Last week, our Youth in Mind team had the pleasure of supporting the Madhlo Youth Zone with their 5 Weeks to Wellbeing Event. Mahdlo has been running a 5 week event where each week is about one aspect of the 5 ways to wellbeing. During the “Keep Learning” week, the Youth in Mind team ran 3 events on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings where they held a number of different workshops, debates, and group tasks to establish the myths and facts on mental health and where to get support if needed.
Throughout the 3 nights at Mahdlo, we managed to engage with over 120 children and young people!
The feedback that we received from the Mahdlo staff, children, and young people who took part was fantastic!
Mahdlo would now like to continue and improve our partnership by doing joint events at least 4 times per year and they would like to try for funding so that we can help support children and young people’s courses from Mahdlo as well!
Connect with Mahdlo - Website / Facebook / Twitter
Connect with Youth in Mind - Website / Facebook
An incredible fundraising effort is underway at West Hill School in Stalybridge and we are very lucky to have received a donation to support our work as part of the drive!
Thirty-seven Year 10 and 11 pupils from the school have been fundraising for their trip of a lifetime to Tanzania next year! As part of a bag pack at Marks & Spencer’s in Ashton Moss the group raised a tremendous amount of money and have generously donated 25% to us at TOG Mind, coming to a total of £1263.19.
But the boys' fundraising doesn’t stop there. They are continuing to raise money through their own initiatives to reach their mammoth, six-figure target! Coming up this Sunday (27th May) is a Car Boot Sale and they also have a planned virtual journey (walk, swim, run, cycle) to cover 760 miles – the length of Tanzania.
The core objectives of this expedition are to undertake projects to:
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Raise the educational standards of developing communities within rural districts of Tanzania.
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Build, renovate and teach in local primary schools.
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Raise the living standards of developing communities within that area.
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Assist with on-going wildlife and marine conservation programmes.
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Help preserve biodiversity and protect vulnerable habitats in national parks and conservation areas.
If you would like to support the groups fundraising you can get in contact with the Tanzania Team at West Hill School by calling on 0161 338 2193 or getting in touch with Andrew Carty at carty [at] westhillschool.co.uk.
Amy Saunders from the TOG Mind Fundraising Team popped by to see the group, to say thank you for their incredible efforts!
The money raised will go directly into funding the mental health support offered at TOG Mind, who work across the Tameside, Oldham and Glossop areas. Every year, more people are facing problems with their mental health.
TOG Mind work to ensure that they can offer help to anyone that needs it, through guided self-help, mental health advocacy, drop-ins and more. Their other work involves teaching the community about mental health problems, how to recognise mental health symptoms and ways to reduce the negative stigma which, sadly, is still a barrier to people asking for help.
For more information about TOG Mind and the services offered, visit our website www.togmind.org; or you can drop us a call at 0161 330 9223.
If you’ve been inspired by this story and are interested in running your own event, or if you just want to donate, contact fundraising [at] togmind.org.
From 14th – 18th May 2018 it was Mental Health Awareness Week. To celebrate and raise awareness for the week, Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind organised an event for Time to Change! Kelly Smith, Greater Manchester Time to Change (TTC) Hub Lead organised an incredible event at Positive Steps in Oldham with the help of Champions; Clare, Danielle and Julie!
TOG Mind were joined by The Open Shutters Project, the Early Help team, Get Oldham Working and Home Start who came to support the day and promote their incredible work and services.
Cllr Shadab Qumer (The Mayor of Oldham), Jenny Higson (CEO and Chairwoman of TOG Mind), Cheryl Eastwood, and Kelly Smith (GM TTC Hub Lead) all came together to judge the Children and Young People’s Art Competition. The task was to create a piece of art that reflected their feelings, how they viewed mental health, what helped to make them happy or something related to mental health awareness.
The event was successful in raising awareness of services in the local community, and helped to recruit even more Time to Change Champions and pledged organisations.
You can read more about what TTC is, how to become a TTC Champion, and what pledged organisations are in our area by visiting our page here.
Carolyn Wilkins (CEO of Oldham Council), and Darren Bee (North West TTC Coordinator) also joined the event to take a look at the stalls, chat with members of staff and volunteers, and have a cup of tea and a cake!
This was the first Time to Change event that has been held in Oldham and we can’t wait for the next event to help raise awareness around World Mental Health Day in October! If you would like any more information or how you can be involved with the Hub please get in touch.
Community events such as this are so important for us at Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind to support community groups to meet, hold events, and help us share what we can offer and to signpost those groups out in the community to what help they and their members can access.
If you’ve been inspired by this story and are interested in helping us to run and event or running your own event, or if you just want to donate then contact fundraising [at] togmind.org. For more information about TOG Mind and our services then you can visit our website at www.togmind.org or you can call 0161 330 9223.
This is the Oldham edition of our wellbeing column for the months of April and May!
This edition we're talking about Fundraising, Mental Health Awareness Week, and Sort-it! Drop-in!
This is the Tameside edition of our wellbeing column for the months of April and May!
This edition we're talking about The Big 40, Youth Mental Health First Aid, and 5 ways in 5 days!
This week (14th – 20th May 2018) is Mental Health Awareness Week, and the theme this year is Stress. Research has shown that two thirds of us experience a mental health problem in our lifetime, and stress has been found to be a significant factor in this. By tackling stress we can go a long way in tackling mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.
Stress is our bodies way of responding to various forms of pressure, demand or threat. When we sense danger our bodies defence systems, such as the ‘fight or flight’ reaction or the ‘stress response’ automatically kicks in, as a way of protecting us. Within certain situations stress can be beneficial, even motivational, helping us rise to challenges and remain alert and focused. However, if stress builds up beyond a certain point, this can stop being constructive and can begin to impact upon our mood, health, relationships and quality of life.
Managing Stress
Below are some ways we can try to manage stress:
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Getting enough sleep:
There is a close relationship between sleep and mental health, and stress can often affect how well you sleep. However, getting enough sleep can help you to feel more able to deal with difficult situations. Try to establish a regular sleep routine by going to bed and waking up at roughly the same time each day. The use of bright screens on phones or laptops prior to sleep has been found to negatively impact upon sleep quality; therefore try to give yourself an hour or so of tech-free time prior to bed, to help you to prepare for sleep.
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Relaxation Routine:
You may also find a relaxation routine can help you to prepare for sleep, such as muscle relaxation, meditation or breathing exercises. Check out some mindfulness videos at www.togmind.org.
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Being active:
Being physically active is important for both our physical health and our mental health. Doing small regular physical activity, such as going for a walk, may help you to feel less stressed and can also promote better sleep quality.
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Together Project – Stress, Anxiety and Worry Management Therapeutic Course.
At TOG Mind as part of our Together Project we offer a 4 week therapeutic course (2 hours a week) which focuses specifically on Stress, Anxiety and Worry Management. As part of this course you will explore biological causes of stress including the ‘fight or flight’ response, alongside exploring ways to manage a panic attack. This course also provides an opportunity to learn calming breathing and progressive muscle relaxation techniques. For more information please visit our website at www.togmind.org
Counselling offers a safe, confidential, non-judgemental and impartial therapeutic space, through which you can explore and address those areas of life currently causing you distress. At TOG Mind we offer counselling to all residents of Tameside and Glossop aged 16 and over. Counselling is a series of 50 minute one to one sessions which take place at the same time each week.
For more information please visit our website at: www.togmind.org or call us on 0161 330 9223.
We are so grateful to Katie, who will be tackling the Great Manchester 10k next Sunday (20th May), In Memory of Chloe Holt. You can visit Katie’s JustGiving page here to see regular updates and how she’s progressing!
Katie said:
“I decided to run the 10K for TOG Mind due to the story behind Matt's niece and TOG Mind helping his family to raise money In Memory of Chloe. I think it's a great cause due to the help that Mind offers family's going through situations like this.”
We’re glad to hear that Katie’s training is going well so far, she’s feeling good and looking forward to race day! We hope for some glorious dry weather (but perhaps not too hot!), we can’t wait to see how Katie gets on! Thank you so much Katie, and keep up the incredible training!
If you would like to read more about Chloe’s story and what incredible fundraising her family have organised, you can find our article here.
If you’ve been inspired by this story and are interested in taking on a challenge for TOG Mind, or if you just want to donate, contact fundraising [at] togmind.org.
For more information about TOG Mind and the services we offer you can visit our website www.togmind.org; or you can call 0161 330 9223 where we will be happy to help.
This saturday's Blazing Saddles charity event at Lees Road Fire Station was a huge success with local Oldham folk enjoying the sunshine and fun.
Our fruit bowl and badge maker was really popular and we spoke with loads of people including the Mayor of Oldham about our work and the fantastic challenge the Blazing Saddles crew have set themselves to raise much needed funds for local charities.
Here’s Jenny with Chris Boardman talking about mental health and physical activity. Look out for other events coming up over the summer!
We are always so grateful to individuals that put their limits to the test in order to raise money for us at Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind and these pair of fantastic fundraisers are no exception!
Helen and Peter will be taking on Born Survivor this Saturday (12th May)!
Born Survivor is a tough, physical challenge – IN THE MUD; the military obstacle course isn’t a race and thrives on teamwork, even if doing it alone the challenge encourages everyone to help each other!
Helen and Peter are going to be working together and have said a little bit about why below:
“We're Helen and Peter from Denton Community College, and we have chosen to raise money for TOG Mind while running this year's Manchester Born Survivor.
We have chosen Mind because of the incredible support they provide and the amazing difference they make in some of the lives of both pupils and staff in our school and beyond!”
You can visit their JustGiving page here to support them! All the funds raised will go towards our services here at TOG Mind.
Thank you so much Helen and Peter, we can’t wait to see all the super muddy pictures afterwards, keep up the incredible work!
If you’ve been inspired by this story and are interested in taking on a challenge for TOG Mind, or if you just want to donate, contact fundraising [at] togmind.org. We can help you with ideas, getting your place refunded and providing you with support materials!
For more information about TOG Mind and the services we offer you can visit our website at www.togmind.org or you can call us on 0161 330 9223 where we're always happy to help.
Longdendale High School in Tameside has become the first school in our region to be accredited with the AcSEED Award; for wellbeing support in schools and colleges.
The school have been working hard to implement a ‘Whole school approach’ to supporting wellbeing across the school community. This has resulted in Longdendale being awarded the accreditation.
The school have worked closely with consultant Ali Sparkes from Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind and are proud to accept the award, celebrating the school's achievement. Longdendale have also hosted a celebration event and the award was presented to staff by Ali Sparkes of TOG Mind.
The Founder of the AcSEED Award, Charlotte Gatherer commented:
“AcSEED promotes adoption of best practices in supporting the emotional wellbeing and mental health of young people in schools and colleges, and provides recognition for organisations that satisfy the criteria for wellbeing support.”
The AcSEED assessment team were impressed by the comprehensive wellbeing support provided by Longdendale High School, and by the wide range of wellbeing information, education, and support provided to staff, students, and families. Longdendale have a strong focus on continuous improvement of wellbeing provisions.
About AcSEED
The AcSEED initiative is a charitable organisation exclusively focused on promoting the need for high quality emotional wellbeing and mental health support in UK schools and colleges. It provides recognition through the AcSEED Award to those organisations that can demonstrate their commitment to such support.
AcSEED was founded by young people, with lived experience of wellbeing challenges at school. The wellbeing framework, defined by AcSEED encourages a whole school approach to emotional development and wellbeing support.
