This month we are profiling Mind in the City, Hackney and Waltham Forest, the largest provider of community-based mental health services in East London. Mind in the City, Hackney and Waltham Forest is dedicated to supporting people disproportionately affected by mental health issues; people from racialised communities, young people, and people living in poverty. This month, they tell us about why their work is needed now more than ever, and how you can get involved to support the organisation, by moving!

1. What does your charity do?
Mind in the City, Hackney and Waltham Forest is the largest provider of community-based mental health services in East London. We are driven by the needs of those in the communities we serve, and develop mental health services where we see gaps in service provision – more recently we have developed an LGBTQ+ service, run by and for LGBTQ+ individuals and an African and Caribbean service, led by Black peer leaders and staff members.

We also lead a partnership of seven other service providers, to share knowledge and expertise, so we can ensure that nobody has to face a mental health problem alone.

2. What challenges do your service users face? How has this been affected by the pandemic?
We know that the pandemic exacerbated existing inequalities, worsening financial issues and resulting in higher levels of poor mental health for people from minority groups.

Too often where we live, or who we are, affects our ability to access mental health services; our CEO, Vanessa Morris, says “our unequal society puts many more people’s mental health at risk. We won’t give up until everyone experiencing poor mental health gets both support and respect.

Mind in the City, Hackney and Waltham Forest are dedicated to supporting people disproportionately affected by mental health issues; people from racialised communities, young people, and people living in poverty.

3. How does your work help them to overcome these challenges?
We lead up a network of seven different partner organisations, including Hackney Chinese Community service, Irish Elders, shared community spaces, LGBTQ+ groups and African and Caribbean mental health services, to ensure that we can provide the appropriate support when it matters most.

We believe in working collaboratively and taking a person-centred approach when it comes to supporting those with mental ill health.

4. Tell us about your upcoming Move 4 Mind campaign!
This winter we are taking part in Move 4 Mind, a 30-day exercise and fundraising challenge. What does that look like? That’s up to you!

You can dance, swim, walk, skip – so long as you’re moving and having fun, it counts. You choose how you want to get active to raise money, and help us fight to ensure everyone gets the respect and support they deserve.

Why should I get involved?
Want to start a new healthy habit, but not sure how to make it stick? How about knowing that whilst you’re doing it, you’re joining the fight to campaign for better, more equal mental health services for all? Access to mental health support is still too often determined by where we live or who we are. At our local Mind, we are dedicated to ending this injustice, and supporting people disproportionately affected by mental health issues; people from racialised communities, young people, and people living in poverty. But we need your help. Together, we can build a society that fights for the mental health of every last one of us. But to get there, we need your support.

How do I take part?
The best part is you can do anything you like to take part in Move for Mind. Have a dance round your living room every day, a jog round the park before work or walk along the coast each weekend. You can even team up and take it on with your friends, too.

Just choose your challenge, raise money and help us fight for mental health across England and Wales. We’ll even send a t-shirt your way when you hit that first £50, and a medal when you raise £150.

So, what are you waiting for? Sign up now and Move for Mind this winter.

When is it happening?
Signup anytime from December 1 to January 31, and start your challenge whenever you’d like. Your 30 days don’t have to be one after another – take your time and have fun. Exercise is personal, so pace it out in a way that works, but make sure you’re finished by the 2nd of March.

Will you Move for Mind this winter? Raise money to join the fight for mental health, whilst also starting up a new healthy habit. It’s a 30 day challenge – so let’s get started.

Registrations are live as of 30^th Nov, click here to sign up.