Mhist
Mohammed
Gulfam
Marketing And Promotions Volunteer
Mission
For the MhIST community to provide a friendly, safe and positive environment for people with mental health problems.
Category
Food
Additional Information
MhIST, the Mental Health Independent Support Team was set up in 1992 with the specific aims of providing a friendly and confidential service to support and voice the interests of mental health service and their carers.
MhIST is a charity and company limited by guarantee. It is led by an executive committee with considerable experience of the mental health sector and mental health service users.
The organisation has several paid staff and most of the services are actually provided by a large number of trained volunteers. Importantly, MhIST has and continues to develop mental health services that are well respected both in the community and by statutory service providers alike.
It was in 1991 that a small group of people suffering from mental health problems and their carers, led by Ray Whittan, got together to form Bolton Support Council, which later become MhIST. Ray suffered from a mental illness and really wanted to improve the conditions for fellow sufferers at the hospital and out in the community.Originally we had nowhere to meet and used rooms that anyone was willing to offer. Finally the basement in Giles House was allotted to us and after a time we got a room on the first floor.Ray organized a Mental Health Forum at the Festival Hall in Bolton Town Hall. Some people from Nottingham came to tell us about their struggle and experiences to get advocacy in hospitals. This was one of our aims.. Advocacy was a very new thing in 1991.When Giles House was closed as a Resource Centre for Mental Health we were given some money to find alternative accommodation and that is when we came to Deajon House in 1993. At first we only had the front room and the little room behind as Deacon and Jones still occupied the rest. Gradually we acquired the back rooms and, finally, the whole building. Along the way we started the advocacy in the hospital every Tuesday, originally in the Laundry Room as well as in the community.
MhIST achieved Charity Status with much help from a newly formed Council for Volunteer Services.Jean Hesketh came as a volunteer to start the counselling service, which has always been very popular. Self help groups were started up by volunteers as well. Over the years Rita Liddell became our co-coordinator and our volunteers grew. Then the befriending service started with Melvin Bradley, who is now the manager at MhIST.
We would like support in promoting the services of MhIST, raise awareness about mental heath and raise funds to continue the services to a larger clientele.