Demand for mental health support among University of Sheffield students nearly quadrupled over the last ten years and many are having to wait longer than ever to have their first appointment.
Data received through an FOI has revealed that students seeking the university’s mental health services has been steadily increasing throughout the last decade, multiplying by over 350%.
4,185 students, around 13.8% of total number of enrolled students, signed up to receive mental health support offered by the University of Sheffield in the last academic year.
In the academic year 2012-2013 this was just 1153 students.
These figures are in line with national statistics, which show that the number of disclosed mental health conditions to universities have increased sevenfold since 2010.
Another discovery was that students were having to wait on average 18.1 days to receive their first appointment with a clinician after registering for mental health support in the last academic year, more than triple the waiting time of 5 days in 2013-2014.
However this is a slight improvement from the average waiting time of 20.6 days in 2021, the longest average waiting time in the University of Sheffield’s records.
One student, who reached out to the university after being sexually assaulted, had to wait nearly a month before she could receive help.
“My problem with them is that you have someone who is severely depressed because of sexual assault, and telling her to sign up a form and be on a waiting list is ridiculous,” she said.
The University of Sheffield is one of the seven UK universities which has received the University Mental Health Charter Award, given by the Students Minds Hub in recognition of the institution’s efforts to prioritise mental health.
One of the principles of good practice under the Charter is that the university is appropriately resourced.
Louise Knowles, Head of Mental Health and Psychological Therapy Services at the University of Sheffield, said: “Across the UK, there has been a rise in demand for counselling services for students and young people.
“In 2022 we completely redesigned our services to focus on improving continuity of care for students, so now all students completing a self-referral for mental health support have a decision made about their care within three working days.
“Since then we have seen waiting times begin to fall. We continue to work to improve our services for students and we encourage any student struggling with their mental health to contact us.”
The University is also accredited through the Accreditation Programme for Psychological Therapies Services (APPTS), which has assessed that the university has required levels of staffing.
Annie Henderson, the SU’s Wellbeing and Sports Officer, said: “While the increase in the number of students seeking mental health support over the past decade is undoubtedly concerning, it’s important to contextualise this trend within the broader societal shift towards destigmatizing mental health issues.
“As awareness and acceptance have grown, more individuals are feeling empowered to seek the help they need, which likely contributes to the substantial rise in reported cases.
“Nevertheless, this data does highlight the need to enhance the accessibility and efficiency of mental health support services within our University system.
“Addressing this challenge requires a multifaceted approach, including increasing resources, and improving collaboration between academic departments and mental health professionals,” she said.
If you need support with your mental health then the University and the SU has support in place.
If you or anyone else needs some more immediate help, the Samaritans have a 24/7 helpline, please call 116 123 to speak to somebody or call 999.