Mental health service at Cambridge University branded 'unsustainable', 'ineffective'

The university commissioned a "strategic review" into its current mental health provision following the death of five Cambridge students in March, with one confirmed suicide and four suspected to be suicides as well.

A draft of the final report created by SUMS Consulting found that the "current approach is uncoordinated, and there is no clarity of purpose or definition of the university's role, aims or limits in its support for student mental health and wellbeing. This current approach is ineffective and unsustainable given the forecast increases in levels of need for support and the corresponding growth in costs."

The university spends £4.5m a year on mental health services, and the review found it was one "of the biggest spenders on student mental health and wellbeing support in the sector." However, their lack of planning and direction has led to the finding of the university's mental health services are "likely to have significant inefficiencies."

In July, the HUMEN University Mental Health League Table published the results of their year-long study that ranked over 7,200 students from different UK universities and their levels of satisfaction and engagement with the school's effect on their mental health.

The University of Cambridge ranked 45th out of 80 universities, with an overall score of 49%. Cambridge was graded "very poor" by students on both satisfaction and engagement, and the League awarded Cambridge a mark of "poor" for their financing relating to mental health issues.

The absence of both university-wide suicide prevention and response strategy and a central out-of-hours crisis service were "pressing" areas of concern for the Cambridge students. They also shared that none of the panellists in the "fitness to study" procedures, the plan initiated after somebody tries to kill themselves, were mental health specialists.

An unnamed student told BBC that the fitness to study procedures "felt like probation hearings, like I was on trial, talking to complete strangers about stuff I hadn't properly unpacked with a therapist yet." Findings of the university's review included that the university's lack of a crisis service "carries significant risk to the university, including of increased incidence of student suicide and near-misses."

The University's Head of Student Wellbeing, Natalie Acton, responded to the review's findings and said they are seeking the local NH's help in developing staff training on mental health across the university. Starting in October, an out-of-hours support line for students in crisis to reach mental health professionals will be set up.