Mental health at university

For many young people, going to university is an expectation, almost a rite of passage. It’s a time of huge change, taking those first steps into the world of adulthood and independence.

Whilst there are no universities in Rochdale, the presence of the Sixth Form College and Hopwood Hall College means thousands of students heading out of the borough for their next level of education.

With newfound freedom and fresh pressures away from parents, those changes can pose challenges.

The importance of mental health support for students has been highlighted in recent years, with a 53% increase in the numbers of students seeking help for mental health issues.

In the five academic years from 2012 to 2017, students seeking help rose from 50,901 to 78,061.

The BBC’s Shared Data Unit sent a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to 172 UK universities. Nine were exempt as they were private institutions not subject to FOI and 162 universities responded out of the remaining 163.

The national trend shows a 43% increase in funding for mental health services, increasing to £36.6m in 2016/17 from £25.5m in 2012/13.

Universities in Swansea, Falmouth, Salford, Middlesex, St Mary’s in Twickenham, Suffolk, Kent, Reading, Keele, Bristol and Chichester all experienced increased budgets by double or more in the five years from 2012/13 to 2016/17.

Based on this data, those that lost funding were: Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance, University of Leicester, University of Strathclyde, Bucks New University and Canterbury Christ Church University.

The number of students seeking help increased at the following universities: Hartpury College, Sunderland, Winchester, Kent, Chester, St Mary’s in Twickenham, Southampton, Warwick, Exeter, Harper Adams, Surrey, Lancaster, Bishop Grosseteste, Gloucestershire, Worcester, Sheffield Hallam, Bristol, Southampton Solent and Edinburgh.

Conversely, less students asked for help at: Northampton, Essex, Cranfield, Bucks New, Leeds, East London, Queen Mary London and Queen’s University Belfast.

Vice President of the National Union of Students, Eva Crossan Jory said: “There is evidence that much of the recent investment into mental health services has been directed towards student wellbeing projects. Although worthwhile, these can be by no means a substitute for much-needed professional counselling services. On many campuses, we hear that these services are chronically overstretched and underfunded.

“Although a greater number of students are attempting to access mental health services, there are still structural issues that present barriers to others. There is a stigma attached to mental health: figures from Universities UK (UUK) found that 40% of students who had attempted to take their own lives had not come forward before. This suggests a much larger, hidden problem of acute stress that is reaching crisis point.

“There are also cultural issues, reflecting the diversity of the modern student body, which can be poorly understood and often inadequately accommodated for.

“Students have far less money in their pockets than in previous years. Many are balancing work, study and caring responsibilities. With fees so high, and the job market so competitive, students feel they have to continually push themselves, perhaps more so than before. Many are chronically sleep deprived and overworked – there is also an increase in reports of loneliness, isolation, depression and anxiety.

“There has been much public discussion about university mental health, however we are yet to see the requisite action. Universities are taking ownership of the issue of student mental health, and a commitment from Vice Chancellors is a step in the right direction.

“Cuts to NHS services have led to real-term reductions in professional services available to students. We know that there are students who, through lack of access to a GP, find themselves in A&E. This clearly cannot go on. There needs to be urgent, joined up thinking between institutions and Government departments to deliver a clear plan of action which should include significant investment.

“This is now essential before this crisis can escalate.”