Plan to tell parents if children are suffering university breakdown

PARENTS could be alerted if their son or daughter is on the verge of a mental breakdown at university under Government proposals.

For the first time, students would be asked during freshers’ week if they would like their families to know if they start suffering from anxiety, depression or other problems.

Universities Minister Sam Gyimah, who will announce the scheme today, said higher education institutions risk ‘failing a generation of students’ unless they take action on mental wellbeing.

It would be strictly on an opt-in basis, so if a student refuses to sign up or simply does not provide an answer, no contact will be made.

The plan aims to end the tragedy of students committing suicide as a result of mental illnesses which their families have known nothing about.

Universities say that they cannot pass on private information about students because of the Data Protection Act, but campaigners have branded this ridiculous red tape.

Under the plan, students would be asked to fill in a form to indicate their preferences in the event of a mental breakdown. They would also provide the contact details of the person the university can contact. It is understood the Department for Education proposal is in its infancy and would be subject to consultation with universities and mental health groups.

Mr Gyimah said: ‘If there is a serious problem [for a student] at the moment, and there is a parent or [other] person who can help, no- one would alert that person now.

‘I think that is a problem because it might be support that is necessary, but that is not forthcoming if we haven’t allowed this mechanism to be in place. When you first start university, you give a whole lot of information to the university, but the one bit of information that you don’t give is, “If I have a serious problem around my mental health, who can you contact?”’

Mr Gyimah added that he wants the scheme to be purely voluntary, and insisted it would only be implemented if students actively signed up to it.

It is part of a raft of announcements today aimed at providing a ‘new deal on mental health for students’. He is also announcing a charter on mental health, which outlines minimum requirements universities should fulfil. They would sign up to it on a voluntary basis.

Mr Gyimah said: ‘There are some vice chancellors who think that university is about training the mind and all of these things are extra that they don’t have to deal with. And the thrust of this is, no they can’t do that, they’ve got to get behind this programme. It is too easy for students to fall between the cracks and to feel overwhelmed in their new surroundings.’

In some institutions, approximately one in four students are either being seen or are waiting to be seen by university counselling services.

÷For confidential support, call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local branch. See samaritans.org for details.