Floor 2, 33-35 Cathedral Road
Cardiff
CF11 9HB
029 2022 2008
www.samaritans.org
Committee
Clerk
Environment and Sustainability Committee
National Assembly for Wales
Cardiff Bay
CF99 1NA
4 September 2014
Dear Sir/Madam
Samaritans welcomes the opportunity to respond to the inquiry into the general principles of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Bill. We are pleased to see Welsh Government is prepared to legislate in this area and provide a framework for the continual improvement of well-being in Wales. We welcome the purpose of the Act to ensure that the governance arrangements of public bodies for improving the well-being of Wales take the needs of future generations into account. The main points we wish to make are summarised here.
1.
Samaritans would
want to see a clear definition of ‘well-being’ –
the key concept in the Bill.
Setting out what is meant by
well-being for the purpose of the Bill will clarify what the Bill
is aiming to achieve, help to galvanise support and establish
measures of progress.
2.
Samaritans
welcomes the ‘healthier Wales’ goal and the
accompanying description which recognises mental well-being.
However there is opportunity for this to be strengthened to ensure
the well-being goal and objectives reflect the importance of parity
of esteem between physical and mental
health.
Central to this approach is the
understanding that there is a strong relationship between mental
health and physical health, and that this influence works in both
directions. Poor mental health is associated with a greater risk of
physical health problems, and poor physical health is associated
with a greater risk of mental health problems.[1]
3. Samaritans would want the Bill to refer to efforts to reduce suicide and self-harm.
Suicide and self-harm are significant public health issues in Wales, which can be partly addressed through reducing health inequalities. The approach to measuring progress towards achieving well-being should draw on data relating to suicide and self-harm.
4.
Samaritans would
like the Bill to explicitly refer to co-production; ensuring public
bodies have a clear responsibility to engage individuals and
communities in setting and meeting well-being
objectives.
In Part 2, Section 8.2 (c), the
Bill refers to ‘the importance of involving those with an
interest in the objectives, by seeking their views and taking them
into account’. There is an opportunity to strengthen
this to drive improvements in the effectiveness of the engagement
of people in Wales.
Samaritans would be pleased to provide further evidence to the Committee as required.
Yours sincerely
Sarah Stone
Executive Director for Wales
APPENDIX 1
About Samaritans:
Samaritans’ Vision is that fewer people die by suicide. We work to achieve this by making it our Mission to alleviate emotional distress and reduce the incidence of suicidal feelings and suicidal behaviour. We do this by being available 24 hours a day to provide emotional support, reaching out to high risk groups and communities, working in partnership with other organisations and influencing public policy and raising awareness.
Our service is guided by our values of listening, confidentiality, people making their own decisions, being non-judgemental and offering people human contact.
Samaritans has nine branches in Wales run by 691 volunteers across the country. In 2013, Samaritans in Wales received a total of 161,170 contacts, by phone, email, text message, and face-to-face.