With the fourth year of Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund coming soon, we are delighted to share some success stories from last year’s grant recipients.
This feedback shows the wide-reaching scope and impact of this funding, which is here to support better mental health and wellbeing across communities in Perth and Kinross.
Well done to these organisations for making a difference in so many lives! We’ll be sharing more examples of the fund’s wide-reaching impact soon.
We hope these stories inspire more organisations to apply for the Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund this autumn. We’ll be sharing more information the week of 16 September for more information, including the 2024-2025 deadlines.
Many thanks to Scottish Government for continuing to support this important funding programme.
Christians Against Poverty (CAP)
This funding has enabled CAP to provide several new clients with debt management services and financial education. These clients have gained skills and resources to help them face a range of challenges, including complex mental health issues. Many say they feel more hope for the future because of this support.
‘I give thanks every day for these small but very significant changes made to the lives of the people we work with. Thank you for enabling us to provide this support by funding our work.’
Elder Voice
Elder Voice developed a Befriending/Socialising Well-Being Centre for older people to address social isolation and promote wellbeing. This project has brought people together over fun activities in a warm, comfortable space while also providing respite time to unpaid carers:
‘The outcomes of the service are being achieved with good feedback from clients, carers and professional bodies. Clients tell us how much they enjoy the experience and the company and look forward to coming back each week.’
The Light House for Perth and the Neuk
With this funding, The Light House for Perth and the Neuk has covered staffing costs for a family-centred mental health crisis support programme. This unique service, delivered as a charity partnership, offers a joint intervention and prevention response for young people and families facing mental health issues.
‘Without the support of both services we would really have struggled. I wasn’t in a place to support my son but you sorted all that for us – thank you!’
The Madoch Centre
The Madoch Centre at St Madoes and Kinfauns Parish Church has been able to expand their bereavement support. They also developed a Pickleball for Wellbeing project that has facilitated meaningful connections for adults aged 55+.
‘Our first cohort of Pickleballers, after an initial period of instruction, have continued to meet every week and enjoy time together.’
Participants who offered feedback said they experienced:
- Increased levels of physical activity, the majority by a significant amount
- New friendships and positive social opportunities
- Learning a new skill and gaining confidence
MANTALK
For MANTALK, this fund has supported several aspects of their work helping men in the area and raising awareness of mental health issues:
‘One part of it which has helped more than I realised it would is the counselling we have been able to offer. I always knew it would help the individuals that did the counselling, however, it comes back to the whole group because the men are coming back and talking about what they get out of it. This has encouraged others to explore the option of talking more.’