Sarah Murphy
Pen-y-bont Bro Morgannwg · Welsh Labour and Co-operative Party · Wales
“And, as you've said, to achieve the 'autism understanding' status, 85 per cent of their 13,000 staff had to complete the e-learning module, and the award means that the organisation understands autism.”
“As Joyce Watson mentioned, the accreditation is awarded by the national neurodivergence team, a Welsh Government-funded body dedicated to improving the lives of neurodivergent children, young people and their families, and the team engages with stakeholders from all sectors across Wales to help develop policy, legislation, resources and i…”
“Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to put on record my very real genuine thanks to James Evans for his work on his mental health care standards Bill, and for the truly collaborative approach that he took to the development of his Bill. Like James, I am disappointed that it will not proceed.”
“Absolutely. Thank you so much, Delyth Jewell, for that question and also for the debate that we had a few weeks ago. You actually—and I've kept it in my notes here—ended the debate by saying that 'if there's one thing where we can please bring about change, women's voices should be heard and women must be believed.' So, that's running thr…”
“I support these changes, several of which were included in the original scope of the Bill that James proposed. I met Baroness Merron before the UK Bill was introduced, and we have agreed to work closely to ensure that the legislation works for Wales.”
“And I do really want to reassure you that I am determined that the plan will advocate for women and girls in the NHS, and will empower women to be heard when accessing healthcare.”
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“To end, Llywydd, I am disappointed that James Evans’s mental health care standards Bill will not proceed, but the changes that he was seeking to secure through his legislation, which were supported by the Welsh Government, will be achieved through the UK Mental Health Bill and through future planned work on the Measure in Wales. James, I would just like to say that you have so much respect from myself, from your colleagues, from my group, from the Senedd, in how you have gone about doing this. You have made a real, real difference. So, diolch yn fawr.”
“I support these changes, several of which were included in the original scope of the Bill that James proposed. I met Baroness Merron before the UK Bill was introduced, and we have agreed to work closely to ensure that the legislation works for Wales. My officials meet with UK Government officials every week, and I will be receiving regular updates on progress. James also proposed using his Bill to make changes to the mental health Measure in Wales, and these will be reflected in the findings of the duty to review. I very much supported this approach. I am pleased to make a commitment today to make these changes an action in our new mental health and well-being strategy, which will be published next year.”
“Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to put on record my very real genuine thanks to James Evans for his work on his mental health care standards Bill, and for the truly collaborative approach that he took to the development of his Bill. Like James, I am disappointed that it will not proceed. I recognise the time, effort and passion that he has invested in this work, and in his efforts to improve support for some of the most vulnerable people in Wales. As James has already covered, the UK Government introduced its Mental Health Bill on 6 November, and the UK Bill aims to modernise mental health legislation in England and Wales, giving greater choice, autonomy, enhanced rights and support. It also aims to improve care for people with a learning disability or autism.”
“And one of the things that is coming through really strongly for me is that women are often encouraged to do a birth plan and they're not encouraged as much to do a recovery plan, and that is something that I think we need to raise more attention for. You need time as well to recover, and you need to consider that. And the pressure, sometimes, that is there afterwards is absolutely enormous. So, anything that we can do together as well to push that forward I would really welcome. Diolch.”
“I think that Mothers Matter, who are based in Tonypandy in the Rhondda, are absolutely fantastic, but hearing from them how many women are coming to see them is really heartbreaking, and having to wait 15 months is unacceptable. I would like, though, to pay tribute. I meet with many of the maternity teams across Wales, and the bereavement midwives as well, and they do a tremendous job, but sometimes there are not enough of them, and you need that support and resilience within the team, because what they're offering and providing is quite taxing on them. So, I wanted to say that I would welcome having a chat about this.”
“And I do really want to reassure you that I am determined that the plan will advocate for women and girls in the NHS, and will empower women to be heard when accessing healthcare. The women's health network has an important role in also advocating for women, and this role will include working with the other clinical networks to ensure that women's needs are considered, their voices are heard and their experiences are recognised. When it comes to what you're talking about, birth, I'm also doing lots of visits at the moment, and one of the things that really is coming through is birth trauma for women and also their partners and their families.”
“Absolutely. Thank you so much, Delyth Jewell, for that question and also for the debate that we had a few weeks ago. You actually—and I've kept it in my notes here—ended the debate by saying that 'if there's one thing where we can please bring about change, women's voices should be heard and women must be believed.' So, that's running through absolutely everything that I'm doing. I also saw when you posted on Facebook, the amount of comments that you had underneath, which speaks volumes. Three thousand eight hundred women have contributed to just the discovery for this women's health plan. It says it all. We're crying out to have our voices heard. I would really welcome having a meeting together. That would be really, really helpful.”
“The women's health plan will be published in December. The women's health network has developed it through partnership working with all health boards, Public Health Wales, the NHS executive, academia and the Welsh Government, drawing on the voices of over 3,800 women captured as part of the discovery phase.”
“But also, Hywel Dda are the only health board that have made the 'autism understanding' training mandatory to date. And so, I think the proof is in the pudding, and I would hope that this will encourage other health boards to take this up. The resources are widely available, and I will provide a written response to Joyce Watson with an update on each health board and each module and where they are with their staff completing them. Diolch.”
“And, as you've said, to achieve the 'autism understanding' status, 85 per cent of their 13,000 staff had to complete the e-learning module, and the award means that the organisation understands autism. I really hope that this, in turn, will enable neurodivergent staff and patients to be better supported in the working environment, and I wanted to give a quote here from Angela Lowe, who has recently started working at Hywel Dda Health Board. She said, 'Before, I'd be going home and I'd have to offload all the time. Lots of negative experiences which were looping in my mind and it was quite awful really. I’m coming home now really excited to be home and looking forward to seeing my family and just really happy. 'It’s been life changing for me, working here,' So, thanks for bringing this excellent achievement to light, Joyce Watson.”
“As Joyce Watson mentioned, the accreditation is awarded by the national neurodivergence team, a Welsh Government-funded body dedicated to improving the lives of neurodivergent children, young people and their families, and the team engages with stakeholders from all sectors across Wales to help develop policy, legislation, resources and information around neurodivergence. This includes autism, helping to increase awareness and understanding, and the removal of barriers that may stop neurodivergent people from achieving their potential. They also work closely with all health board workforce managers, and they've recently developed, as well, an ADHD and Tourette's syndrome module for the e-learning. They are available on all health board digital training platforms.”
“Thank you so much to Joyce Watson for the question, because it also provides me with an opportunity to congratulate and thank Hywel Dda University Health Board for becoming the first health board in Wales to achieve 'autism understanding' status. I actually had the chance to meet Catherine Vaughan, the service delivery manager for neurodevelopmental services at Hywel Dda, and Liz Carroll, director of mental health and learning disabilities, when I visited the psychological well-being centre in Carmarthen last week. The whole team are absolutely fantastic and inspiring, so I am unsurprised that they are driving this really positive change.”
“We are delivering change. Since 2022, we have invested an additional £12 million to deliver the neurodivergence improvement programme up to March 2025. And, this year, a further £3 million will also provide health boards with funding to reduce the longest assessment waiting times for children and young people.”