Welfare and mental health
Just as some people with physical health problems and disabilities require support from the state, so do some people with mental health problems.
Living with a mental health problem is frequently linked to an increased need for welfare support.1 People with mental health problems have among the lowest employment rates of all disadvantaged groups, as well as being at higher risk of falling out of work.2 However mental health problems do not need to stop you from working: with the right support, guidance and the right job, people with mental health challenges play a vital role in the contributing to the employment market.
The Welfare Reform Act 2012 came into effect on 1 April 2013, underpinned by the principle that the benefit system needed to be simplified, that it should be less costly to administer and, finally, to increase incentives to move back into work.
- Butlers,. Webster, M., & Hill, M. (2010). Literature review: Understanding the needs of people with mental health conditions and/ or learning disabilities and the implications for the Pension, Disability and Carers Service. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214424/rrep654.pdf
- Picket K, Oliver J, Wilkinson R. (2006) Income inequality and the prevalence of mental illness: A preliminary international analysis. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. 60. p. 646-647