Abstract
BackgroundOver recent years there have been several major terror attacks in cities across Europe. These attacks result in deaths, physical injuries, and pose long-term threats to mental health and wellbeing of large populations. Although psychologists have completed important work on mental health responses to disaster exposure including terrorist attacks, the mental health impacts of such attacks have been comparatively less examined in academic literature than the acute health response to physical injuries. This paper reflects on Southwark Council’s pioneering public mental health response to the June 2017 terror attack at London Bridge and Borough Market. It aims to explore perceptions of the mental health impact of the incident by those living and working in the borough.MethodsA rapid qualitative evaluation informed by the logic underpinning Southwark Council’s response was conducted. Seven formative interviews were undertaken with individuals involved in the response planning and/or delivery, enabling the evaluation team to establish the response’s theoretical basis. Subsequently, nineteen semi-structured interviews with consenting Council employees, residents, business owners, and workers from the Borough were conducted to understand perceived mental health impacts of the attack and the success of the Council response. Thematic analysis of transcribed interviews was undertaken to evaluate the extent to which the response was implemented successfully.ResultsParticipants reported feeling the attack had a wide-reaching negative impact on the mental health of residents, those working in the borough and visitors who witnessed the attack. Delivering the response was a challenge and response visibility within the community was limited. Participants suggested a comprehensive systematic approach to health needs assessment informed by knowledge and relationships of key Council workers and community stakeholders is imperative when responding to terrorist incidents. Improved communication and working relationships between statutory organisations and community stakeholders would ensure community groups are better supported. Prioritising mental health needs of terror attack responders to mitigate persisting negative impacts was highlighted.ConclusionsThis article highlights a potential public health approach and need for developing robust practical guidance in the aftermath of terror attacks. This approach has already influenced the response to the Christchurch mosque shooting in 2019.
Highlights
Over recent years there have been several major terror attacks in cities across Europe
This article examines the innovative approach pioneered by Southwark Council’s Public Health team who sought to characterise and mitigate the mental health and wellbeing effects of the London Bridge and Borough Market terror attack that occurred on 3 June 2017 [4]
This paper reports findings from a commissioned rapid qualitative evaluation which aimed to: 1) understand how this terror attack impacted on the mental health and wellbeing of Southwark Council community and the process of implementing the response; 2) describe and explore the usefulness/value of Southwark Council’s public health response; and 3) contribute to the body of knowledge on this topic to inform development of best practice guidance for local government organisations who might face similar situations
Summary
Over recent years there have been several major terror attacks in cities across Europe These attacks result in deaths, physical injuries, and pose long-term threats to mental health and wellbeing of large populations. This paper reflects on Southwark Council’s pioneering public mental health response to the June 2017 terror attack at London Bridge and Borough Market. It aims to explore perceptions of the mental health impact of the incident by those living and working in the borough. The immediate physical harm caused by terror attacks are managed by emergency blue-light services using wellestablished protocols Such incidents have longer term impacts on the mental health and wellbeing of a much larger population [1]. This article examines the innovative approach pioneered by Southwark Council’s Public Health team who sought to characterise and mitigate the mental health and wellbeing effects of the London Bridge and Borough Market terror attack that occurred on 3 June 2017 [4]
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