MPs lend their support to #FundNHSHubs campaign
Shadow Minister for Disabled People Vicky Foxcroft has added her support to our campaign to fund the NHS Staff Mental Health and Wellbeing Hubs, as the number of letters sent to MPs reaches over 650.
16 June 2023
Tweeting after a meeting with the BPS to discuss the plight of the hubs, including the South East London Keeping Well Hub in her consistency of Lewisham Deptford which has been forced to close, she said:
“Having met with the British Psychological Society today, I am dismayed by the Govt’s [sic] decision to end funding for crucial mental health support for NHS and social care staff. The future of these hubs must be supported through urgent action on transitional funding.”
As of today, over 650 people have written to their MP to raise the issue of the lack of funding for the hubs, and a number of MPs including Dr Rupa Huq, Fleur Anderson, and Sarah Olney tabled questions to the Department for Health and Social Care regarding funding for and assessment of the hubs.
Last week Will Quince MP, Minister for Health, responded to a written question about the future of the hubs, but the government has still not clarified whether it will take action to safeguard the future of vital NHS Staff Mental Health and Wellbeing Hubs.
About the campaign
Launched in February 2021, in response to the trauma experienced by NHS staff during the Covid-19 pandemic, the hubs have provided NHS and social care staff with fast access to free and confidential local mental health services.
However government funding ended on 31 March 2023 and with no word from the government on future funding, hubs have been left in limbo with many forced to close, leaving staff without access to vital mental health services.
The #FundNHSHubs campaign is calling on the government to prioritise the mental wellbeing of NHS and social care staff and provide a minimum of one year's transitional funding for the hubs.
We're asking BPS members, and members of the public, to write to their MP to raise their concerns and to urge the government to protect the future of the hubs.