Three cheers for the courts and mental health activists, O for the politicians and the DWP. Two days ago 3 judges ruled – as we all knew, but it required the courts to make it the law of the land – that the Government’s prescriptors, regulations and guidelines used to assess whether disabled people were eligible for ESA disadvantaged people with mental health problems, learning disabilities and autism. What prompted this to happen? Not a change of heart by Atos Healthcare – heaven forbid – but a judicial review brought by two anonymous claimants who were victims of mental ill-health. The case revolved round how the notorious Work Capability Assessment (WCA) is undertaken to decide if someone is fit to work. At present the judgement of a professional such as a GP or social worker is generally not taken into account unless provided by the persons being assessed themselves. This means that assessments are usually based on a very short interview, often just 15 minutes, with a stranger who may have no mental health training at all and no knowledge of what your GP, psychiatrist or community psychiatric nurse might have to offer concerning your illness. This is now going to have to change.
Karen visited HMP Hewell with BBC reporter Cath Mackie to receive an update on the current status of the prison reforms in light of a recent report which was critical of the prison. Karen met with the new senior management team and discussed various cases relating to the prison.
