The cost of living crisis is affecting the mental health of millions
The uncertainty of watching as our costs spiral can be difficult to bear. The worry of how we’ll get by and support our families is piling on the pressure. But for so many of us, looking after our mental health is often last on our list.
As individuals, as families, as communities – we can’t afford to ignore the impact on our mental health.
Get involved this Mental Health Awareness Week
Whether we’re raising awareness or raising money, we can let each other know support is out there. Help those of us that need it find hope through Mind’s Infoline, website and online community, Side by Side. We can’t fix the cost of living crisis – but we can help each other cope.
If this speaks to you, or someone you know, support Mind this Mental Health Awareness Week.
Mind in West Essex are proud to announce that their Big Give match fund campaign will go live during Mental Health Awareness Week (15th – 22nd May). The local mental health organisation will be asking for donations towards their counselling bursary to raise £10,000 in just 1 week! These funds will be used to provide support to those in financial difficulty, giving them the access to the talking therapy they deserve.
Money worries are one of the top stressors for people in their day to day life, which can lead to anxiety and depression. At Mind in West Essex, they need your help so they are able to continue to support others to access vital counselling services. All donations made to their Big Give campaign will be generously matched by Kind2Mind, meaning your money can support twice as many individuals and families in need of talking therapies.
Mike Ellen, Manager Uttlesford CYP Mental Health Support Team at Mind in West Essex said, “Our counselling bursary project has come at the right time to provide much needed support to individuals and families. Given the current economic situation, finding the money is a struggle or not possible for the very people that would benefit most from counselling.”
Jade Bolton, Fundraising and Marketing Coordinator at Mind in West Essex said, “As a local Mind we heavily rely on the charitable donations we receive from the public and to ensure we are able to continue offering our services. With the cost of living, we have found that some people are unable to access services like talking therapies which would support their mental health during these times of stress and worry. Our counselling bursary has been created to support over 30 individuals with 6 free counselling sessions which will provide them with the tools they need to manage their stress and anxiety.”
The Big Give counselling bursary campaign will be live from midday on Monday 15th May and will run until midday on Monday 22nd May. You can use the link below too donate. All donations will be doubled! https://donate.biggive.org/campaign/a056900002PowabAAB
Don’t forget to share your donation on social media and tag Mind in West Essex to receive a thank you shout out. One donation, twice the impact!
We support projects that help make communities fairer for everyone. You can apply if you’re a not-for profit group, wanting to fund a specific project that benefits your local community.
If your funding application is successful, we’ll work with you for 12 months. The more members that shop with Co-op and choose to support your project, the more funding you will receive.
To apply for funding, you need to send your application by 11 June 2023.
Check if you can apply for funding
The information in this section will help you to decide whether to apply for funding. We know that different people use different words for community work. For this application process,
the ‘group’ or ’cause’ means your organisation
the ‘project’ is the activity or specific work that you are applying to fund
You can apply if your project:
brings people together to access food
helps to improve people’s mental wellbeing
creates opportunities for young people to be heard and make a difference
helps people to save and restore nature or tackle climate change
Your project must also:
take place in the UK or Isle of Man
take place or still be running after November 2024
To apply, your group needs to be:
registered or based in the UK
have their own bank account
operating in your local community
not-for-profit
Groups that can apply include:
churches or chapels that are excepted charities (that means they do not need to register with the Charities Commission)
co-operative societies
community benefit societies
Community Interest Companies
credit unions
registered charities in the UK or Isle of Man
social enterprises
Scout, Guide or Woodcraft Folk groups
any other group that can prove that they are not-for-profit
We cannot fund projects that:
support individuals
support people or projects overseas
promote any political activities or religious beliefs – but we can consider projects led by religious groups that are for the benefit of the whole community
use all of the funds to cover staff salaries and running costs
give our funding to other people or groups
are the responsibility of local authorities
could, in our opinion, harm the reputation of Co-op
What you need to apply
You’ll need:
your group’s charity number or registration details
or
your group’s governing documents that show that you’re not-for-profit. For example, your group’s constitution, articles of association or any other official documents
You’ll also need:
your group’s bank details- we cannot pay funding into an account that is not in the name of your group
a bank statement from the last 3 months for your group
a description of your group and project
2 contacts including phone and email details
basic information about what your group does and annual income
a good photo (landscape, not portrait) that will help promote your project to Co-op members
What happens next
You must apply by midnight on 11 June 2023
You’ll find whether your application has been successful or not by email in October 2023
If you’re successful:
you’ll be part of the Local Community Fund for 12 months from 22 October 2023 to 19 October 2024
As part of Mental Health Awareness Week the Suffolk and North East Essex ICB are holding a series of webinars.
Community360’s Shawn Leek, Helen Clegg and Katie Parker will be speaking about reconnecting with nature, the role of social prescribing and dementia and mental health.
MONDAY 15 TH MAY And
The Topic of the Week: Anxiety and Mental Health
TUESDAY 16TH MAY
The Menopause and Mental Health: It Isn’t Just Hot Flushes
Mental Health: The Gardening In Mind Project
WEDNESDAY 17TH MAY
Physical Activity and Mental Health
Do you live in Colchester South?
If you live in one of the following areas, take our survey and help identify how people’s health and wellbeing could be improved in Colchester South!
• Greenstead
• Marks Tey and Layer
• Mersea and Pyefleet
• Old Heath and the Hythe
• Rowhedge
• Tiptree
• Wivenhoe
There are many factors which have a positive or negative impact on your health and wellbeing.
Community360 are part of the Live Well Neighbourhood Programme which aims to prevent future ill health and improve wellbeing so that you can live well.
We need your local knowledge to help us understand what a healthy neighbourhood could look like for you and the people living in the south of Colchester.
Essex County Council (ECC) is committed to ensuring the delivery of the most effective services for the residents of Essex, which improve outcomes and maximise opportunities, whilst ensuring best value for money for taxpayers.
Essex County Council is the second largest local authority in the United Kingdom, serving a population of over 1.5 million residents, with five acute hospitals, and a diverse range of rural and urban areas with significant coastline.
The Council currently commissions a county wide Information, Advice, Guidance and Support service for unpaid carers aged over 18.
The Council and its partners are currently examining opportunities for the ongoing provision of this service when the contract expires in March 2024 and this document provides a broad overview of the current position and operational demands.
Please note that this Market Engagement Briefing is not a Tender Specification nor is it an exhaustive list of service requirements. The purposes of this document/process are:
– To solicit interest in this service requirement and determine, with the assistance of providers, the trajectory of the sourcing project.
– To inform the final specification for the tender/contract to ensure compatibility with market capability.
It is anticipated that the Council will seek to have face-to-fact/virtual meeting with interested parties during May/June 2023.
Youth services to benefit from a new Refurbishment Grant Programme to renovate and improve their offer to young people in England and reach more young people.
The Youth Investment Fund, funded by the UK Government, is transforming out-of-school opportunities for young people in the most underserved and deprived areas in England.
In a drive to ensure as many young people benefit as possible, the Youth Investment Fund is now offering youth services the chance to apply for a Refurbishment Grant of up to £150K to help services reach more young people and ensure youth services are there for future generations.
The new Refurbishment Grant Programme means that every eligible youth service, however small, has a unique chance to apply for funding to renovate their service, recognising that some services only require a modest investment to improve, update and refurbish their offer to young people. The Youth Investment Fund has been designed to help youth services reach more young people across England. The Refurbishment Grant programme will increase that reach and ensure youth services are there for future generations of young people. The programme should appeal to smaller youth services, who may not have the capacity to deliver large capital projects.
A Youth Investment Fund Refurbishment Grant could cover a wide range of improvements and refurbishments including:
Roof works
Accessibility adjustments
Insulation
Fitting of a new boiler
Fitting of new windows
Fitting of new doors
Fitting of new bathrooms / toilets
Fitting of a new kitchen
Damp proofing
Rewiring or electrical works
Plastering
Asbestos removal
Moving/removing an internal wall
Contingency costs
Fees
Other – anything else that will improve your youth services and enable you to reach more young people or preserve your youth service.
Alongside capital costs, youth projects can also apply for revenue and contingency costs, as long as the total applied for does not exceed £150K. A revenue grant request cannot exceed 20% of the capital grant requested, and contingency costs should be no greater than 10% of the total capital costs.
Eligible youth services can apply for a Youth Investment Fund Refurbishment Grant via an easy-to-use application form. The Youth Investment Fund Refurbishment Grant Programme operates in rounds. The application window will be open over a period time where organisations are able to submit their application. The three grant rounds run from:
28 March to 11 April 2023
24 April to 12 May 2023
29 May to 9 June 2023
Find out if you are eligible to apply:
Youth Investment Fund Refurbishment Grants up to £150,000: apply here Youth Investment Fund (applications greater than £150,000): apply here
To mark His Majesty the King’s coronation thousands of organisations across the country are getting together to make a difference to their community. The ‘big help out day’ will take place on Monday 8th May, but Community360 doesn’t want it to end there, they are urging the community to continue to support their local community after the celebrations are over.
Cat Wright, Senior Engagement Officer, who leads the Volunteer Centre at Community360 said: “Our commitment to volunteering will not stop at this one weekend, we want to create a legacy from this weekend’s celebrations. There are thousands of ways to help communities grow and prosper every day of the year, whether through simple acts of generosity or by sharing some of your time and skills as a volunteer.”
She added: The ‘big help out day,’ has highlighted the positive impact that volunteering has on our communities. Pledging to volunteer can bring you great rewards, whether you run a business or have some spare time to give, together we can all support
each other to make a big difference to our communities.”
In the last 12 month alone, more than 317 Community360 volunteers, which equates to over 25,279 hours of volunteer time have been helping with things such as organising transport home from hospital, distributing winter welfare packs and signposting to charities or social groups in the area. They have supported local people have their vaccine at the Primary Care Centre in Colchester, local GP surgeries and supporting the mobile vaccination service. In addition, volunteers have supported the organisation making welfare and befriending calls, as well as supporting the Home from Hospital service, the winter resilience project, the Essex Family Support Service and Community Transport.
The organisation is also about to relaunch their Timebanking Scheme which is an ad hoc flexible volunteering scheme which works by exchanging time. Members help each other out and then deposit the hours they spend doing so in the ‘bank’. They
credit their volunteer hours (one hour is one credit) and can then spend their credits to receive volunteer support in return or donate them to someone in need. The exchanges of time can be varied and assist members from across our community while pooling resources, expertise and experiences. Time Banks operate on the principle that time is the new money and every one can participate. These exchanges can involve practical skills such as DIY or gardening, sewing, learning a new language to playing scrabble with someone and sharing a cup of tea.
“It doesn’t matter whether you are retired, unemployed, a student, a plumber a window cleaner or a banker we would love to hear from you.” Said Cat. “Whether you have an hour a week or a few hours a month to spare, everyone can make a difference, everyone has something to give.”
Pop into the One Colchester Hub, Long Wyre Street for an informal chat or email [email protected]
