We are pleased to announce that this year we are the charity partner for the Slimming World team based in Tameside! The group choose a charity to support each year and raised a significant amount of money last year for the Reminiscence Pod at Tameside Hospital. We are very grateful to be chosen by the group as their charity and we can’t wait to work with the enthusiastic Slimming World team on all their events throughout the year!
The group have decided to donate the money they raise to help renovate our café and outdoor space! Including a new growing space outside the back of our café which can be utilised by individuals involved with our services, our volunteers and children and young people as part of The Hive.
The group have already kicked off their fundraising by collecting the leftover 5ps from their membership! Lisa, who is heading up the fundraising activity for the group said this… "The Slimming World weekly fee costs just £4.95 but our members are so lovely they wanted to start giving the 5p change to charity to see what we could amount it too. This is something we keep up with all year long and is optional to give." Additionally, Yvonne from the group has organised a raffle, with a fabulous teddy bear gift. They have raised almost £50 already!
As part of the partnership our Café, managed by Paul Garside, will now have some special syn-free dressings and any meals that qualify as syn-free will be listed, or simply just ask a member of staff. All of our dishes are vegetarian and freshly prepared on site!
The group’s next fundraising activity will be a special Afternoon Tea at the Labour Club, at the start of June! With lots of brilliant cake (of course!), prosecco, and beautiful jewellery, card and beauty stands available for people to take a look around! The date will be announced soon, keep your eyes open on our website and on their Facebook page for more information.
Lisa went on to say Every year our members help us with ideas of a charity they think are worthy of donating too which then we source a local charity and try to help with a project.
Our Slimming World members also like to keep focused on their weight loss journey by setting many challenges, Mary has made some personalised plates for the charity which we have sold and made almost £200.00 so far. This was to keep her busy while she was watching the Olympics as normally that would leave her wanted to eat lots of biscuits but she is kept busy with Kraft instead.
Jenny Higson, CEO said "TOG Mind have a long relationship with promoting healthy eating and it’s link to good wellbeing. Our café has a focus on providing a variety of food choices from locally sourced produce, suitable for lots of dietary requirements. I can’t wait to see what the group get up to throughout the year and see how our café is transformed with their support."
Community partnerships such as this are so important for us at Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind to not only raise vital funds for our services but to help us share what we can offer and sign post 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 running your own event, 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're always happy to help!
Our first Supporter taking part in The Big 40km has completed her challenge!
Iris Flitter took on the challenge in February and has now completed her distance with a variety of walks, Tai Chi, and even circuit training thrown in!
The challenge was put together by the team at TOG Mind to help celebrate 40 years of supporting the local community with their mental health and wellbeing.
We started out as a mental health and wellbeing organisation, Tameside and Glossop Association of Mind, on the 27th February 1978 and in 2008 we re-registered as Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind as we expanded our services to Oldham.
40km is just under 25 miles. That’s like 380 football pitches, or walking from Oldham through Ashton-under-lyne all the way to Glossop and back!
This is no easy task and we are so grateful to Iris for taking part and helping us to celebrate our birthday and for raising an incredible £210 to support the work of our dedicated staff and volunteers.
Iris said this about completing the challenge:
“I feel so good about myself after completing the 40K challenge. It is the first time in 78 years I have ever tried anything like that, it inspired me to get up and go out walking which is so beneficial for mind and body and I certainly will carry on walking in the future.
Every day seeing the Spring gradually appearing with the beautiful Snowdrops, Daffodils, and Crocus cheered me up so much and hearing all the birds singing was an added bonus and so good for my mental health.”
Every year, more people are facing problems with their mental health. Tameside, Oldham & Glossop Mind work to ensure that they can offer help to anyone that needs it. Engaging the community to take part in our challenges and activities is so important for us at TOG Mind to not only raise vital funds for our services but to help us share what we can offer and sign post those individuals and their friends and families to what help they can access.
Thank you to over 20 staff, volunteers and supporters currently taking part in the challenge! We can’t wait to see how everyone gets on! To keep up to date, make sure to visit our Big 40 website page where you can read more about all our fantastic supporters!
Jenny Higson, CEO at TOG Mind had this to say:
“I’m always motivated by people who take on a challenge in aid of us. I find Iris particularly inspiring that at the age of 78, she’s taken on her first challenge and absolutely smashed it. I hope this encourages people to realise it is never too late and believe that they can take on something similar!”
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 us at fundraising [at] togmind.org.
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!
Join us for our 5 Ways in 5 Days!
Mental health awareness week takes place between the 14th and 18th May and we have lots going on across our sites for you to get involved in.
The 5 Ways to Wellbeing were researched and developed by the New Economics Foundation.
Monday 14th
Reminding yourself to Take Notice can strengthen and broaden awareness. Heightened awareness can then enhance your self-understanding and allow you to make positive choices based on your values and motivations.
Join us for a Walk & Talk around our lovely local community and take a moment to appreciate the natural beauty that surrounds us. Event time and location to be confirmed. Sign up below to keep up to date!
Take Notice - Take part in our Walk & Talk!
Tuesday 15th
Regular activity is associated with lower rates of depression and anxiety across all age groups.
Being Active doesn’t have to be intense to make you feel good. Take part in our family-friendly Dancercise class with Active Tameside’s Nayereh, at Albion United Reformed Church. The session is running from 1pm to 2pm!
Be Active - Join us for some Dancercise!
Wednesday 16th
There is strong evidence that indicates feeling close to and valued by other people is a fundamental need that contributes to functioning well.
Connecting with others is critical for promoting wellbeing and for acting as a buffer against mental ill health for people of all ages – Invite a friend, neighbour or family member to the café and get a free drink with every main meal purchased.
Connect - Bring a friend to the Topaz Café!
Stress Management
This is a 4-week course starting on Wednesday 16th May, up until Wednesday 6th June.
Life today is full of competing demands on our time – work, home, study, family, friends, and hobbies. A busy life is great when we feel in control; however it can rapidly lose its enjoyment and feel extremely stressful. Although stress can feel all encompassing, there are things you can do to help with these feelings.
The stress management course gives you information about stress, provides the opportunity the to explore your own stress and also teaches simple tried and tested techniques that with practice can help change the way you feel.
Thursday 17th
Learning – Continued learning through life enhances self-esteem and encourages social interaction and a more active life.
Join us to watch Tameside Arts performance at Guide Bridge Theatre from 12.30pm to 2.30pm. The Tameside Arts team will also be popping into the café on Tuesday 15th!
Between 1pm and 2pm we'll be holding a free Micro Session on Tai Chi at our Ashton Wellbeing Centre. Tai Chi is a very ancient method of self defence, however these days it is used more as a gentle exercise and relaxation tool.
Micro Session - Tai Chi! - This is a drop-in session, which means there's no need to register! Just drop on by our Ashton Centre and join in!
Time To Change in Oldham
Join us at Positive Steps in Oldham between 11:30am and 1:30pm to take part in a number of exciting mental health activities.
Enter our Art Competition and help us to break down the negative stigma that surrounds mental health!
Learn more about it here, we can’t wait to see you there!
Friday 18th
Research into actions for promoting happiness has shown that giving an act of kindness once a week, over a 6-week period, is associated with an increase in wellbeing.
Take a look at our volunteering opportunities and start your volunteer journey today. Visit our website to see all our roles or pop into the café to see our volunteering stand and ask any questions on Friday 18th May, 12pm to 2pm.
Give – Volunteering Opportunities
- Or -
Why not sign up to be a TOG Mind Ambassador in Tameside to support people in your local area with their wellbeing and mental health? You could make a real difference to people’s lives, helping them to understand more about their own mental health, as well as others around them so that everyone gets the right support when they need it.
Get access to training opportunities including sessions such as Self-Care, Emotional Intelligence, and Problem Solving.
Sign up to be a TOG Mind Ambassador here!
This is the Oldham edition of our wellbeing column for the months of March and April!
This edition we're talking about staying healthy this spring, community wellbeing support, and we have some lovely happiness poems!
This is the Tameside edition of our wellbeing column for the months of March and April!
This edition we're talking about staying healthy this spring, mindfulness activities, and success stories!
Have you heard about Microsessions? Microsessions are a new series of sessions we're holding that aim to cover a wide variety of different topics. We hope there will be something for everybody to be interested in.
Microsessions are a series of short, bite sized public information or wellbeing sessions that have been chosen to be informative, interesting, and as dynamic as possible.
For example:–
- Careers Service will be giving a presentation that targets those who need advice and guidance around job search activities or career choices.
- Then we have the Fire Service who are giving a talk on fire safety in the home.
- There are also wellbeing sessions for people who have an interest in alternative practices i.e meditation, numerology or Tia Chi etc.
Microsessions are free and you can join any of the sessions that interest you whenever it's on. They are also drop-in sessions, which means that there's no calling in and booking, just pop by and join in!
A few tidbits of information on Microsessions:
When are they?
- Microsessions take place every Thursday, between 1pm and 2pm.
Where are they?
- Microsessions take place at our Ashton Wellbeing Centre, located in the Coffee Lounge.
What kind of topics will be offered?
- There will be a wide variety of topical and informative sessions. You can check this list for a selection of our upcoming sessions.
Who will benefit from these?
- We hope that everyone will benefit at least a little bit from these sessions. Because they cover such a broad spectrum of topics we hope we have at least a little something for everyone.
If you'd like to to learn more about the Microsessions we have scheduled, you can see them on our events page!
The Big 40km launched this week on Tuesday 27th February (despite “The Beast From The East”'s meddling!).
Thank you to all the incredible staff, volunteers, and supporters that have already signed up and joined the team and have already ran, walked or cycled out of their comfort zone!
It’s not too late, sign up here to receive your Fundraising Pack and visit our Supporters Page to get some inspiration from our supporters that have decided to share why they are Fundraising for TOG Mind.
You can also read some of the interviews from our supporters, who share the passion that drives behind their support for mental health services!
Please, if you do decide to venture out into the cold, make sure you layer up and wear appropriate, footwear with good grip and stay safe!
Three sisters got into the festive spirit by taking part in Christmas fundraisers for charity!
Leah, Charlotte, and Lydia Williams from Ashton decided to help out Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind by holding a Christmas stall at the recent Mossley Town Team Christmas Market in the George Lawton Hall. They also braved the snow by hold a fund-raising stall on the market ground at the Mossley Christmas light switch-on and parade.
The girls, who all attend the Blue Coat School in Oldham, raised a magnificent £228.40 by holding Christmas present tombolas and also selling raffle tickets for the charity which is based on Katherine Street in Ashton.
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 works 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.
Leah, 17, who is studying for her A Levels at the Blue Coat Sixth Form, said she decided to raise money for mental health charity Mind as part of her Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award. She added:
“In the Duke of Edinburgh scheme you have to undertake voluntary work so we thought we would help a local charity. With so many young people these days suffering with stress through the pressures of exams and outside influences, we wanted to improve teenage mental health and well-being, so we decided to approach Mind.”
Charlotte, 14, also worked with Mind as part of her Silver DoE, while her younger sister Lydia, 11, is taking part in the Blue Coat School’s Leadership Award which also encourages youngsters to go out and help in the community. Lydia added:
“I chose Mind because lots of young people are dealing with mental health issues every day.”
The sisters are now planning on more fundraisers for TOG Mind in the New Year.
Jenny Robinson, CEO at TOG Mind, had this to say:
“We are so grateful for the support from the girls and I can’t wait to see what else they get up to in 2018. I am really impressed with their determination to withstand the cold and for choosing to fundraise for Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind. Not only have they raised vital funds, but they have been able to do so whilst raising awareness of mental health problems in young people. Thank you.”
For more information about TOG Mind and the services we offer; you can visit our website or you can call 0161 330 9223 where they will be happy to help. 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.
2018 marks the 40th year of providing mental health services to the community! To celebrate we're going to be holding The Big 40, an event that we hope will get everyone running to raise funds for charity.
We've got loads of supporters already and we're really excited to see everyone getting their running shoes on! We caught up with some of our supporters and asked them what inspires them and why they have chosen to take part in The Big 40km.
Sarah is one of our supporters planning to go on a good run for The Big 40, here's what she had to say:
“...I like to give myself a challenge each year that is within my (very limited) fitness levels. Something that is achievable and will also give me the motivation to get fitter.”
Sarah has just started to take part in Park Runs so will be completing her 40km in chunks, completing around 5km a week with a few jogs from home and sessions at the running track at Active Tameside’s amazing iTrain gym.
Want to show Sarah some support? You can visit her JustGiving page here.
Catherine has chosen support Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind to give something back after her family received the help and support they needed. You can read more about why below and visit Catherine’s JustGiving page.
Why did you choose to support and take part in The Big 40km with Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind?
"Mind is dear to both myself and my husband as they helped my daughter through a tough time after getting Alopecia Universalis within a short space of time; she began losing her hair when in Year 9 of high school and with peer pressure was under a lot of stress, she is now 16 and in college and feels so much more confident with her condition. The counselling she received about 18 months ago helped her to deal with the anger that was growing within her. With working in Dukinfield Town Hall I was alerted to The Big 40km challenge through an internal communications and thought it would be an ideal way to get me ‘healthy’ and to give something back."
Are you looking forward to the challenge? How do you intend to travel your 40km? / Across how many days?
"I must confess I am looking forward to the challenge which will be done in bitesize walks across a number of days – I’m going to start with doing 1km a day during my lunch time (to get me out of the ‘office chair potato’ scenario) and increase it accordingly by varying my ‘round the block’ route. Luckily we have the lovely Dukinfield Park very nearby, I might even co-ordinate my walks with looking for ‘Tameside Rocks’ as I believe some are hidden in the park."
Click here to visit Catherine's JustGiving page and help her achieve her goal!
We are incredibly lucky this year to have become the Saddleworth Singers charity partner for 2018. The group choose a charity to support each year and have raised significant amounts of money in the past through holding 3 or 4 social events for their members each year. 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. We are very grateful to be chosen and we can’t wait to work with the enthusiastic Saddleworth Singers team!
The group’s first fundraising activity will be a Zumba®, Cake and Chat Afternoon on the 24th March 2018! Make sure to get to Springhead Community Centre from 2pm to take part, test out your dance moves, and then follow it up with some fabulous cake and a good natter!
Founded 30 years ago by Mary Bradshaw the choir is a big part of the community and some of the founding members are still part of the choir today. The choir is mixed ages and abilities and prides itself on not using music copies when performing. The group have grown from 15 to 60 members since its conception 30 years ago and now perform in incredible venues such as the Civic Hall in Uppermill.
From ABBA to Adele, madrigals to musicals and the great composers to those of the 21st Century, the choir has a varied and diverse range to choose from. The group are joined by the very experienced and talented accompanist Rachael Gibbon who also plays the clarinet and an enthusiastic Musical Director, Hilary Henderson, who regularly adds new music to retain the freshness and vocal stimulation required to help the choir get better and better. Hilary has an enviable reputation and is highly respected and regarded not only by the choir, but by the local community as well.
Their upcoming summer concert will be on Friday 6th July with guests Phoenix Brass. Not one to be missed, so make sure to get it into your diary! The concert starts 7:30pm at the Civic Hall.
Sylvie, Chairwoman of the Saddleworth Singers Committee said:
“…there is a camaraderie that is hard to beat and a love of music which we can almost touch every time we sing together. We truly believe that no matter what your worries or stresses, you cannot worry or stress at the same time you are singing! Each Tuesday from 7:30 to 9:30, we close the door and leave whatever else is going on in our world outside. Our breathing exercises also help us to be calm and enjoy the evening together.”
The choir practice on Tuesday evenings from 7.30pm at the Springhead Community Centre. They are currently looking to fill 4 vacancies, so if this sounds like your cup of tea, get in contact with group on their Facebook: facebook.com/saddleworthsingers.
Community partnerships such as this are so important for us at Tameside, Oldham and Glossop Mind to not only raise vital funds for our services but to help us share what we can offer and sign post 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 running your own event, or if you just want to donate; contact fundraising [at] togmind.org (subject: Saddlesworth%20Singers%20Article%20Enquiry) . For more information about TOG Mind and the services we offer you can visit our website or you can call 0161 330 9223 where we are always happy to help.
