James Evans MS is the Welsh Conservative Shadow Minister for Mental Health
The formal period of mourning to commemorate the passing of Her Majesty The Queen may be over, but the nation’s grief will continue to endure for a while yet. There is no doubt that her memory will live on forever.
Her Majesty’s role as a rock of stability and calm during tumultuous periods will be sorely missed, although I am certain our new King will ably provide the same role as a national unifier and global role model.
The Queen’s long reign has provided peace of mind for our country and offered continuity through the decades as the world has changed in other ways. She was remarkable in offering steadfast tradition yet also being an icon of modern Britain and everything we represent.
Members of the Royal Family have played their part in adapting to a more open society that understands the importance of good mental health and tackles the stigma of its discussion.
Indeed, less than a month before his accession, King Charles praised the “resilience” of young people during the coronavirus pandemic in a message about mental health, saying the disruptions caused by the pandemic “have the potential to be devastating in their impact on young people’s wellbeing”.
His excellent charity, the Prince’s Trust, has transformed lives up and down Wales and the rest of the United Kingdom. His involvement meant he heard lots of stories about the hardship experienced by young people.
Thankfully, the Trust recognised the role mental health could play in affecting their employment chances and will certainly have contributed to the lowest unemployment rates in the UK for nearly half a century.
We now also have a new Prince and Princess of Wales in William and Catherine. I am delighted to see them take on the roles and deepen their relationship with the Welsh nation.
I am certain that in these new roles, they will continue the conversation about mental health. Both of them have been pioneers in the Royal Family when it comes to the subject, a move I believe with further solidify the monarchy’s importance in our society.
Together through their foundation, they established Heads Together, an important initiative which combines a campaign to tackle stigma and change the conversation on mental health with fundraising for a series of innovative new mental health services.
Heads Together aims to help people feel much more comfortable with their everyday mental wellbeing and give them the practical tools to support friends and family.
Its programmes include the development and use of digital technologies to transform signposting to appropriate support and also improve the quality and availability of education about mental health which is incredibly important.
One of these is Mentally Healthy Schools, a free and accessible website designed to give greater help and advice for primary school teachers, with reliable and practical resources including 600+ lesson plans, activities, and assemblies to make it easier for them to better support their pupils’ mental health and wellbeing.
Another is Mental Health at Work, which revolves around an employer gateway – an online portal enabling employers to address workplace mental health constructively and proactively – and online employee training for small and medium-sized enterprises, aimed at providing information and training about workplace mental health to employees, so that they can better support themselves and colleagues.
In addition, the Royal Foundation is partnered with the Ministry of Defence to help armed forces personnel and veterans and they have launched Shout, a free text messaging service which provides 24/7 support for anyone experiencing a mental health crisis.
It is truly heart-warming to see programmes like this in action, led by the monarchy – an institution which is leading the way in caring for the people of our land.
With such a commitment to the mental health of our people, it is fair to say the realm is in safe hands.
