More than 1,000 people in Dacorum receiving benefits due to mental health problems

More than 1,000 people in Dacorum are receiving benefits due to mental and behavioural disorders, figures show.

The Employment and Support Allowance is provided to people struggling to work due to long-term health conditions including those unable to work completely, and for people whose hours are limited.

Figures from the Department of Work and Pensions show 1,300 people in Dacorum were claiming ESA due to mental or behavioural conditions as of last summer – 48 per cent of the 2,723 claimants in the area.

These conditions accounted for almost half of the 1.6million people claiming ESA across Britain and were the most common reason in every area and region.

In Dacorum, they were followed by 'musculoskeletal' diseases – which includes issues with joints, bones and muscles – with 332 people receiving ESA.

These figures show the primary diagnosis when people are first assessed for ESA – there may be more people with mental health problems as a secondary condition not counted in the data.

Megan Pennell, from charity Mind, said a lack of mental health support – including lengthy waiting lists for NHS mental health services – was keeping people out of the job market.

She said: "We’re concerned about the increasing rhetoric suggesting benefits for disabled people and people experiencing long-term health conditions should be reduced. At the time of a cost-of-living crisis, this is unconscionable.

"People need to be offered tailored support from experts if they are to return to work, not threats of losing what little money they currently have to live on."

Fewer people are claiming the ESA as the Government moves towards using Universal Credit for those with health conditions.

As of December, two million people were on Universal Credit health benefits, including 3,197 in Dacorum. This was a rise from 1.6 million (2,498 in Dacorum) a year earlier.

Data on medical conditions for those receiving the benefit is less complete than for the ESA, making it difficult to know the true number of people missing work due to mental health issues.

However, DWP figures show 72 per cent of claimants starting on Universal Credit health benefits from 2022 to November 2023 were suffering from a mental health problem – even if not the main reason they were struggling to work.

Anti-poverty charity The Joseph Rowntree Foundation – said these benefits are "inadequate" and can make people with mental health problems feel worse.

Senior policy advisor Iain Porter warned upcoming changes to the work capability assessment could cause hundreds of thousands of sick and disabled people to lose out.

The charity has called on Government to implement an "essentials guarantee" so people can afford basic items.

A DWP spokesperson said: "We are taking the long-term decisions to help everyone who can work to do so, improving lives and growing the economy.

"Our landmark welfare reforms will cut the number of people due to be put onto the highest tier of incapacity benefits by over 370,000 and instead give them personalised support, while our Chance to Work Guarantee will mean people can try work without fear of losing their benefits.”

They added the £2.5 billion Back to Work Plan would help over a million people with disabilities or long-term health issues to break down barriers to work.