Action Mental Health New Horizons client Louise O’Donnell is showcasing her talent this month at the Leaves Across a Landscape art exhibition in Clotworthy House, Antrim Castle Gardens.
This is a creative collaboration between Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council and the Northern Health and Social Care Trust.
Louise is a very talented artist and has two paintings on display at the exhibition in the Oriel Gallery. The exhibition runs until Saturday 29 April and is open to the public.
Very well done to Louise on this fantastic achievement!
It has been a busy period recently with a number of fundraising events being held and raising vital funds for Action Mental Health.
On Saturday 11 March a dragon boat race was organised with our charity partner Danske Bank and held at Bryson LaganSports. 120 participants competed, in eight teams of 15, with the Corporate Banking team being named the winner.
On Sunday 12 March Jimmy’s 10K was held in Downpatrick. Organised by East Down Athletic Club in memory of one of their founding members Jimmy Murray, the event hosted record numbers. Action Mental Health was selected as the beneficiary charity.
A huge thank you to everyone who helped in organising the events, who competed, volunteered and donated money. Amounts raised coming soon!
Fane Valley Group has named Action Mental Health as their new designated charity partner. Northern Ireland’s largest farming co-operative have a long established pedigree of charitable involvement across their range of agri businesses, including award winning producers Linden Foods and White’s Oats.
Amanda McCrea and Oonagh Chesney, Fane Valley with Callum Clark, AMH
With over 2000 employees across the group and operating multiple sites province-wide Fane Valley is recognised as a market leader within the agri sector and now plan to engage with their largely farming customers base to support the charity while educating and highlighting the sensitivities surrounding mental health.
Trevor Lockhart – Fane Valley Chief Executive commented, “We are excited to announce Action Mental Health as our charity partner. This will be the first wider group charity effort for Fane Valley and we are delighted to be able to assist with the delivery of the AMH MensSana programme ‘Provoking Thought’, an exciting mental health awareness project designed to communicate about emotional wellbeing.
“We feel that the time is right for Fane Valley and our group of companies to support and highlight mental illness in all its forms, both within the co-op and especially to our customers and their families. Mental illness comes in all shapes and sizes and we feel that we can practically assist in preventative signposting and educational advice to both staff and their family and our farmer audience at school, work and on the farm. We look forward to interacting with the Action Mental Health team over the coming months through a series of fundraising initiatives and tailored group discussions.”
David Babington, Chief Executive, Action Mental Health remarked, “We’re delighted to have been chosen by Fane Valley as their charity partner and are enthusiastic to deliver a programme of exciting fundraising events for both group staff and the wider farmer network. Fane Valley’s support will mean that Action Mental Health can equip 11-25 year old students throughout Northern Ireland with the knowledge and skills needed to nurture their mental wellbeing by investing in their emotional education through our ‘Provoking Thought’ programme and series of workshops delivered under our MensSana project.”
Mr Babington continued, “We know that one in four people will experience mental ill-health at some point in their life with countless more being affected through friends, family and work colleagues, so this partnership will prove vital in raising funds and awareness both inside and outside of the workplace. We are hugely grateful to Fane Valley for this opportunity and look forward to working closely with them in the future.”
To kick-off the new partnership, Fane Valley have helped raise £1,225 from visitor donations across a variety of trade shows during the summer, including Balmoral, Armagh & Clogher Valley Shows.
David was presented with the Leading Forward on Health & Social Care Reform award at CO3’s recent Leadership Awards.
Sponsored by the Department of Health, this award is in recognition of David’s tireless work to ensure mental health remains a key priority in Health and Social Care reform. It acknowledges the personal and professional commitment and leadership he has provided both for AMH and for the Mental Health sector in NI and for the achievements he has made in driving forward change.
Christopher Moore is feeling right at home in the Range, having returned to work through the Work Connect programme, which gave him 1:1 support from an employment officer, offering a personalised approach to sourcing suitable employment opportunities.
Ashley Rodgers (Deputy Manager), Christopher Moore (Replenishment Supervisor) and Barry Simpson (Sales Manager)
“Work Connect has been very useful in helping me remain focused on making a return to work and supporting me in the workplace, as from time to time I still find things hard sometimes. Work Connect does work and is working for me, so thanks to Robert, my Employment Officer, for helping me back into work and more.
I have been working in the Range for the past four months now, in the position of Supervisor for the Replenishment team, where we break down deliveries for all departments throughout the store. The support and encouragement I have received from my managers has been fantastic. My managers and other staff are very friendly, making the Range a great place to work. I am currently training to operate the forklift and hope to continue to develop my skills and experience during my time here.”
A new exhibition based in North Down Museum features prints and photographs showcasing local landscapes. The art works were produced by Action Mental Health’s North Down and Ards New Horizons programme, which provides training, support and information to enable people to access further education, volunteering and employment opportunities.
The prints and photographs depict the local area and the memories the participants have of different locations. The work was inspired by printmaking sessions with local artist Eimear McCann’s Colour and Print programme, which explored personal associations with colour.
Pauline Matthew, Skills Coach, Action Mental Health said, “This exhibition showcases the great work and skills of our clients. The positive experience of engaging in arts activities enriches their lives and in sharing their work, they hope to inspire others to think or act more creatively.”
This project is part-funded through the Northern Ireland European Social Fund Programme 2014-2020 and the Department for the Economy.
The campaign runs across the UK from 27 February – 5 March.
AMH Adapt provides support and understanding to anyone affected by an eating disorder, including their family and friends. AMH Adapt works in partnership with the Southern Health & Social Care Trust to raise greater awareness and understanding of eating disorders and encourage anyone affected by this mental health condition to come forward for support.
AMH Adapt’s services include;
Email/telephone support
One to one information sessions
Support programmes for people affected by an eating disorder
Support programmes for family members, partners or friends
Awareness workshops (schools, colleges & community groups)
Eating disorder training sessions
What our service users have said …
“Adapt gave my husband and I encouragement and strength to continue to support both our daughters at this very difficult time. We left our information session with hope for both girls and the knowledge that we are not alone. We were able to discuss freely different situations and how best to deal with them.”
“I was advised to seek help from Adapt. This was the best thing that I have done as it is now leading me onto a road of recovery. Vanessa at Adapt is very warm and welcoming and full of so much information on how to start feeling better and looking at ways on how to cope with the disorder. I would highly recommend that if you are suffering, you seek help from Adapt and don’t deal with this alone. I also attended a poetry evening at Adapt which was very good and a helpful tool.”
“I didn’t know there was support for eating disorders in my area until I called Adapt. Vanessa was able to tell me about the Eating Disorder team and how to access their support. Knowing she was there for guidance and assurance was a great help to me at a very difficult time.”
It has been a busy period recently with a number of fundraising events being held and raising vital funds for Action Mental Health.
On Sunday 12 March Jimmy’s 10K was held in Downpatrick. Organised by East Down Athletic Club in memory of one of their founding members Jimmy Murray, the event hosted record numbers. Action Mental Health was selected as the beneficiary charity.
