Landlord Licensing Scheme

Positive thinking

Image © Külli Kittus on Unsplash.com

In a year that has been particularly trying for us all, mental health and wellbeing are of even greater importance. BETH HARWOOD speaks to a Liverpool charity about its new support campaign

AMerseyside mental health charity is launching a new campaign aimed at people who have had a difficult time during the pandemic.

Imagine Independence is keen to show there is plenty of support available for those with mental health issues and is launching the first Merseyside Mental Health Week to help promote positive mental wellbeing in the Liverpool City Region.

Part of the week is the Building Up Stronger (BUS) campaign, which is aimed at improving digital skills so that people can access digital services and keep in touch during periods of lockdown.

Catherine Lee, Head of Employment and Social Inclusion Services at Imagine Independence, explained: “The BUS project is for basically addressing gaps in support. So, it’s to support people to become digitally included if that is their preference and also to help people build up resilience so if, as it looks like the case, we’re going to keep going in and out of lockdowns, they then have kind of a BUS toolkit, if you like - a resilience tool kit of what things they can access. 10

“The project facilitators will work with people for up to 12 weeks and co create the action plan which can then be used at any time”

The Merseyside Mental Health Week, which will run from November 2-6 is seen as being important now more than ever.

Before the pandemic, more than 66,000 people had a common mental health condition in Liverpool.

It is estimated that an additional 5,000 people in Liverpool will need support for their mental health before the end of the year.

Ms Lee made it clear that their new project is open to anyone whose suffered any kind of mental distress as a result of Covid-19.

“You don’t necessarily have to have a diagnosis, because there is nobody who hasn’t been affected by this,” she added.

She said that people need to realise the impact the pandemic will have in the future.

“People need to think into the future more because it’s not just a here and now, it’s the after effects. It’s the post-traumatic stress that’s going to come from people on the frontline as well.”

More information on Merseyside Mental Health Week and the BUS campaign, can be found on the Imagine Independence website - https://www.imagineindependence. org.uk and also on their social media pages.