondents indicated that they had.

Figure 1: Have you ever felt so stressed out during your time at university that you felt unable to cope

The discrepancy in these figures is accounted for by the fact that 2 respondents indicated that they had both come to University with a mental health issue and developed a mental health issue since being at University

Interestingly, 40% of survey respondents who indicated that they had no personal experience of mental health issues still replied positively to this question. The fact that so many respondents who stated that they had no personal experience of mental health issues reported that they had felt unable to cope at some point as a result of stress highlights that even if respondents donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think of themselves as having mental health issues they may still have experienced symptoms often associated with mental health problems. The main causes of additional pressure that led to respondents feeling that they were so stressed out that they were unable to cope are shown in the chart below:

Figure 2: What are the causes of increased pressure? Other causes indicated by respondents included family health issues, balancing extra-curricular activities and work, anxiety/panic vicious circle, problems at home, unsupportive University services/tutors, empathy for friends, volume of studying required and self-esteem.

When looking further at these causes of stress for respondents there are some interesting differences between those respondents who indicated that they had some personal experience of mental health issues and those that indicated they had not. For example, personal problems were a far greater cause of additional pressure for students with personal experience of mental health issues (72.4%) than for those with none (43.8%). Similar differences between the causes of stress for those with some personal experience of mental health issues and those with none can be seen for health, worrying about finding a job, drugs/alcohol, inadequate professional support, identity and caring responsibilities.

Cause of increased pressure

Respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (%)

Respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues (%)

72.4

43.8

61 58.1 46.7 40 41.9 28.6

50 43.8 43.8 37.5 12.5 18.8

22.9 24.8

12.5 6.3

20 9.5

0 0

Coursework Personal problems e.g. relationship breakdown, bereavement Feeling lonely/missing friends & family Financial worries Exams Housing worries Health Worrying about finding a job Drugs/alcohol Inadequate professional support Identity e.g. sexuality, gender identity Caring responsibilities Â

Figure 3: Table showing the differences between causes of stress for respondents with personal experience of mental health issues and respondents with no personal experience

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also worth noting that respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues rated all of the listed causes of stress higher than those respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues with one notable exception - coursework. Although there is no data available for why this is, it is likely to relate to the fact that high percentages of respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues (24.8%) reported that they had sought support from their academic advisor16.

See figure 14 in section 3.2

1.2

Respondents with caring responsibilities for someone with mental health issues

Only 8 respondents indicated that they had been the carer for someone with mental health issues during their time at Sussex. Whilst we do not have any data available on the number of carers at Sussex with which to compare this to, the low figure is likely to indicate that those survey respondents who provide informal care for a friend, partner or family member with a mental health issue, or who are not the sole or main carer for that person, do not consider themselves to have caring responsibilities17.

â&#x20AC;&#x192;

See www.nhs.uk/CarersDirect/understanding-carers/Pages/health-and-social-care.aspx

Part 2: Attitudes to mental health 2.1

What is understood by the term ‘mental health’?

When asked to sum up ‘mental health’ in one sentence, many survey respondents focused on mental ill-health. Responses in this category included: “Seeing the world differently to a healthy person” “Factors, which aren’t the individuals fault, that affects their ability to function properly” “A serious illness that needs to be addressed” “Mental health is mental unhealth [sic], it only comes into play when there is a problem” Responses that focused more on mental well-being included: “Feeling happy or content most of the time” “Psychological well-being and ability to cope with environmental demands” “Feeling secure, feeling in control of one’s life, one’s thoughts, one’s emotions and actions” “Being able to function ‘normally’ everyday” Some respondents gave answers which indicated how they felt others and/or society viewed mental health. Examples included: “Illness that society says you should hide and be embarrassed about” “Misunderstood and unduly feared by the general population” “Under-reported and over-stigmatised” “If people can’t see any physical symptoms they assume it doesn’t exist” Many other respondents gave answers which reflected the personal feelings of those experiencing mental health issues. These included: “Scary to deal with, especially if you feel alone and have nobody to talk to” “Destructive, isolating and upsetting” “Mental health is like breaking your leg but not understanding the how or why or what the repercussions will be or why nobody knows how to talk to you” “Feeling different, ill but in the emotional sense rather than physical...”

2.2

Attitudes to talking about mental health

When asked whether they would speak to someone if they had a mental health issue and/or were so stressed out that they felt unable to cope, the vast majority of all respondents (78.1%) indicated that they either would speak to someone or that they already had.

Yes I already have Yes/I already have No Not sure No/Not sure Â

All respondents (%)

Respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (%)

Respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues (%)

41.7 36.4 78.1

33.9 52.8 86.7

71.4 4.8 76.2

8 13.1 21.1

8.7 4.7 13.4

4.8 19 23.8

Figure 4: Table showing the differences between attitudes to speaking to others for all respondents and for respondents with either some personal experience of mental health issues or no personal experience It is encouraging that the majority of students who responded to the survey would speak to/already have spoken to someone, particularly those respondents who have personal experience of mental health issues. There are however a significant minority amongst all respondents (21.1%) who indicated that they either would not speak to someone or were not sure. Although the figures are much lower for respondents with personal experience of mental health issues, almost 1 in 10 still indicated that they would not speak to someone. When asked about how they would react if someone else talked about their own mental health issues to them the results were very encouraging with the vast majority of respondents (96.6%) indicating that they would listen and talk things through with that person if it was someone close to them and a significant majority (68.4%) still happy to do this even if the person was not someone well-known to them.

All respondents (%)

Someon e close

Someon e not wellknown

Respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (%)

Someon e close

Someon e not wellknown

Respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues (%)

Someon e close

Someon e not wellknown

Liston & 96.6 68.4 97.6 74.8 95.2 52.4 talk things through with them Help them 78.9 58.7 83.3 65.4 71.4 50.0 to find out informatio n &/or accompany them to support services Encourage 79.4 78.6 82.5 81.9 71.4 76.2 them to make use of support services Try to put 0 1.9 0 0.8 0 2.4 it off & avoid them Feel 1.0 12.6 0.8 11 2.4 16.7 awkward & suggest they speak to someone else Make a 2.9 0.5 3.2 0.8 0 0 joke of it Â Figure 5: Table showing the differences between attitudes to others speaking about their mental health issues for all respondents and for respondents with either some personal experience of mental health issues or no personal experience Perhaps unsurprisingly, those respondents who had personal experience of mental health issues were generally more comfortable discussing mental health issues with others than those with no personal experience, with 3.2% even reporting that they would make a joke of it in addition to more obviously supportive behaviour if it was someone close to them. Those with some personal experience were also more likely to help others to find out information and/ or accompany them to support services and encourage them to make use of services than those with no personal experience. Less encouragingly however a significant minority of all respondents (12.6%) indicated that they would feel awkward if someone they didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know well spoke to them about their own mental health issues and/or would suggest they speak to someone else. This was even more prevalent amongst those with no personal experience of mental health issues themselves (16.7%).

2.3

Attitudes to declaring mental health issues

Whilst the majority of respondents were happy to speak to others about either their own mental health issues or the mental health issues of others, the same cannot be said when it came to formally declaring mental health issues. When asked whether or not they had declared their mental health issue on their University application form, those respondents who indicated that they had arrived at University with some personal experience of mental health issues overwhelmingly reported that they had not declared it (75.2%).

Figure 6: Did you declare your mental health issue on your University application form? (filtered by respondents with personal experience of mental health issues when they arrived at University) The reasons given for not declaring a mental health issue on their University application form included (from the most to the least common): ●● Not considering it relevant For example: “I didn’t think having depression has anything to do with my university application” ●● Embarrassment, stigma and taboo of mental health issues For example “There is stigma associated with such conditions” ●● Fear of the impact on their application For example “I...felt that it would lower my chances of being offered a place” ●● Lack of diagnosis at the time of application For example“Was diagnosed after application” ●● Not a current/sufficient issue For example “I did not see it as serious enough” ●● Not knowing how the information would be used For example “Didn’t want it to define who I was, I wasn’t comfortable in sharing that information, didn’t want people to know about it.” ●● Being advised not to be others (including medical professionals) For example “I was told not to by my college in case it affected the decision to accept me.”

Other responses referred to a lack of awareness of the opportunity to declare, not wanting special treatment, not wanting to acknowledge their issues and feeling that it is a personal matter. What is interesting to note here is that national figures indicate that in UK higher education only around 1 in 150 students (0.7%) have disclosed a mental health condition to their university (based on university disability monitoring data provided to the Higher Education Statistical Agency)18 whereas 1 in 4 adults experience mental illness at some point during their lifetime and 1 in 6 experience symptoms at any one time19. These statistics indicate that not declaring mental health issues on the university application form is an issue that goes beyond just Sussex. When asked whether or not they would declare a mental health issue when applying for employment 59.8% of all respondents stated that they would not.

Figure 7: Would you declare a mental health issue when applying for employment? This figure was even higher for those respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (67.5%), whilst those with no personal experience were mainly unsure whether or not they would declare it (50%). In fact, those with personal experience of mental health issues were twice as likely not to declare a mental health issue than those with no personal experience (34.2%). The reasons given for not declaring a mental health issue when applying for employment echoed those given for not declaring one on the University application form, namely a fear of discrimination and feeling that it is not relevant. Although the Equality Act 2010 provides legal protection for anyone with either a disability, where disability is defined as either a physical or mental impairment where the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to perform normal day-to-day activities20, research has shown that many employers are reluctant to employ someone with mental health issues and that people with mental health issues21 are also often discouraged from applying because they anticipate discrimination22. It is therefore hardly surprising that anyone with mental health issues would be reluctant to declare this to a potential employer and again demonstrates that not declaring mental health issues when applying for employment is an issue that goes beyond just Sussex.

Equality Challenge Unit, Equality in Higher Education: statistical report 2012 - www.ecu.ac.uk/publications/equality-in-he-stats-2012 The Office for National Statistics Psychiatric Morbidity report, 2001 20 The Equality Act, 2010 www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/contents 21 ONE evaluation, Department for Work and Pensions as cited in The Fundamental Facts by the Mental Health Foundation, www.mentalhealth.org.uk/ publications/fundamental-facts/ 22 NHS Mental Health Care - www.mentalhealthcare.org.uk/employment 18 19

2.4 Mental health stigma and discrimination As the chart below shows, the vast majority (87.1%) of survey respondents stated that they felt that there was stigma attached to having mental health issues.

Figure 8: Do you think there is stigma attached to having mental health issues? This is backed up by the many responses that referred to stigma when respondents were asked to sum up â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;mental healthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;23. Perhaps unsurprisingly, a significantly higher percentage of respondents who had personal experience of mental health issues (90.4%) than those with no personal experience (76.5%) thought there was stigma attached to having mental health issues.

See section 2.1

When asked about any experiences of discrimination the figures were much lower, although 26.8% of those respondents who had personal experience of mental health issues still reported that they had experienced discrimination themselves.

Figure 9: Have you ever felt discriminated against as a result of any mental health issues? (filtered by respondents with personal experience of mental health issues) This lower percentage for discrimination is perhaps partly explained by the low declaration rates of mental health issues24; people may not have experienced discrimination because their mental health issues are not shared with others. It is also perhaps as a result of discrimination often being viewed as a far more active form of prejudice whereas stigma is viewed as being more of an attitude or opinion based on ignorance, prejudice and fear. Only when stigma is acted upon does it tend to be considered to be discriminatory. Whilst the figures may be lower for personal experiences of discrimination however what is still apparent is that significant numbers of respondents (26.8%) had experienced discrimination as a result of their mental health issues, meaning that just over 1 in 4 survey respondents with mental health issues had experienced discrimination directly relating to their mental health. As the tables opposite show, when asked whether or not they use certain words with connotations to mental health themselves and whether or not they would find it offensive if those words were used when referring to either their own or someone elseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mental health the majority of respondents not only used many of these words socially but either did not find them offensive or were not sure, with respondents with personal experience of mental health slightly less likely to find them offensive.

See section 2.3

Crazy Bonkers Mental Freak out Nuts Insane Lunatic Retard Mad Barmy Loopy Cuckoo

All respondents (%)

Respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (%)

Respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues (%)

85.9 16.3 59.2 39.7 25.0 63.6 13.6 29.9 61.4 6.5 7.1 5.4

87.9 20.7 63.8 44.0 25.9 68.1 17.2 27.6 63.8 7.8 9.5 5.2

77.8 11.1 50.0 25.0 16.7 52.8 2.8 27.8 58.3 2.8 2.8 5.6

Yes No Not sure

All respondents (%)

Respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (%)

Respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues (%)

40.7 25.8 33.5

39.5 30.6 29.8

47.4 21.1 31.6

Figure 11: Table showing whether respondents view the use of words socially that have connotations to mental health as being offensive when referring to mental health, the results filtered to illustrate differences between respondents with personal experience of mental health issues and respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues The open comments indicated that this could be for a number of different reasons including reclaiming the language, feeling more comfortable talking about mental health and/or being less concerned about being ‘politically correct’. Comments included: “Commonly used words instead of just using PC terminology is often a way for others to come to terms themselves, of someone else’s issues.” “I’m not easily offended and will often make jokes about my mental health to lighten the mood surrounding it. I think there is a fine line but can certainly take a joke”

Many respondents pointed out that whether or not the use of these kinds of words is considered to be offensive depends on the context in which they are used. Comments included: “....If someone said to me “we’re a pair of crazies” and they had mental health issues too then I wouldn’t be offended. I think things become offensive when they are used in a derogatory way to distance oneself from another person or make that person feel/seem inferior.” “They’re just words, but when they are said with malice they can mean something hurtful.” It is worth remembering however that over a third of respondents with personal experience of mental health issues and almost half of respondents with no personal experience did still find the use of these words offensive when used to refer to mental health. Comments included: “I really dislike when people say “oh my god and I totally had a panic attack about that!” without knowing what it is like to actually experience a panic attack” “I am especially offended by ‘freak’” When asked to suggest ways that might help to remove stigma surrounding mental health, the responses given by respondents can be summarised as falling into 1 or both of 2 main themes: Theme 1: That problems result from a general lack of understanding about mental health issues so there is a need for more education. Many respondents commented on the need to educate people that mental health issues can happen to anyone for a variety of reasons, that large amounts of people are affected and that there are many different types of mental health problems with many different associated symptoms. Comments included: “Most ignorance comes from a lack of understanding or fear and ensuring people are as educated as possible on the subject of mental health is one of the only ways to prevent this.” Many respondents also commented on the need to educate people about what mental health issues are not. For example, that mental health issues are not like the stereotypes and caricatures often portrayed in films and the media, that people with mental health issues are not making it up and that recovering from a mental health issue is not something that people can decide to do themselves and/or do overnight. Comments included: “I think most people don’t understand what mental illnesses involve – if I said I was depressed, people would think that I’m self-pitying and that I cry all the time, If I said I was schizophrenic they would think I had a split personality, just because that is what is portrayed most often in the media.”

Theme 2: That problems result from a fear of being open about mental health issues so there is a need for more open discussion. Many respondents commented on the need for there to be more open and honest discussion about mental health issues in order to help create an environment where everyone feels able to talk about mental health, that it’s not something to be afraid or wary of and that it’s not abnormal or uncommon to have mental health issues. Comments included: “Increase awareness.....it’s the elephant in the room no-one talks about because everyone feels uncomfortable....” Many respondents also commented on how helpful it had been to see people in the public eye such as celebrities like Stephen Fry talk about their own mental health issues. There were many comments about how people from all walks of life should be encouraged to talk honestly about their own experiences of mental health issues in order to help others see that it’s OK to be open about it and that it’s not something to be embarrassed about. Comments included: “If everyone just spoke more openly, since coming to Uni, I realise I’m not alone in the way I feel, I saw mental health issues as being weak, I was ashamed to say anything....” There were also many suggestions made about activities and events that might help to raise awareness of and educate people about mental health issues and challenge the stigma attached to it. Suggestions included: •

Holding a “coming out” event or news article where prominent figures at Sussex (e.g. teaching staff, Students’ Union officers etc) come out about their experience of mental health issues;

•

Holding a Mental Health Pride event;

•

Holding a ‘Stand Up for Mental Health’ event, where people who have had experience of mental health issues showcase their talent and raise awareness about mental health issues and money for mental health services/ charities;

•

Encouraging more teaching in schools and beyond aimed at educating people about mental health problems, how to spot them and how it’s treated;

•

Holding a day dedicated to mental health issues and where to seek help;

•

Improving communication to students about mental health issues and where to go for support throughout the academic year via a variety of mediums (e.g. FB and Twitter);

•

Ensuring better counselling and support services are available on campus, for e.g. help with form filling; and

•

Providing training for key staff (e.g. teaching staff), on mental health issues and how these affect people/how best to support students who have them

2.5

Other comments relating to the experience and/or views of students on mental health and well-being Amongst other comments that were made by respondents relating to their experience and/or views of mental health issues the main themes were a call for greater understanding (amongst both individuals and institutions such as the University) about mental health issues and how they affect individuals and a call for greater support being made available to those who are experiencing mental health issues.

Comments about the lack of understanding and/or need for greater understanding included: “Mental illness is really hard to cope with and it’d be nice if people were more sympathetic towards those dealing with it.” “I have depression and listening to people say “cheer up love” is very frustrating....” “I lost friendships over trying to talk to close friends about it, due to stigmas and no understanding of mental health issues.....” “People with mental health issues shouldn’t be treated as weak for seeking help, or misunderstood for not coping or pushing people away. You shouldn’t have to pretend to be ok, when someone has broken a leg, they are not expected to walk around on it, they have a cast that people can sign and crutches to lean on. With mental health, people don’t want to know, it increases the shame and adds to the already low self esteem people may have.” “I feel like there are institutions (for example the university) who do not see how debilitating a mental health issue can be. I’ve been struggling from depression for over a year, and when it is at its worst I struggle to perform even the most basic of day to day tasks (like showering etc) let alone attending uni and studying.” Comments about the lack of adequate support and/or need for greater support included: “There needs to be more professional support for people suffering from mental health problems, and easier access to this help.” “The University, apart from the counselling services, have not been at all supportive. I have had to carry on for the last two years of my degree with almost no support until now due to lack of communication and understanding between different departments.” “More help and support should be advertised/marketed around the university and certainly should be included in the introduction to the university.” “There should be more focus at university on coping with stress which can easily lead to more serious mental health issues. Possibly give talks at the beginning of lectures so everyone hears the message not just the workshops.” “As any organisation grows it must take responsibility for its growing number of members, and in this case the University of Sussex simply must invest in its support services.....in order to be sustainable.”

Part 3: Mental health support at Sussex 3.1

Awareness of the support available to students with mental health issues

When asked whether or not they were aware that students who declare their mental health issues to universities are legally protected under the Equality Act, and are entitled to expect adjustments to be made to take account of their difficulties only 39.0% of all respondents indicated that they were aware of this.

Figure 12: Are you aware that students who declare their mental health issues to universities are legally protected under the Equality Act, and are entitled to expect adjustments to be made to take account of their difficulties? Rather surprisingly, this figure was actually slightly lower (37.1%) amongst respondents with personal experience of mental health issues, indicating that there is much work that can be done to raise awareness amongst all students, but particularly those with mental health issues, about the measures that universities are expected and required to take to support students with mental health issues. Of course this is also directly related to the issue of students declaring mental health issues25. If universities do not have accurate information about students with mental health issues they are unlikely to be as effective at making anticipatory reasonable adjustments or indeed able at all to make appropriate reasonable adjustments for individual students if those students have not declared their mental health issue. There is also more work that can be done therefore to encourage students to declare any mental health issues to the University, and feel comfortable doing so, in order to allow the University to fulfil its legal requirements in this area and better support students with mental health issues.

See section 2.3

As the table below shows, when asked what they would do if they felt that their mental health issues were affecting their studies over half of all respondents (51.7%) reported that they would go and see their GP. This figure was slightly higher for respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (57.6%) but significantly lower for those with none (34.4%). Those with no personal experience of mental health issues were far more likely to go to the Student Life Centre (65.6%) or to talk to an academic advisor (53.1%).

Talk to an academic advisor Talk to the Students' Union full-time elected Education Officer Talk to the Students' Union full-time elected Welfare Officer Go & see a GP Fill out a Mitigating Evidence Claim Go to the Student Life Centre Make an appointment with Psychological and Counselling Services (PCS) Do nothing/struggle on Seek support from the Student Support Unit Speak to/ask to see a Student Mentor Speak to a Student Rep Â

All respondents (%)

Respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (%)

Respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues (%)

36.5

32.2

53.1

2.8

1.7

6.3

3.9

3.4

3.1

51.7 32.6

57.6 33.9

34.4 21.9

39.9

33.9

65.6

25.3

30.5

12.5

43.8

51.7

9.4

29.2

33.1

34.4

3.4

4.2

0.0

2.2

1.7

0.0

Interestingly, slightly more respondents with personal experience of mental health issues reported that they would fill out a mitigating evidence claim (33.9%) than those with no personal experience of mental health issues (21.9%) whereas similar numbers (33.1% and 34.1% respectively) reported that they would seek support from the Student Support Unit. Only 25.3% of all respondents reported that they would make an appointment with PCS if they felt that their mental health issues were affecting their studies, although this figure was slightly higher for those respondents with personal experience of metal health issues (30.5%) 26. Of most concern however is that 43.8% of all respondents reported that they would do nothing and/or would struggle on if they felt that their mental health issues were affecting their studies. Whilst this figure was very low for those respondents with no personal experience of mental health issues (9.4%), over half (51.7%) of respondents with personal experience of mental health indicated that they would do this. This demonstrates a need to do much more work to ensure that students are aware of the support services available and feel comfortable seeking support from them. 3.2

Use of support services available to students with mental health issues

As the table below demonstrates, when asked which services students with mental health issues had accessed support from, the majority of respondents with personal experience of mental health issues indicated that they had sought support from friends (65.0%). A high percentage (51.3%) also indicated that they had sought support from family/guardians, meaning that non-professional support was by far the most common type of support accessed.

Respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (%) Friends Psychological & Counselling Service (PCS) Family/guardians Campus GP Student Life Centre (SLC) Student Support Unit (SSU) Academic advisor Other (off-campus) counselling service/support groups External website Other GP University of Sussex website None The Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Union Advice & Representation Centre (ARC) Chaplaincy Â

65.0 53.8 51.3 41.9 39.3 24.8 24.8 23.9 18.8 17.1 15.4 11.1 1.7 0.9

Figure 14: Table showing where respondents with personal experience of mental health issues have accessed support from Interestingly, a higher percentage of respondents with personal experience of mental health issues indicated here that they had sought support from PCS (53.8%) than those who would seek support from PCS if they felt their mental health issues were affecting their studies (30.5%)27. This indicates that PCS is perhaps viewed more as a source of general support for mental health issues than as a source of support where mental health issues are specifically affecting studies. This is likely to be related to the fact that PCS are no longer part of the mitigating evidence process. 26 27

See also section 3.2 See section 3.1, figure 12

Conversely, a much lower percentage of respondents with personal experience of mental health issues indicated that they had sought support from the campus GP (41.9%) than those who would seek support from the campus GP if they felt their mental health issues were affecting their studies (57.6%), indicating that the campus GP is perhaps viewed as being a more obvious source of support for mental health-related study issues. Again, this is likely to be related to changes in the mitigating evidence process are students can no longer get evidence to support this frpm PCS but only from their GP. The same also appears to be true for the Student Support Unit (SSU) with 24.8% reporting that they had sought support from the SSU compared to 33.1% reporting that they would seek support from the SSU if they felt their mental health issues were affecting their studies28 and academic advisors (24.8% and 32.2% respectively)29. Of most concern however is that 11.1% of respondents with personal experience of mental health indicated that they had sought no support at all. This is likely to be partially explained by the fact that many respondents reported feeling too shy or embarrassed to seek help, were either unaware or confused over the existence and role of support services and had previously had bad experiences of support services. These reasons are explored more in section 3.3 but the fact that such a significant number of respondents reported that they had not sought any support for their mental health issues again demonstrates the need to do much more work to ensure that students are aware of the support services available, feel comfortable seeking support from them and find the support offered helpful. As can be seen from figure 15 below, respondents with personal experience of mental health issues generally rated their experience of support services quite positively with most services being rated by the majority of respondents who had used them as either excellent or good.

Figure 15: How would you rate your experience of that service? (filtered by respondents with personal experience of mental health issues) Of the campus-based support services most commonly accessed by respondents with mental health issues the Psychological and Counselling Service (PCS) had the highest percentage of respondents who viewed the service as being either excellent or good (42.5% of service users), followed by the campus GP (39.3% of service users, the Student Life Centre (SLC) (27.1% of service users) and the Student Support Unit (SSU) (23.2% of service users). Interestingly however PCS also had the highest percentage of respondents who viewed the service as being either not very good or rubbish (16% of service users), followed by the SLC (11.1% of service users), the campus GP (10.8% of service users) and the SSU (7.4% of service users). It is also worth noting that the Student Life Centre also had a 28 29

See section 3.1, figure 12 See section 3.1, figure 12

significantly higher percentage of respondents who rated their experience of the service as being OK (17.3%) than for any other service. This indicates some ambivalence to the service that can perhaps be explained by the fact that the SLC does not offer specialist mental health support but rather acts as a place for students to access general support and advice before being referred to other professional services for specialist support. When looking at the open comments respondents again reported both good and bad experiences of many of the support services available. Many respondents reported that they were very pleased with their experience of support services and that the support offered had been extremely helpful. Examples of comments made included: “PCS is brilliant and I wouldn’t have got through some of the issues I’ve been having....without it” “I have mostly been impressed by my experiences, in particular with the on-campus GP...” “SLC are good to talk to, more about pointing you in the right direction” “I found information from the student support unit.....incredibly helpful” Where respondents reported more negative experiences of services these were often connected to specific issues. These included: •

PCS: long waiting times, not enough counsellors, only 6 counselling sessions per block and workshops popular but not particularly helpful in practice

•

GP: appointments too rushed and the experience varies depending on the doctor seen

•

SLC: good for signposting but role often unclear/confusing and going in to seek help is embarrassing for some

•

SSU: not enough staff (i.e. only 1 mental health advisor) and front desk not confidential (i.e. students feel they have to speak about confidential issues in front of other visitors)

Of most concern were those few respondents who reported that support services, (and/or the staff within those services), had been rude, unhelpful or dismissive. Comments included: “...counselling service has been very dismissive to me and they don’t seem to care about my mental state or wellbeing.” “The GP asked me about what caused my illness and when I told him he ignored me and skipped over it....” “The SSU have been awful – they seem to want to discourage people from accessing services, rather than making life easier...” Overall, the picture painted however is one of there being a generally good level of service provided by support services with some specific issues, often related to the resources available, that directly affect students’ experiences of those services and the support they feel they’ve been provided. The following was a typical comment: “I would say I’m 9/10 satisfied with the support I’ve received....the support systems generally as [sic] a feeling of being stretched to support the swelling student base.” There is however still much work that can be done to ensure that all students accessing any of the support services available to them have a good experience of that service. This needs to include addressing some of the specific issues raised and ensuring that every student feels that they have been dealt with in a professional, friendly and supportive way.

3.3

The overall experience of respondents with mental health issues at Sussex

As the chart below shows, over a third of respondents with personal experience of mental health issues reported that they felt they had been adequately support during their time at Sussex.

Figure 16: If you have a mental health issue (or have had during your time at Sussex), and have declared this to the University, do you feel that you have been adequately supported throughout your studies? Comments from respondents who felt well supported included: “I’ve found the help I have received has gone beyond all my expectations. I really feel the University wants me to succeed.” “...I really appreciate how many resources there are for students struggling with mental health issues. It’s incredible, really, and I am very much appreciative of this.” Whilst this is encouraging however, it is of concern that over a quarter (26%) of respondents reported that they did not feel adequately supported and over a third (35.1%) were not sure. When looking at the open comments, there were a number of factors that had a bearing on those respondents who did not feel that they had been adequately supported. The key factors were: A lack of clear information about the support available – respondents referred to there being a lack of clear information about the support available, particularly for students from certain groups (for e.g. international students and postgraduate students) who are likely to be either less familiar with how support structures work in the UK or less likely to receive as much information upon arrival and throughout their studies about those support structures. Respondents often reported being unsure which service to go to and what to expect from that service. Comments included: “I found it difficult to access the services, I didn’t know of the existence of most of them until my final year.” “...as a PG student I found that no information was really made available on support available – if I hadn’t already worked on campus for a number of years I wouldn’t have known where to go.” “Help always has to be sought out, which is a major problem for people who are coming to terms with their issues for the first time and are struggling to accept that they need help.”

Confusing or incorrect information about the support available – respondents reported being confused about the support available, in particular by the new mitigating evidence procedure, with some stating that information about the changes was not communicated in a clear manner and others still confused by the changes and how they affect students with mental health issues. Respondents also reported confusion and poor communication between the services themselves with the result that students were often bumped from one place to another. Comments included: “The overlapping roles of the PCS, SSU and SLC can cause confusion. I still don’t know much about what the SSU do even though I’ve had some communication with them...” “...the mitigating evidence and final assessment deadlines have been changed this year and we were not informed in a clear manner.” “There has been a lack of communication between the SSU and SLC, meaning that I have spent most of this year alternating between the two departments with no consequential help and more anxiety.” “Every place I tried to access support (excluding my GP) I was told to go somewhere else.” Variable levels and experiences of support – many respondents reported that the support they received varied, with some good experiences and some bad. This seemed to also be a particular issue with academic advisors, with students’ experiences varying greatly depending on who their academic advisor was. Comments included: “The support from the support services has been brilliant. But I feel that academic staff could be a little better informed about what people’s issues are.” “My academic advisor....did as much as he could to help me...” “My academic advisor made me feel even worse than I already did, and I feel neutral towards other help given to me by the university itself. The help I’ve enlisted from the University’s support services, however, has been fantastic” “I have had some really good support but on the other hand sometimes I feel like I have really been let down.” The difficulties some students experience accessing support – some respondents reported feeling too shy or embarrassed to seek support, particularly where in order to access support you must first present yourself at a front desk and ask for it. There was a feeling from some that the stigma surrounding mental health made it difficult to feel comfortable speaking out and asking for support and that for some, their mental health problems made it harder to seek support. Comments included: “I’m too shy to seek professional help....” “From what I have seen, there are good mental health services at Sussex, the problem is persuading someone who is not [sic] the most proactive and motivated state of mind and is perhaps trying to deny their issues to actually go and access those services.” These common factors amongst respondents demonstrate the need for clearer information to be given about the mental health support available, for steps to be taken to ensure consistently good levels of support across all areas and for action to address the difficulties faced by some students in accessing support. In addition to the above there were a number of respondents who noted that they hadn’t declared their mental health issues to the University and didn’t therefore feel they could comment on whether or not the University had adequately supported them. On top of finding ways to encourage more students to declare their mental health issues and to feel comfortable doing so, the University could also better support those students who continue not to declare their mental health issues by making improvements to the support services available to all students. When asked what additional support, if any, they would like to see available to support mental health and well-being at Sussex the responses given by respondents can be summarised as falling into 2 main themes:

Theme 1: Better information and communication about the support available Many respondents commented on the need to improve the information provided about the support available to students with mental health issues and what to expect from that support. Respondents were often unsure what support was available, were confused about where to go and didn’t know what support would be offered if they did seek help. Many respondents also commented on the need for information about the support available to be communicated in a far more proactive way, and for it to be particularly targeted at groups who may either be less aware of support systems and/ or less likely to feel comfortable or willing to seek help. Comments included: “I think the mental health support available at Sussex needs to be made more high profile. Unless you actively seek it out, there isn’t much to tell you what is available in the way of support and some people may not be aware of the existence of services that could really help them out.” “I have found that help is only available if you go looking for it, which is the last thing I want to do when I’m feeling at my lowest....” Some respondents commented that they felt particularly ill informed about the new Mitigating Evidence (MEC) process and were also concerned that the exclusion of pre-existing mental health conditions disadvantaged students whose mental health fluctuates and/or where reasonable adjustments made by the SSU do not mitigate against the effect their mental health issues have on their ability to study effectively. Comments about MEC included: “I along with other friends who have mental health issues, even though we were flagged on the system were not told about this....There needs to be clearer information.” “The fairness and usefulness of mitigating evidence has been eroded with the changes.” Theme 2: More resources for existing support services and the introduction of new support services Many respondents commented on the need to provide more resources to existing support services in order to allow them to make improvements to those services and/or to expand the support provided. Suggestions of improvements that could be made if services were provided with more resources included: •

PCS: shorter waiting times, more (especially female) counsellors, more sessions per block of counselling, longer opening times including evenings/night-times, more workshops run by professional counsellors

•

SSU: Additional mental health advisors, longer opening times, a forms completion service (helping students to complete forms)

Some respondents also suggested the introduction of some new support structures to improve the mental health support available to Sussex students. These included: •

An on campus emergency support service offering psychological support to students in crisis

•

A buddy/mentor scheme offering peer support to students with mental health issues struggling to cope with aspects of university life

•

Online/email mental health support as an alternative for students who do not feel able to access support in person

•

A system whereby all students receive non-academic support within their school in order to ensure any emerging/ recurring mental health problems are identified and appropriate support is provided at an early point

Finally, there were several respondents who commented on the need for frontline staff, including staff at the Student Life Centre, academic advisors and associate tutors to receive training on mental health and how best to support students with mental health issues within their own roles. Comments included: “In my opinion the SLC are not equipped to deal with students who have mental health issues.” “...I feel that academic staff could be a little better informed about what people’s issues are...” 3.4

Other comments relating to the experiences and/or views of support at Sussex for students with mental health issues

Amongst other comments that were made by respondents relating to their experiences and/or views of support at Sussex for students with mental health issues the main themes were the need to find ways to provide better support and the need to ensure all students with mental health issues are aware of and feel comfortable accessing that support. Comments relating to the need to improve the support available included: “There are lots of improvements to be made to the existing support services for mental health at Sussex, along with getting rid of the taboo of mental health issues.” Comments relating to the need to improve communication about the support available and to find ways to encourage all students with mental health issues to access support included: “There is still a lot of stigma around mental health issues, and I wasn’t aware of any support at the university that was available, and wouldn’t have felt comfortable seeking it. Most people seem to think it is something to be embarrassed about.” “Not enough is done to make people feel like mental health issues are a valid, common and acceptable reason for not being able to keep up with work. For a long time I thought the University would think that I was just making up excuses.” As these comments indicate, there is also much work still to be done to remove the stigma attached to mental health issues if students are to feel comfortable being open about and seeking support with mental health issues.

Key findings 71.5% of survey respondents had some personal experience of mental health issues with 46.2% reporting that they had come to University with a personal experience of mental health issues and 26% reporting that they had developed mental health issues since being at University. 70.7% of survey respondents reported that they had felt so stressed out at some point during their time at University that they felt unable to cope. The main causes of additional pressure that led to this were reported as being coursework (72.1%), personal problems on top of university work (65.3%), feeling lonely/missing friends and family (57.8%), financial worries (55.1%), exams (46.3%), housing worries (38.1%) and health (34.7%). Other causes included worrying about finding a job, drugs/alcohol, inadequate professional support, identity and caring responsibilities. When asked whether they would speak to someone if they had a mental health issue and/or were so stressed out that they felt unable to cope, the vast majority of all respondents (78.1%) reported that they either would speak to someone or that they already had. However a significant minority (21.1%) of respondents reported that they either would not speak to someone or were not sure. If someone else talked about their mental health issues to them 96.6% of survey respondents reported that they would listen and talk things through with that person if it was someone close to them with 68.4% still happy to do this even if the person was not someone well-known to them. Less encouragingly however a significant minority of all respondents (12.6%) indicated that they would feel awkward if someone they didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know well spoke to them about their own mental health issues and/or would suggest they speak to someone else. This was even more prevalent amongst those with no personal experience themselves (16.7%). 75.2% of survey respondents who arrived at University with some personal experience of mental health issues did not declare their mental health issue on their University application form. The reasons given for not declaring a mental health issue on their University application form included not considering it relevant, embarrassment, stigma and taboo of mental health issues, fear of the impact on their application, lack of diagnosis at the time of application, it not being a current/sufficient issue, not knowing how the information would be used and being advised not to be others (including medical professionals). 59.8% of survey respondents reported that they would not declare a mental health issue when applying for employment. This figure was even higher for those respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues (67.5%). The reasons given for not declaring a mental health issue when applying for employment echoed those given for not declaring one on the University application form, namely a fear of discrimination and feeling that it is not relevant. 87.1% of survey respondents stated that they felt that there was stigma attached to having mental health issues. This figure was even higher amongst respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues (90.4%). 26.8% of survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues reported that they had been discriminated against as a result of their mental health issues. Only 39.0% of survey respondents reported that they were aware that students who declare their mental health issues to universities are legally protected under the Equality Act, and are entitled to expect adjustments to be made to take account of their difficulties. 51.7% of survey respondents reported that they would go and see their GP if they felt that their mental health issues were affecting their studies. This figure was slightly higher for respondents with personal experience of mental health issues (57.6%) but significantly lower for those with none (34.4%). Those with no personal experience of mental health issues were more likely to go to the Student Life Centre (65.6%) or to talk to an academic advisor (53.1%). 43.8% of survey respondents reported that they would do nothing and/or would struggle on if they felt that their mental health issues were affecting their studies. This figure was significantly higher for respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues (51.7%) than for those with none (9.4%). 65.0% of survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues reported that they had accessed support from friends. A high percentage (51.3%) also indicated that they had sought support from family/guardians, meaning that non-professional support was by far the most common type of support accessed.

Amongst on-campus support services, survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues were most likely to have accessed support from the Psychological and Counselling Service (53.8%), the campus GP (41.9%), the Student Life Centre (39.3%) and the Student Support Unit (24.8%). 11.1% of respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues reported that they had sought no support at all. Survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues generally rated their experience of on campus support services quite positively with most services being rated by the majority of respondents who had used them as either excellent or good. Survey respondents reported a generally good level of service provided by support services with some specific issues, often related to the resources available, that directly affected their experiences of those services and the support they feel they’ve been provided. 35.1% of survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues reported that they felt they had been adequately supported during their time at Sussex. However 26% of respondents reported that they did not feel adequately supported and 35.1% were not sure. Where survey respondents with some personal experience of mental health issues reported that they did not feel that they had been adequately supported during their time at Sussex the factors that had a bearing on those respondents who did not feel that they had been adequately supported were: •

A lack of clear information about the support available

•

Confusing or incorrect information about the support available

•

Variable levels and experiences of support

•

The difficulties some students experience accessing support

These findings demonstrate a need to reduce the stigma attached to mental health, improve mental health support to students at Sussex and ensure all students with mental health issues are aware of and feel comfortable accessing that support. The findings also highlight the need for clearer information to be provided about the mental health support available and for steps to be taken to address the difficulties faced by some students in accessing support.

Recommendations On the basis of these findings we have made a number of key recommendations that we hope will encourage a more understanding approach to mental health and well-being at Sussex and improve mental health support for all students with mental health issues. Recommendation 1: Reducing stigma Stigma often results from a general lack of understanding about mental health issues and how they affect individuals. We therefore recommend that more is done by both the Students’ Union and the University to educate people about what mental health is and just as importantly to educate people about what mental health is not. By providing people with the facts about mental health we can help to overcome fears, challenge stereotypes and encourage greater understanding of mental health issues. We also recommend that both the Students’ Union and the University encourage opportunities for open and honest discussions about mental health issues in order to help create an environment where talking about mental health is not something to be embarrassed or afraid of. Through open discussion we can help to overcome some of the negative attitudes about mental health and encourage a more understanding and supportive campus community. Whilst the joint signing by the Students’ Union and the University of the Time to Change pledge is a welcome start to addressing mental health stigma at Sussex it is important that this is not viewed as being an end in itself but rather acts as a springboard for an ongoing program of education and discussion about mental health. We therefore recommend that both the Students’ Union and the University work towards implementing an action plan aimed at reducing mental health stigma at Sussex. Recommendation 2: Improving mental health support at Sussex Sussex is fortunate to have a wealth of mental health support systems already operating within the student services framework and many students have benefitted from the support available. There are however areas where improvements could be made and some additional support systems that could be introduced. We therefore recommend that the University takes action to implement the following improvements. •

Review all existing mental health policies and procedures in order to ensure the best support is being given to students This should include the Student Mental Health Policy (last updated in September 2011), the Mitigating Evidence process (in specific relation to the needs of students with mental health issues), anticipatory and individual reasonable adjustments and the way information about mental health policies and procedures are communicated to both students and staff. We also recommend that the University should involve students in decisions about the policies, procedures and services available to support mental health in order to promote more engagement with students and ensure that the needs of students are being met.

•

Allocate greater resources to mental health support This should include the allocation of sufficient additional resources to existing support services to address any existing problems that have been identified and/or their expansion to meet rising student numbers and increased demand (see section 3.2) as well as the introduction of new support structures to improve the mental health support available to students at Sussex (see section 3.3). As a priority, we recommend that resources are made available to allow for an additional Mental Health Advisor in the Student Support Unit, for an increase in the number of counsellors at the Psychological and Counselling Service, for the provision of an online mental health support service and for the development and ongoing support of a buddy/mentor scheme offering peer support to students with mental health issues struggling to cope with aspects of university life30

In addition to the existing Mentor Scheme

We also recommend that training should be provided to all frontline staff at Sussex to improve their knowledge and awareness of mental health issues; to equip them with skills, techniques and confidence when engaging with students with mental health issues; and to ensure that they know when and where to signpost students for support. â&#x20AC;˘

Improve information and communication about mental health support This should encompass the provision of clear communication and signposting to students about the support available and what students can expect. Information should be proactively communicated regularly throughout the entire student life cycle and should also be targeted at those student groups who may be less aware of support systems and/or less likely to access those systems. We also recommend that priority should be given to improving communication about the mitigating evidence process in order to ensure that students with mental health issues understand the process and know where to go for support and guidance if their studies are affected.

By implementing these improvements we believe that Sussex could ensure its position as a leading institution in mental health support and the promotion of mental well-being. Recommendation 3: Increase declaration rates Low mental health declaration rates are a problem for universities nationally and we recognise that if universities do not know which students have mental health issues it can be difficult for them to fulfil their legal requirements in this area and better support students with mental health issues. We therefore recommend that the University seek to raise awareness amongst all students, but particularly students with mental health issues, about the measures that universities are expected and required to take in order to support students with mental health issues. When combined with the improvements outlined in recommendations 1 and 2 we believe that this could help students to understand the reasons for, and benefits of, declaring their mental health issues to the University and thus encourage more students to do so and to access the support available.

We believes that by taking action to reduce stigma, improve mental health support at Sussex and increase mental health declaration rates the Studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Union and the University will not only demonstrate a genuine commitment to the well-being of students who have mental health issues but also to the belief that mental health and well-being are an integral part of a healthy university. We now hope to work with the University towards implementing the above key recommendations and others contained within the report. We will also seek to ensure that their effectiveness in improving mental health and wellbeing for students at Sussex is monitored and evaluated.

Appendix A Students and Mental Health and Well-being Survey