EXISTING INEQUALITIES around housing, employment and finances have made the mental health of people from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds worse during the pandemic, a new study has found.

The online survey of more than 14,000 adults over carried out by leading mental health charity Mind, found that almost one in three people from black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds said problems with their housing had worsened their mental health during the COVID-19 outbreak. In comparison, 23 per cent of white people said concerns around this issue had made their mental health worse during this time.

For those from BAME backgrounds, 61 per cent said worries about employment negatively affected the mental health, compared to 51 per cent of white people, the online survey of over 25s in England and Wales found.

Concerns about finances contributed to worse mental health of 52 per cent of people who identified as from a BAME background, compared to 45 per cent of those who identified as white.

“We’re urging the government to address such deep-seated inequalities experienced by particular BAME groups”

Marcel Vige, head of equality improvement at Mind

Other issues saw a similar pattern, including getting support for physical health problems (39 per cent vs 29 per cent) and being a carer (30 per cent vs 23 per cent).

Overall mental health and the impact of the pandemic on wellbeing were around the same for all groups, according to the charity’s findings, with around three in five (60 per cent) adults saying their mental health has got worse during lockdown.

Future impact

Mind said the results of the survey raise concerns that the fallout of the pandemic will disproportionately affect some communities far into the future.

The effects of isolation, fears about the virus itself and inadequate access to NHS mental health services will, for many, ease as lockdown measures are lifted. However, problems with housing, employment and finances are likely to last for much longer as emergency government action to protect people from evictions, unemployment and redundancy, including the furlough scheme and measures around Statutory Sick Pay and Universal Credit come to an end.

This is particularly worrying given demand for advice to help people with housing, benefits and finances is already higher among BAME communities, Mind said.

Survey respondents who identified as from BAME backgrounds were more likely than those who identified as white to need advice about money and benefits – 40 per cent vs 24 per cent – and housing – 19 per cent vs 10 per cent – to help manage their mental health.

Marcel Vige, head of equality improvement at Mind, said: “In the midst of protests calling out systemic racism, we’re urging the government to address such deep-seated inequalities experienced by particular BAME groups.

“The government produce reports, but at the end of the day they don’t care”

Dami

“Social injustice and systemic inequality will not go away in the natural course of the nation’s recovery from the pandemic. In fact, injustice and inequality are likely to increase as temporary supportive measures – such as the furlough scheme and pausing benefit sanctions – come to an end.”

Vige called for the government to “urgently plan” for recovery both the immediate and long-term effects of the coronavirus outbreak on people’s mental health.

“Addressing deep-rooted racial inequality – including within detaining (‘sectioning’) of people in crisis under the Mental Health Act – is key to supporting good mental health amongst Black people, South Asian heritage people and other minority ethnic groups at the sharp end of such inequality.

“Delivering this means providing access to timely, effective, culturally-appropriate mental health services, tailored to counteract the impact of trauma and multiple disadvantages still pervasive in our society,” Vige said.

The charity’s calls for urgent government action have been echoed by those with lived experience of mental health problems.

Dami, a 27-year-old freelance actor, producer, documentary maker and part-time teacher, has symptoms of anxiety and depression. He spent most of his life in London, but currently lives in Luton with his parents, due to issues around his mental health, job insecurity and finances, which have been exacerbated as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

He said: “Dealing with all of that, and with lockdown – the isolation, the lack of friends, being stuck in a city I can’t call home – was all piling onto me mentally.

“Then the government statistics came out showing that Black people were at higher risk of dying from coronavirus and it put me in a downward spiral. A virus can’t discriminate, but there’s a system that’s been in place for years, that makes us more vulnerable.”

He added: “The government produce reports, but at the end of the day they don’t care. It’s common sense that we need to invest to prevent these issues.”