Justin Tomlinson MP Hosts Important Parliamentary Event On Sport & Mental Health

North Swindon MP, Co-Chair of the APPG for Sport and former Minister for Disabled People, Justin Tomlinson, has hosted an important and well-attended discussion in Westminster on the role of sport in helping people overcome mental health problems.

Each year, around in 1 in 4 people in the United Kingdom will suffer from some form of mental health condition. Despite this figure being so high there still remains an outdated and unacceptable stigma attached to talking about mental health in this country. Evidence shows that the attitudes of others can stop the 1 in 4 of those who experience a mental health problem from seeking the help and support they need and this needs to changes.

The Government has worked to increase the recognition around the role of sport in improving mental health, with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport taking the lead. While there is has been good progress, the APPG for Sport has joined forces with the APPG on Mental Health to help embed the role of sport in addressing mental health, and to call on Ministers from across Government to work together to ensure the positive links between mental health & sport are expanded.

The APPG for Sport holds regular meetings in Westminster to discuss issues affecting sport at every level – from grassroots clubs to elite competition. With the Sport and Recreation Alliance providing Secretariat support, it allows the Group’s members to draw on the knowledge and experiences of over 320 national representative bodies of sport and recreation. Justin Co-Chairs the APPG alongside Paralympic champion, Tanni Grey-Thompson.

Similarly, the APPG on Mental Health is a group of MPs and Peers from all political parties who are interested in mental health. The APPG regularly calls on Government Ministers, NHS organisations, health professionals, research bodies and people with experience of mental illness to give evidence at their meetings

In recent years there have been a number of key policy developments with regards to sport and mental health. The Government’s sports strategy, Sporting Future, set a new policy direction and placed mental health as one of the five fundamental outcomes, with a specific Key Performance Indicator (KPI) listed for mental health. 

Sporting Future also specifically highlights Mind’s Get Set to Go (GTST) programme. GSTG has been incredibly influential in helping people with mental health problems develop and maintain a physically active lifestyle with the programme having supported over 3,500 participants so far.

Another key development is the Mental Health Charter for Sport and Recreation. Established in 2015 by Sport and Recreation Alliance, Mind and the Professional Players Federation (PPF), the Charter uses the power of sport and recreation to promote wellbeing and seeks to tackle the stigma associated with mental ill-health. The Charter now has over 300 signatories and continues to go from strength to strength.

As Co-Chair of the APPG and during his time as the Minister for Disabled People, Justin has sought to expand the Government’s work on the links between a healthy active lifestyle and improving mental health; working with Ministers from the Department of Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and the Department of Health.

The event gave parliamentarians the opportunity to discuss the positive steps the Government had already taken, and where more needed to be done. It featured presentations from Emma Boggis, Chief Executive of the Sport and Recreation Alliance; Karen Mellanby, Director of Networks and Communities for Mind; Helen Whately MP, the Chair of the APPG for Mental Health; and Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson.

Justin also led and question & answer session in which experts from the worlds of sport and health shared their ideas on how Ministers could expand the positive work already being done.

Justin Tomlinson MP said: “Sport and mental health are intrinsically linked. Evidence shows that one of the key factors in improving mental health is a healthy, active lifestyle and I am delighted two of the biggest All Party Parliamentary Groups in Westminster have joined forces to highlight the role of sport in tackling mental health problems. The Government and stakeholders link Mind have already set the bar incredibly high, but we want to go further and working together we want to see a greater joined up approach across Whitehall. I know from my time as the Minister for Disabled People how much people with a serious mental health condition found sport helped, and we are keen to work with Ministers from a range of departments to ensure the power of sport is harnessed to improve both physical & mental health.”