Mission
The Project Training & Consultancy is a social enterprise, working to improve the lives of young people affected by mental health issues by:• Raising awareness and increasing knowledge and understanding around mental health issues, particularly those affecting young people, by providing training, workshops, talks and other relevant activities;• Enabling and supporting the set-up of groups working with young people with mental health issues, through replication of The Project’s existing model of early intervention support;• Providing a mental health consultancy service around early intervention and prevention supportServices will be provided at a preferential rate to parents and carers, when working directly with young people (eg. in schools, youth clubs), and to others where this is deemed appropriate, to increase accessibility and allow as many people as possible to benefit. A percentage of income may also be donated to services supporting young people affected by mental health issues, and some services may be provided free of charge on an ad hoc basis.
Category
Children and Youth
Additional Information
I am the Founder of The Project, an early intervention support network for young people affected by mental health issues. The Project, which operates locally in Devon and Somerset, opened in 2013 and has since helped hundreds of young people, and their parents and families. Having run The Project's support network for the past 5 years, I have now set up my own social enterprise to further develop and expand the mental health awareness training programme, as well as provide consultancy and help enable to replication of The Project's model in other areas, in response to demand.
Here is a bit about my story:
"In 2009, at the age of 15, my daughter, Jess, developed severe mental health issues - depression, anxiety and an eating disorder, self harm. Shortly after her 16th birthday, she was admitted to an adolescent psychiatric inpatient hospital when she became suicidal. She spent 5 long months there - and it saved her life! Since then we have been through many ups and downs, and faced challenges which have, at times, threatened to overwhelm us. Mental illness has been part of my life, and my learning, since then, and continues to be an ever-present reminder of the vulnerability and fragility of life.
"There’s nothing in the parenting manuals that tells you what to do when your 15 year old daughter falls apart in front of your eyes, and you find yourself standing there, utterly helpless. And so began the most terrifying, bewildering and exhausting learning curve of my life. Trying to find information, support, someone who could help, and realising quickly that I was not only having to deal with my daughter’s illness, but also the silence, fear and stigma that goes along with it.
"I knew absolutely nothing about mental illness. I didn’t really know what it was, what caused it, what to do about it and – most importantly – I didn’t know what to say or how to help!
"So that's how this all started.
"Cutting a long story short, in 2013, I set up The Project, an early intervention peer support service for young people aged 13-24 affected by mental health issues, as well as offering support to parents and carers. The model created was based on what Jess, and I, wished had been available to us. From a seed of an idea, The Project has turned into a huge success, and has supported hundreds of young people since it opened, been nominated for and won awards, and cited as an example of best practice in peer support by the Department for Education.
"Nobody is more surprised than me ... but I am hugely proud of all The Project has achieved and what is has become in the few years since it opened - and it continues to grow! The Project Training & Consultancy is the next step of this journey, allowing to take this work even further ..."