SIR Vince Cable MP has visited Barnsley to speak to some of the adult students who are benefiting from a £20m mental health project inspired by his own mother, which he described as one of his 'proudest achievements in government'.
Former business secretary Sir Vince attended Northern College at Stainborough on Tuesday to address the Northern Mental Wealth Festival held to celebrate mental wealth - the positive side of tackling mental health issues - and the contribution made by adult education.
He had agreed to speak at the event long before May's general election had been called, and had not even been an MP at the time. Since then he won back his Twickenham seat in a shock result on June 8, and is now in the running for the leadership of the Liberal Democrats.
"I'm currently learning how to be an MP again, setting up an office and employing staff," Sir Vince told the Chronicle ahead of his speech. "You could say it's rather busy, but I did attach a lot of importance to coming here today.
"This project they're doing here at Northern College is helping people with mental health issues through education, and it's something I'm proud to have achieved in government. It's a £20m project - and this is one of the colleges doing it and I'm told it's been a great success so far."
Sir Vince explained that he had come up with the idea of a research project which explored the benefits of adult education in tackling mental health because of the experiences of his mother. "I grew up in York. My mother was a factory worker, she worked at the Terry's factory and she had a nervous breakdown as you'd probably call it today.
"She suffered postnatal depression when my brother was born, when I was ten, and she went into hospital for quite some time. But she recovered, as a result of going to adult college. She learned all about history and philosophy, and she went on to become a guide at York Minster, so this is deeply embedded in my family's history.
"I want this government to continue this project going forward, because its future is not guaranteed."
Principal of Northern College Jill Westerman said she was delighted to welcome Sir Vince to the college. "I think all of us in adult education are really big fans of Sir Vince, because when he was secretary of state for business, he stepped in personally and intervened to make sure we weren't cut completely.
"We're really pleased he's come to see the results of the Mental Health Community Learning Project, which is showing the benefits of adult education in tackling mental health, especially at such a busy time when he's preparing a leadership bid for his party."
Other speakers at the two day festival this week have included Ian McMillan, a former poet in residence at the college, and broadcaster Stephanie Hirst, who spoke about her gender transition and the positive effect it has had on her mental health.
