Students seek more mental health support after thousands sign petition

Students at the University of East Anglia are demanding more mental health support after four students have died since May 2018.

The petition which has been signed by almost 5,000 people urged the university to take action – especially for those “already in a crisis, or having a mental health issue already, that turns into a massive problem”.

Isabelle Keltie who was involved in setting up the petition said that more help was “desperately needed”.

Zahra Santos, a student at the university, told the BBC that after applying for counselling in November she had only just received her appointment. She said that she was worried for people “who might be feeling worse than me”.

The university announced on Wednesday 13 March that a first-year student had died in his room on campus. This was consequently followed up with a tweet expressing the importance of looking out for one another: “The death of a UEA student is something that affects our community deeply and, at this time, it is all the more important for both students and staff to look out for each other.”

The death of a UEA student is something that affects our community deeply and, at this time, it is all the more important for both students and staff to look out for each other

– The University of East Anglia

Following this, the university announced that it would invest an extra £250,000 in support services: “In recent years we have invested in mental health and wellbeing services at UEA. This year an additional £250,000 is being invested in Student Support Services to improve access to services.”

The university added that this investment will go towards additional mental health first aid training for advisors, more wellbeing staff and greater online resources to give students more support and guidance.

The university’s Vice Chancellor Prof David Richardson said: “We are doing a lot but we can always do more.”

He added that the university had revamped its student support services in the past four years and would now implement the next phase, which includes the recruitment of 10 new staff to provide “more timely support where there have been issues”

There can never be too much support- there’s always more that can be done

– Beverley Bishop

Beverley Bishop, whose son Jess Fairweather took his own life in October after two weeks at university, welcomed the extra funding: “There can never be too much support – there’s always more that can be done,” she said.

She added that mental health should be taken seriously and believes that UEA are taking this matter seriously.

The university urged students via Twitter to contact their services if they need support: “Don’t think that your problem is not severe enough to ask for help, or that help is not there. It is.”

The free Samaritans helpline can be contacted at 116 123 and the Papyrus suicide prevention line is available at 0800 068 4141.