People with mental health problems have a lot to offer employers

« A real dark place to be - Depression in cricket | Light at the end of the tunnel »

6th July 2011 01:54 p.m.

Some of the most talented, intelligent and creative people on the planet, past and present, have had to deal with a mental health problem or a learning disability. Richard Branson, Winston Churchill, Vincent Van Gogh and Stephen Fry are just a few examples.

Dealing with a mental health diagnosis takes a lot of courage and strength. If anything, it gives a person added qualities such as kindness, humility and not to mention steely determination.

There are many bright and able service users that just need that little bit of confidence and guidance to find their niche. Schemes such as Volunteer to Work, based in Bexley, provide placements for service users to boost their confidence and to improve their skills. The placements are geared towards getting hard working and motivated people back into paid employment. They are taking active risks by aiming to come off benefits and enter the world of paid work. Is a job that pays lower than minimum wage their incentive I ask?

MP says minimum wage a hindrance to disabled jobseekers (BBC website)

On our website we published an article with the heading 'Tory MP Philip Davies says disabled should work for less'. We accept that Mr Davies did not in fact say that disabled people should work for less and would like to apologise for this inaccuracy.

Poonam Swan

I have been a member of ResearchNET since October 2010 and I have loved every minute of it. I have been involved in various projects which have required me to step right out of my comfort zone.

Through ResearchNET, I have not only connected with other service users but also carers, artists, art therapists and even film-makers!

Without my connection with the Social Inclusion Manager at Bexleyheath Centre , I would never have had this wonderful opportunity or the other opportunities that have come from being a member of ResearchNET.

Comments

1 Debbie Green says...

Hi Poonam and others,

Work matters. It's not just about the money.

Having a useful role is so important to our life. I think that work / study/ volunteering or any type of structured role has many benefits for all of us. We can contribute to society by time and tax.

I think that it is really important to challenge the view that work is too stressful for people with mental health problems. I think that living in social isolation, reliant on benefits without any markers in life about what day or time of date it is is much more stressful.

When I was made redundant from a job I really liked I found the empty days really ran into each other, financial issues and lack of contact with my peers very stressful.

Posted at 4:54 p.m. on August 22, 2011

2 Richard Comaish says...

Philip Davies MP seems to have rightly picked up a key issue from his local Mind constituents, here. It really is anomalous that unlimited voluntary work and minimum wage earning are both considered viable pathways to recovery, but nothing in between. I feel that his party affiliation is irrelevant, here. He has been attacked for his daring(?) stance by colleagues in both major parties, and one of my local Labour councillors recently confided that he believed that such minimum wage exclusions for certain client categories were already in place!

Posted at 5:35 p.m. on August 23, 2011

Comments are closed

Comments have been closed for this post.

The opinions expressed by the Oxleas website bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust or any employee thereof.

Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by the bloggers or respondents to the blog.