A Year in the Life.. Sheffield Hallam’s Mental Wealth Group!

We caught up with Rachel Staniforth, the group leader of Sheffield Hallam’s Mental Wealth Group, ‘Hallam Head Space’. Here she tells us about various achievements over the past year from campaigning about exam stress to fostering a joined up approach to wellbeing promotion on campus and in the local community.

“Hallam Head Space is affiliated to Mental Wealth UK, a charity committed to promoting positive wellbeing on university campuses.  The group was launched in January 2012 and is fully student-led.  Head Space have aimed to “Break the Silence” on mental health issues among students and so far, we appear to be succeeding.  We have run a variety of events with the aim of providing an outlet for students to talk to others in similar situations, get involved in various activities and ultimately – to tackle stress.  We have developed a ‘Survival Guide’ containing advice on: eating well, exercising, budgeting and seeking help and we frequently give away revision materials, including: pens, notebooks and bottled water.  Recently we have hosted a petting zoo at both campuses in order to provide students with a break from exam stresses.  

Hallam Head Space has also been dedicated to breaking down the barriers between students and the wider community.  We started by tackling the barrier between students and university services.  Since January 2012, we have run events in conjunction with Student Wellbeing, developed relationships with the Careers and Employment Service, and made contacts within the Development and Society department.  

Due to the external volunteering work I was doing at the time, on 8th and 9th May 2013, Hallam Head Space succeeded in cementing ties within the community.   A local charity called Survivors Of Depression In Transit (S.O.D.I.T.) held a mental health conference in Sheffield city centre entitled “Bringing Communities Together” at which Head Space ran a stall.  This in itself was a fantastic opportunity, as Head Space were able to speak not only to other local charities, but also to the local IAPT team, independent practitioners and service users about our aims and achievements so far.  Additionally (and again attributed to the external volunteering work of the Group Leader), Head Space were asked to run a workshop for attendees of the conference, entitled “Mood and Food”.  Five members of Hallam Head Space (Rachel Staniforth, Sammie Taylor, Megan Bean, Pippa Smith and Kathy Steward) worked together to design and deliver an hour long workshop that was both informative and interactive, and which ran twice each day of the conference.  Community ties were further strengthened as Change for Life Barnsley provided some materials for the workshop and leaflets to give out to attendees.  Around fifty people attended the workshops, and approximately 200 people attended the conference overall.

Hallam Head Space now has community contacts directly resulting from their work at the Sheffield mental health conference “Bringing Communities Together”.  We believe that we have found the key to community integration: getting involved!  By seeking out volunteering opportunities within the community and monitoring events coming up, it is possible to raise the profile of student mental health.  Student’s are members of the community too!”

Interested in campaigning about mental health and wellbeing at your university or college? Mental Wealth UK supports over 30 student-led mental health campaigns groups at universities across the UK. Find out whether your university hosts a group Here or email us to express your interest in launching a new group where you are: home[at]mentalwealthuk.com
Take a Study Break: Let’s Get Physical! It’s a busy time of year for students, with summer exams and coursework deadlines fast approaching. You might feel like all you have time to think about is essay plans and post-its, but it’s absolutely crucial that you also take time to look after your mental health and unwind. Over the next seven days, the Mental Health Foundation (MHF) are coordinating their Mental Health Awareness Week, and this year the theme is ‘Let’s Get Physical’. The campaign aims to get us thinking positively about exercise, as something we want to do for our wellbeing and happiness rather than just as something we think ‘we ought to do’.  So, why not make your study breaks more interactive, and try some different exercise this week? It’s a great stress release after a long day in the library and a fun way to take part in Mental Health Awareness Week. Check your Students’ Union and University websites to see if there are any exercise classes you can attend this week. If you have a Yoga society join in on their beginners session, or go for a jog around campus with your housemate. Whatever you do, enjoy yourself - see Phoebe’s running technique in ‘Friends’ for inspiration! For more information about Mental Health Awareness Week visit: http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/our-work/mentalhealthawarenessweek/get-involved/?view=Standard You can also read about how physical activity has helped other people manage their mental health here: https://www.facebook.com/mentalhealthawarenessweek To support you through the exam season Mental Wealth UK have put together our Recipe for Stress Free Exams here: http://www.mentalwealthuk.com/files/u1/recipe_for_stress-free_exams_final_0.pdf Further information about the relationship between physical activity and mental health can be found on the Royal College of Psychiatrists website here: http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/expertadvice/treatmentswellbeing/physicalactivity.aspx Interested in campaigning about mental health and wellbeing at your university or college? Mental Wealth UK support 30 student-led mental health campaigns groups at universities across the UK. Find out whether your university hosts a group Here or email us to express your interest in launching a new group where you are: home[at]mentalwealthuk.com
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Take a Study Break: Let’s Get Physical!

It’s a busy time of year for students, with summer exams and coursework deadlines fast approaching. You might feel like all you have time to think about is essay plans and post-its, but it’s absolutely crucial that you also take time to look after your mental health and unwind.

Over the next seven days, the Mental Health Foundation (MHF) are coordinating their Mental Health Awareness Week, and this year the theme is ‘Let’s Get Physical’. The campaign aims to get us thinking positively about exercise, as something we want to do for our wellbeing and happiness rather than just as something we think ‘we ought to do’.

 So, why not make your study breaks more interactive, and try some different exercise this week? It’s a great stress release after a long day in the library and a fun way to take part in Mental Health Awareness Week. Check your Students’ Union and University websites to see if there are any exercise classes you can attend this week. If you have a Yoga society join in on their beginners session, or go for a jog around campus with your housemate. Whatever you do, enjoy yourself - see Phoebe’s running technique in ‘Friends’ for inspiration!

For more information about Mental Health Awareness Week visit: http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/our-work/mentalhealthawarenessweek/get-involved/?view=Standard

You can also read about how physical activity has helped other people manage their mental health here: https://www.facebook.com/mentalhealthawarenessweek

To support you through the exam season Mental Wealth UK have put together our Recipe for Stress Free Exams here: http://www.mentalwealthuk.com/files/u1/recipe_for_stress-free_exams_final_0.pdf

Further information about the relationship between physical activity and mental health can be found on the Royal College of Psychiatrists website here: http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/expertadvice/treatmentswellbeing/physicalactivity.aspx

Interested in campaigning about mental health and wellbeing at your university or college? Mental Wealth UK support 30 student-led mental health campaigns groups at universities across the UK. Find out whether your university hosts a group Here or email us to express your interest in launching a new group where you are: home[at]mentalwealthuk.com

(via turning-day-dreams-into-reality)

Source: delightful-stateofmind

Panelists announced for 20th March Web Discussion on University Mental Health Policy

Student Wellbeing Web Summit Panel Discussion, Wednesday 20th March, 14.00-15.30pm

Higher Education and mental health experts will be exploring the question ‘What should a university mental health policy look like?’ as part of the Web Summit ran by Mental Wealth UK
and Open Your Mind.

In 2011, the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ urged all universities to have in place a formal mental health policy. The issue has been made all the more pressing by data released in 2012 that suggested that there has been a marked increase in student suicides since 2008.

  • Considering that every institution is different, what measures should institutions put in place to support the mental health of their students?
  • As the student community changes each year, how should a policy be maintained to ensure it’s up to date and fit for purpose?

It is hoped that this discussion  will be useful to staff and students working to promote mental health on campuses, as well as further national efforts to coordinate the promotion of mental health across the sector.

To take part please register here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4245777693707723776. You will then be sent information about how to access the discussion room and will have the opportunity to share your thoughts and questions during the event.

The full schedule for the web summit can be found here or here.

You can also share the event or your opinions as it unfolds by tweeting @mentalwealthuk and using the hashtag  #mwukweb

The Panelists…

Chris Brill, Policy Advisor, Equality Challenge Unit

In 2012, the Equality Challenge Unit (ECU) reported on the problem of low disclosure rates from university students with mental health problems. The ECU is currently surveying students to look at how universities can support students experiencing mental health problems. Chris Brill is the project lead for work on Equality in Higher Education, and previously worked at the National Autistic Society where he gained experience in disability equality issues.

Ruth Caleb, Secretary, Working Group for Promotion of Mental Wellbeing in Higher Education (MWBHE), Head of Counselling, Brunel University

MWBHE is a national working group hosted by Universities UK and GuildHE that aims to promote collaboration between the different sectors, agencies and professional groups with responsibility for mental well-being in HE, and to influence policy within the subject area. The group contains membership from 9 of the leading bodies and groups concerned with mental health in higher education, and is due to survey universities to find out how many have mental health policies in place this year, following a similar survey in 2008 (as reported on in the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ 2011 report).

Sharon Doherty, Healthy University Coordinator, Healthy Universities / Healthy Settings Development Officer, University of Central Lancashire.

The Healthy Universities project has received widespread recognition and support for its advocacy of a whole-university approach to promoting health and wellbeing, and was recommended in the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ 2011 report into student mental health. Sharon Doherty has spent 20 years in public health & health promotion, and is currently based in the Healthy Settings Unit at the University of Central Lancashire, where, alongside supporting the Healthy Universities framework, she consults locally, regionally, and nationally, on delivering healthy settings approaches.

Colum McGuire, Welfare Zone Committee Member, National Union of Students / VP Welfare, Kent Students’ Union

As Vice President for Welfare, Colum represents students at Kent University on various issues relating to student welfare and recently led the Students’ Union’s Mental Health Week. He was also elected onto the NUS Welfare Committee, who steer the work of the National Union of Students Welfare Zone.

Ed Pinkney, Project Coordinator, Open Your Mind (National Union of Students – Union of Students Ireland)

Open Your Mind is the NUS Group’s Northern Ireland mental health project, and is co-run by NUS-USI and Mindwise. As the oldest student-led mental health project in the UK, having been launched in 2007 with support from the Big Lottery Fund, Open Your Mind delivers accredited mental health training and campaigning opportunities to students. Ed Pinkney took over leadership of the project in January 2013 after founding Mental Wealth UK in 2010, and has written about the challenges of implementing national guidelines for students’ mental health.

Stress Relief at the University of Birmingham

In spring 2011, this concept came out of Birmingham University. 

The University of Birmingham Disabled Students’ Officer (DSO) and Disability and Mental Health Students Association (DAMSA) are organising a Mental Health Awareness event for March 23rd and 24th 2011. March 23rd will be an introduction to mental health, where student groups will be running discussion events to help people learn more about what mental health is, before the main event on 24th: ‘How’s your mental health today?’

We hope that by taking this event onto campus as well as the Guild, we can reach every student on campus and promote the idea that everybody, not just those who define as having a mental health problem, has a mental health which needs caring for. This will help students to see the enhancement of mental health as part of a healthy lifestyle, both inside and outside of campus life.

To promote mental health care, we have teamed up with many university and student run support services and activities on campus will include, but not be limited to:

  • Yoga taster session and Thrive (nutrition) workshop by the Munrow Sports Centre
  • Body Image workshop by the Women’s Association 
  • Meditation with the Chaplaincy and Interfaith groups
  • Stress management workshop by University Counselling and Guidance
  • Introduction to Alternative Therapies by Well Naturally
  • Tours of the Winterbourne Botanical Gardens and the Barber Institute of Fine Arts to show students ‘safe’ quiet spaces on campus
  • A Nightline (student volunteer group) listening post
  • Coffee and cakes with DAMSA
  • Screening and discussion of a mental health film produced by the Guild TV society

In addition, the University has a mental health awareness officer who has contacts with Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health trust, and we are hoping that the trust and staff from the new mental health hospital will also come onto campus.

We hope that the benefits of such a day will encourage all students to engage in activities which will improve their mental health, as well as meet people and societies which will offer new friendship groups. We strongly believe that peer support is of utmost importance when it comes to mental health care, and a clear show of support on campus will help students to realise that all people have a mental health to take care of! When students realise that they have both professional and peer support on campus, this will give students more focus on mental wellbeing, making people happier and redirecting those who would otherwise have considered suicide, while those who continue to contemplate suicide will know where they can find support.

Although most of the activities will not require funding as they are student-led, we will not be able to promote this event outside of the Guild and reach the full 28,000 university students without help towards advertising costs. We need to promote this event to students through marketing (posters, banners, flyers, t-shirts and electronic messages and bulletins) on all campuses and halls of residence, to spread a message of mental wellbeing.

Cardiff Mental Wealth ‘Inner Child’ 2011

One of the award-winning ideas from 2011. We’ll post their viral video later !

We at Cardiff Mental Wealth want to provide students with a completely new experience to promote positive mental health. There is a time in all our lives when we are young, free and more often than not without serious emotional worries and the world is a plethora of explorative pleasures. We would like to offer students the opportunity to revisit this period in their lives and, in doing so, remind them of the more light-hearted and simple joys of life.

The event will be themed around the title ‘Get in Touch With Your Inner Child’. The university have this year introduced a health awareness day, of which mental health is a pivotal theme. They are looking for annual initiatives which can be replicated in future years, and are fully supportive of this event as part of that day. The timing of the event is such that many students will be going through the student’s union and will be able to participate in the activities.

We will be looking to bring in face painters, street performers, a bouncy castle, a ball pit and other professional entertainers for the day. We will also be running challenges revolving around Lego and Scalextric, and promoting creative expression through art. The idea is to encourage students to remember this period of developmental freedom and promote a feeling of self expression through nostalgic activities. Many of the activities will incur a cost, and without proper funding we would be far more limited in developing the event, and consequently the positive student impact we would hope to achieve. It would be preferable not to draw funds away from our publicity campaign which we’ve acquired through fundraising activities.

We feel that the activities will offer students a welcome break from the stresses and demands of university life that can manifest themselves as a more serious problem and potentially lead to student suicide in the long-term. The timing of the event will be especially appropriate given that it shortly follows the exam period, which is often a challenging time mentally and emotionally. We shall also be using the opportunity to engage with students about the concept of mental wealth and ways in which students can further understand and improve methods for good mental wellbeing. The event will be run by student volunteers who will be actively engaging with other students to make them aware of the service Mental Wealth provide and that numerous welfare organisations are available to them should they require it.

The event will be rigorously publicised both before and after to maintain continuity of the idea that positive mental wellbeing is achievable and that students should regularly consider ways of maintaining a healthy mental state.

Mental Wealth Wednesday!

A planned event from St Andrews in 2011. Maybe they will tell us how it went?

We are organising a day of events to promote wellbeing and mental health in St. Andrews. Mental Wealth Wednesday will take place on Wednesday 23rd February 2011. This will promote individual awareness of mental wealth and challenge stigma and silence surrounding mental health, in order to assert the support, caring and understanding that define our community. We aim to transform St. Andrews into a place where people can talk openly and comfortably to each other about their mental health, knowing that they will be treated fairly and considerately.

This project is conceived and led by students, including support volunteers and members of the Student Representative Council. We are working closely with staff from Student Services and sabbatical officers, and collaborating with student societies, the Athletic Union, local businesses and schools. The events aim to educate people about mental health and mental illness, and to encourage a healthy lifestyle to increase wellbeing. They include:

  • Laughter therapy workshop
  • Special Breakfasts in halls of residence
  • Film showings, provided by the Mental Health Foundation
  • Mental health awareness workshops, including suicide prevention, from Breathing Space
  • Chill out evening in a local cafe – including music, comedy and poetry
  • Events at our Sports Centre, promoting the importance of exercise for wellbeing.
  • Mindfulness Workshop
  • Community Art Competition with the backing of a local artist.

We have been working to identify where funds are most required. Whilst we are applying for limited funding from our Student Representative Council, this will not be enough to realise the potential of Mental Wealth Wednesday. It is essential that we publicise our events and our message widely and effectively for this project to be a success. If given a Papyrus award, we would spend these funds on publicity. Our innovative publicity campaign will:

  • Attract people to our events
  • Challenge and change attitudes and
  • Promote the concept of Mental Wealth
  • Be designed by the group, at no cost
  • Feature an extensive poster campaign throughout University buildings and the town
  • Involve a give-away of pots of blowing bubbles, with information on them about our events and mental health more widely. Reflecting one of our key taglines: ‘Bursting the bubble of stigma and silence’.
  • Create material (designs, banners, posters and more) that will outlast the campaign and be reused for future Mental Wealth events, to help ensure the sustainability of the campaign.

Mental Wealth Wednesday will be a popular and innovative event, instrumental in promoting wellbeing in our community. It will create a conversation around mental health, and pave the way for future events and campaigns in St. Andrews. The quality and scale of our publicity will create a strong image and encourage high attendance at all events. It is through this that we are confident that we can change attitudes towards wellbeing; reduce the chance of students developing mental health difficulties; improve the experience of those who already suffer difficulties and so really change the lives of students at St. Andrews.

Wellbeing ‘Exam Kits’, An Idea from EUSA.

An idea for a mental health project put forward by Edinburgh University in 2011:

Last year worrying statistics were published by NUS Scotland concerning the number of students who felt stressed out and what the most common triggers student stress. In response to this report EUSA, and more specifically, the student welfare forum and disabled student action group, wanted to take action. During last semester, to coincide with our exam period, we published a mental wellbeing guide, which included lots of tips and ideas on how to de-stress. For the exam period this semester, we would like to re-run a mental health campaign and build on our efforts last semester.

EUSA would like to produce a few hundred ‘exam kits’ for students this semester. Our student helpline society ‘Nightline’ produced a similar product last year, but on a much smaller scale. We would like to both continue and extend this innovative project and reach hundreds of students who will be experiencing stressful exam revision.

The ‘exam kits’ will contain a mental wellbeing guide, exam revision guides as well as some light relief in the form of snacks, drinks and extra stationary. They will also contain a wide range of information from mental health charities, including Mental Wealth UK, and other organisation, such as NUS Scotland, the NHS LGBT organisations, internal student counseling services and suicide prevention charities, such as the Charlie Waller Memorial Trust and the Samaritans. We have a large amount of valuable information we wish to distribute to students and funding will help us distribute resources in an appealing way. The ‘exam kits’ will package the information in a variety of ways including bookmarks, pens and leaflets.

Funding will go towards the ‘exam kit’ project by allowing us to pay for designing and producing of the mental health guide into a more concise format, suitable for exam kits. We can also purchase more, environmentally sound, canvas bags which will hold the exam kit, as well as some of the content, namely pens, snacks and drinks.

We hope that the exam kits and the mental health campaign of this semester will give students a stress relieving boost whilst they study. The exam kits are intended to be a fund source of light relief but also contain information about serious mental health issues linked to students, namely stress, depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts. By balancing the message of the campaign between lightweight and more serious elements, whilst simultaneously providing several hundred ‘exam kits’, we hope to reach numerous students who would otherwise feel isolated and stressed at this time.

Open Minds Project

Award-winning concept put forward by Liverpool’s Mental Wealth Group in 2011.

Open Minds

1. The World Health Organization have recently published concerning statistics that suggest the scale of depression as a mental illness is reaching levels that can be described as an epidemic. Depression is a key cause of suicide among young people. Isolation is a key cause of depression, and often this isolation can occur even when surrounded by friends and family. Open Minds’ Community Gardening project gives young people the opportunity to form relationships with strangers, with people who do not know their background, which can be essential as a form of ‘escape’ and relief.

 2. Green skills obtained through the skill share initiative between young people and volunteersfrom the community, with an emphasis on recruitment from the older populations of the allotment communities in Liverpool, may be applied by students on campus in existing and future green projects e.g. Guild of Students Roof Garden project.

 3. The funding will be primarily to design a campaign, recruit volunteers, and purchase any tools necessary, such as gloves and waterproof outer layers and/or high-vis vests.

Open Minds

 4. The project has clear outcomes in the form of increased connectivity within and between different generations of a community, promoting positive perceptions of students in the community and in turn contributing positively to the social capital of an area. The funding will allow promotion of the initiative on campus, health and safety training of participants and volunteers, and adequate facilitation with equipment to ensure accessibility to the project by students with no experience of outdoor activities of this nature.

5. Without funding Clear Minds cannot afford to distribute promotional material to a wider section of the community than can be accessed for free using the Students’ Union facilities. Mainly, the procurement of safety equipment and tools would be impossible at this early stage of Open Minds as a student-led project. Any money left over will be used to print a personalized certificate and to compile an illustrated report (CD/email format) to distribute to participants and to be used as evidence for future funding applications.

6. There will be little if any reference to suicide and instead will emphasise the impact of the project on levels of health (physical) and wellbeing (Mental health). Open Minds will consider surveying a random selection of students on campus to collect opinions as to the negative/positive effects of including ‘suicide’ within promotional material for a mental health project.

7. There is no project within the Liverpool area at present which specifically links up students and older members of the gardening community. Existing student gardening projects do not have a specifically ‘health and wellbeing’ focus, either.

8. Open Minds who will organize and deliver the Community Gardening project is a student activity group based on the University of Liverpool campus.

9. Open Minds is a member of Mental Wealth UK, and as a founding member of Open Minds, I also sit on the Mental Wealth Student Committee.

10.Open Minds are in continual dialogue with the University’s Mental Health Officer to discuss all and any implications of our objectives and any projects we deliver. The Community Gardening project will be equally and robustly assessed in terms of its impact on student mental health and will be compliant with the Safeguarding Procedures as a baseline.