As the government discusses proposed changes to Personal Independence Payment (PIP), we are deeply concerned that these reforms will increase financial insecurity and push more of our community into crisis, whilst failing to address the real issue: the UK’s broken system for diagnosing and treating bipolar.
Bipolar UK’s CEO Simon Kitchen recently wrote in The Big Issue about how the welfare system is failing people with bipolar. Right now, too many people are left undiagnosed, without access to the specialist care they need to stay well.
Without the right support, many people living with bipolar end up unable to work, reliant on benefits. Not because they don’t want to work, but because they are trapped in a system that doesn’t recognise their needs.
Bipolar affects over a million people in the UK, yet the employment rate for people with the condition is between 40-60% - far below the national average of 74%.
The economic cost of bipolar is estimated at £20 billion per year, yet the government’s approach to welfare reform focuses on restricting access to benefits rather than investing in the healthcare that could enable people to thrive.
Our Bipolar and Welfare Reform report highlights several urgent priorities for reform, including:
- Bipolar-friendly Work Capability Assessments that are holistic, person-centred and carried out by trained professionals.
- A dedicated, lifelong specialist care pathway to ensure people with bipolar get the treatment they need to stay well.
- A national awareness campaign to promote the ‘Access to Work’ scheme, which could help more people with bipolar stay in employment.
The debate around welfare reform is missing a crucial point: the rise in mental health-related benefit claims is not due to overdiagnosis - it’s due to a failure to diagnose and treat conditions like bipolar in the first place.
People with bipolar wait an average of 9.5 years for a diagnosis. Without access to the right medication, therapy, or workplace adjustments, many struggle to stay in work and are left with no choice but to rely on benefits.
If the government truly wants to reduce the number of people on health-related benefits, it must prioritise mental health services. Investing in early diagnosis and specialist care would allow more people with bipolar to work, reducing the need for welfare support in the long term.
The rhetoric around welfare reform - framing people as ‘workshy’ or suggesting that mental health conditions are being over-diagnosed - only fuels stigma and anxiety. The government must take a different approach. Instead of punishing people for having a serious mental illness, we need a welfare system that understands bipolar and provides the right support at the right time.
We urge policymakers to listen to the voices of people with lived experience and ensure that welfare reform is driven by evidence. If just a fraction of the current welfare budget was directed towards specialist treatment for bipolar, the country would reap the rewards many times over.
Read Simon Kitchen’s full article in The Big Issue here.
If you are worried about how these changes might affect you, our Peer Support Line is available to provide guidance and support.
updated 6th May 2025