This year Great Mental Health Day 2023 is celebrating the power of community kindness and telling the story of how we’ve come together across London.
Alongside traditional support services, communities play a vital role in mental wellbeing. That’s why, in partnership with Rethink Mental Illness, and as part of our suicide prevention work, NW London ICS has given grants of over £300,000 between June 2021 and November 2022 to voluntary sector organisations. With this funding, we are working to co-produce suicide prevention projects and promote suicide awareness within our communities.
Dr Annabel Crowe, Clinical Lead for Crisis Care across NW London explained:
“It is so important for health services to collaborate with third-sector organisations, as they work with and support people who are disproportionally affected by suicide and mental ill-health, who may not access support through traditional routes.”
An example of a project funded by this programme is the Sobriety Films ‘Reframing Recovery’ Filmmaking Project. Sobriety Films UK is a social enterprise that use film to raise awareness of and champion recovery for those healing from addiction, mental ill-health and trauma.
On World Mental Health Day 2022 Sobriety Films held the premiere screening of 12 short films at Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. Each film had been written and produced by the workshop participants as part of this project. One of the films - ‘Surrealists Guide To The Menopause’ can be viewed here (password: RECOVERY1).
Feedback from the project has been overwhelmingly positive, including from those who took part in the filmmaking workshops:
“My favourite part has been learning new skills like how to film and edit etc., meeting all the lovely new people and having my recovery journey documented. My confidence has grown immensely and I thoroughly enjoyed working in the groups!”
Other organisations awarded grants as part of the suicide prevention activities include Dads House, who support vulnerable single fathers, and The Listening Place, who train everyday people to provide support to those in their communities who have experienced suicidal thoughts.
To keep up to date with the latest news from this piece of work, follow @HealthierNWL and @Rethink_ on Twitter.