United Kingdom
Mental health
Key points
- The proportion of working-age people who are deemed to be at a high risk of developing a mental illness is somewhat lower than a decade ago: around 13% compared to 17%.
- Women are more at risk than men: around 15% compared with 11%.
- Adults in the poorest fifth are much more likely to be at risk of developing a mental illness as those on average incomes: 22% compared with 9% for men and 24% compared with 16% for women. The differences by income are more pronounced for men than for women.
- People from manual backgrounds are at somewhat higher risk of developing a mental illness as those from non-manual backgrounds.
- The risk of mental illness is similar across all the regions in England.
Graph 1: Over time (proportions)
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Graph 2: Over time (numbers)
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Graph 3: By income
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Graph 4: By social class
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Graph 5: By region
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Why this indicator was originally chosen
Depression is one of the most common forms of mental illness. Its effects can spread into all dimensions of a person's life including their work, home and social environments. Possible triggers identified for development of this illness include unemployment, redundancy or the threat of it, and financial difficulties. Depression Alliance, 'Introduction' booklet for the alliance, 1995, page 10. A poor working environment and social isolation are also factors which heighten the risk of depressive illness.
The chosen indicator of mental health shows those classified as being at high risk of developing mental illness, where this proportion differs substantially by level of household income.
Definitions and data sources
The first graph shows the proportion of people aged 16 to retirement who are classified as being at high risk of developing a mental illness, with the data shown separately for men and women. A high risk of mental illness is determined by asking informants a number of questions about general levels of happiness, depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance over the previous four weeks, which are designed to detect possible psychiatric morbidity. A score is constructed from the responses, and the figures published show those with a score of 4 or more. This is referred to as a 'high GHQ12 score'. 'Working-age people' is defined as everyone aged between 16 and 59/64.
The second graph show the same information but in terms of absolute numbers rather than proportions of the population. ONS population estimates have been used to derive the numbers from the proportions.
The third graph shows how the proportions vary by household income, with the data shown separately for men and women. The division into income quintiles is based on gross, equivalised income.
The fourth graph shows how the proportions vary between social classes, again with the data shown separately for men and women.
The fifth graph shows the how the proportions vary by region, with the data shown for men and women combined.
The data source for all the graphs is the Health Survey for England (HSE) and relates to England only. To improve statistical reliability, the data in the third to fifth graphs has been averaged over the latest three years. Note that the data from 2003 onwards is weighted whereas the earlier data is unweighted.
Overall adequacy of the indicator: medium. Whilst the HSE is a large survey which is designed to be representative of the population in England as a whole, the data only allows a partial analysis of mental health.
Relevant 2007 Public Service Agreements
None directly relevant.
Relevant government policies
The numbers
Graphs 1 and 2
| High risk of psychiatric disorder | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | % | Numbers (millions) | ||
| Men | Women | Men | Women | |
| 1994 | 13% | 20% | 1.9M | 2.8M |
| 1995 | 14% | 21% | 2.2M | 3.0M |
| 1997 | 13% | 20% | 1.9M | 2.9M |
| 1998 | 13% | 19% | 1.9M | 2.8M |
| 1999 | 15% | 20% | 2.3M | 2.8M |
| 2000 | 12% | 17% | 1.9M | 2.5M |
| 2001 | 11% | 16% | 1.7M | 2.4M |
| 2002 | 14% | 19% | 2.2M | 2.9M |
| 2003 | 12% | 15% | 1.9M | 2.2M |
| 2004 | 11% | 15% | 1.8M | 2.3M |
| 2005 | 11% | 16% | 1.7M | 2.4M |
| 2006 | 11% | 15% | 1.8M | 2.3M |
Graph 3
| Income quintile | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Poorest fifth | 22% | 24% |
| 2nd | 15% | 16% |
| 3rd | 9% | 16% |
| 4th | 9% | 12% |
| richest fifth | 7% | 12% |
Graph 4
| Gender | Social classes I-IIINM | Social classes IIIM-V |
|---|---|---|
| Men | 9% | 12% |
| Women | 15% | 17% |
Graph 5
| Region | Total |
|---|---|
| East | 13% |
| East Midlands | 13% |
| London | 13% |
| North East | 15% |
| North West | 14% |
| South East | 12% |
| South West | 13% |
| West Midlands | 14% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 14% |