MENTAL HEALTH & WELLBEING WEEK 2018 HANDBOOK
EUSA.ED.AC.UK/LETSTALKÂ
ABOUT US MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING WEEK IS... A focus for on-campus discussions around mental health. An opportunity to highlight existing initiatives and best-practice. A space for staff and students to further expand the conversation around mental health and wellbeing through creative and innovative projects. Now in its third year, Mental Health and Wellbeing Week 2018 will run from November 12th to 16th, with a week-long programme of events and activities which aim to support, inspire and challenge the University community.
CONTENTS: 01 About us 02 How to use this handbook 02 Meet the team 04 Our aims
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06 How does it work? 07 Our keynote speakers 08 Get involved 09 Event submission guidelines
11 Event organising 12 Support 13 Impact
HOW TO USE THIS HANDBOOK This is your go-to guide to getting involved in Mental Health and Wellbeing Week 2018. Whether you’re looking to promote the Week in your community, share your experiences of mental health, or organise your own event, this handbook contains all the information you’ll need, from key dates and deadlines to advice on maximising engagement.
MEET THE TEAM Mental Health and Wellbeing Week is a collaborative project between the University, the Students’ Association, and the Sports Union. “Mental Health and Wellbeing Week has grown and grown over the past few years, and it has been amazing to see staff and students across campuses organise engaging initiatives for their communities. All of your support - during this week and beyond - will help destigmatise mental health and encourage people to seek the help they need.” Kai O'Doherty, Vice President Welfare, Edinburgh University Students' Association
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“The mental health of students and staff continues to be a top priority for us. Mental Health and Wellbeing Week provides a fantastic opportunity to showcase all of the amazing initiatives we have here, and gives a platform to focus on key issues for the wellbeing of our community.” Andy Shanks, Director of Student Wellbeing, University of Edinburgh
“As the evenings begin to get darker and deadlines loom, this week emphasises to people that they are not alone, and need to prioritise their own health and wellbeing. The more initiatives we run and the more opportunities we offer, the more the students and staff across the university will benefit.” Paul Duffy, President, Edinburgh University Sports Union
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OUR AIMS Mental Health and Wellbeing Week has three core aims: 1. Starting a conversation on campus about mental health: Being a supportive community means creating space where we’re all encouraged to speak openly about our mental health, and where our experiences are listened to and respected. 2. Upskilling students and staff to build a supportive community: Through educational talks and workshops, we aim to help give students and staff the skills and confidence to effectively support each other. 3. Signposting students and staff on to further support where appropriate: We know it can be difficult to navigate all the information out there, so we want to highlight the key services and resources available, on and off campus.Â
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Alongside our core aims, each year we choose three areas to focus on. This year those areas are: 1. Expanding Mental Health and Wellbeing Week beyond Central Campus: Distance from Central Campus should never be a barrier to engaging in the conversation around mental health and wellbeing, so this year we’ll be focusing on supporting activities and events on other campuses, from King’s Buildings to Little France, ECA to Easter Bush, and beyond. 2. Engaging with communities who have been traditionally underrepresented in conversations around mental health: We know there are some groups who feel excluded from conversations around mental health. That’s why this year we’ll be focusing on engaging men, Postgraduate students, and students from marginalised groups in the conversation through outreach, activities and events. 3. Achieving change beyond the Week: Mental health is an issue which goes beyond a single week. This year we’ll be focusing on expanding the impact of Mental Health and Wellbeing Week, whether that’s encouraging students and staff to embed self-care into their daily routines, or lobbying for political change on a national level.
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HOW DOES IT WORK? Mental Health and Wellbeing Week is coordinated by a central team - based within the Students’ Association. Our role is to provide holistic support which enhances the wider impact of the week but we depend on a network of supportive students and staff to help make it a success. Members of the University community can apply to be part of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Week programme in November. We offer a package of support to event organisers including one-to-one advice, promotional resources, and small grants. These locally organised events make up the majority of our programme, but sit alongside a small number of centrally organised initiatives.
KEY DATES: Deadline for event submission: October 15th, 5pm. Form available at https://edin.ac/2whLI3Z. Mental Health and Wellbeing Week programme launched: October 22nd Mental Health and Wellbeing Week: November 12th to 16th
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OUR KEYNOTE SPEAKERS Hope Virgo is a mental health campaigner and author, who struggled with anorexia for over 4 years, before being admitted to a Mental Health Hospital in 2007. She lived in the hospital for a year, fighting one of the hardest battles of her life. Since being discharged, she has fought to stay well and wants to use her experiences of mental illness to champion the rights of others, inspire them to get well, and help break the stigma of mental health. She'll be joining us on Thursday to speak about recognising eating disorders, supporting others, and mental health recovery.Â
Scott Hastings is a Scottish rugby legend who, for over 25 years, has supported his wife Jenny through her struggles with depression. He'll be speaking on Tuesday evening about supporting someone you love, his work with local charity Support in Mind - including on the 100 Streets campaign, and the value of exercise in managing mental health.
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GET INVOLVED Why get involved? The week provides a fantastic opportunity to explore the themes of mental health and wellbeing, in a supportive environment.
Share a passion Collaborate with others Learn new skills Have new experiences Help shape the University
There are lots of ways to get involved: Apply to run an event in Mental Health and Wellbeing Week! Whether you’re thinking of running a one-off event as part of the week, or have a regular event which would fit well with the programme, find out more on page 9. The deadline is October 15th. Help us get the word out. By chatting to others in your community about the week, and sharing the programme once it launches, you can help ensure no-one misses out on the opportunity to get involved. Share your experiences of mental health. We’re looking for students and staff from across the University to share their mental health journeys. From blog posts to videos, if you would be willing to talk about your experience, please complete the short form at http://edin.ac/2N62Bpk and someone from the Team will be in touch. Attend an event during the Week. With over 50 events last year, there’s guaranteed to be something for everyone, so show your support by attending an event or getting involved in an activity. We can provide promotional materials including posters, signposting resources, and images for use on social media and in digital communications. Contact the team (see page 12) for more information.
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EVENT SUBMISSION GUIDELINES If you are interested in running an event as part of Mental Health and Wellbeing Week, you need to apply by 5pm on October 15th 2018. If you application is successful, your event will feature in the November programme and you’ll have access to a wide range of support and resources. This section provides all the information you need to know about the application process.
Top tip: small, intimate venues can be more conducive to open and honest conversations.
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What kind of events are we looking to include in the programme? Events and activities which align with the core aims of Mental Health and Wellbeing Week (see page 4). Events with strong outcomes and objectives for the organising team and prospective audience. Events which are open to staff and/or students, and have a collaborative organising team, with representation from across the University. Events with feature collaboration with the wider Edinburgh community.
If you need help making contact with colleagues in other Schools, relevant services, or external organisations, drop the central organising team an email. For more information and to submit your event, visit https://edin.ac/2whLI3Z. Top tip: a diverse range of speakers can make it easier for your audience to see themselves in the conversation.
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EVENT ORGANISING While the Mental Health and Wellbeing Week central team provide a great deal of support to curate the programme, there are expectations of event organisers to manage their event. Your commitments as a Mental Health and Wellbeing Week event organiser are: Event management: It is up to you to organise the venue, dates, times, catering and set up the event booking system for your event. The central team can offer advice and support, but we are unable to act as event organisers. Accessibility: Your event planning should take into account the diverse needs of students and staff at the University. You should consider how those with disabilities, as well as how audience members with various experiences of mental health, will access and engage with your event. Promotion: The Mental Health and Wellbeing Week central team will be promoting the November programme itself, including highlighting some events. However, with over 50 events and activities taking place it is vital you take responsibility for promoting your event to your target audience. We can provide resources (logos, poster templates etc.) as well as guidance on how best to promote your event.
Top tip: events with a broad appeal can have a bigger audience, but a more focused event may be easier to promote .
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Top tip: people can quickly become overwhelmed by too much information; focus in on one or two key messages and clearly signpost relevant support services.
Reporting: Each successful event organiser will be required to report back to the central team on their event, including attendee numbers and audience feedback. This reporting is key to ensuring Mental Health and Wellbeing Week continues to be a success. Engagement with the central team: As an event organiser it is your responsibility to ensure you stay up-to-date with the information provided by the central team and are responsive to requests.Â
SUPPORT The central team are here to help you engage with mental Health and Wellbeing Week in whatever way works for you. We can help with: Writing your event application Booking rooms and catering Marketing your event Recommending collaborators Supplying marketing materials and other resources
If you have any questions, would like more information, or just need a hand, get in touch with the central team by emailing Sarah Moffat at sarah.moffat@eusa.ed.ac.uk.
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IMPACT Last year, we supported over 50 events run by staff and students from across the University, from high-profile panels to smaller, community-building events. Events were attended by over 1000 students and staff, and many more engaged with online content around the Week.
“We actually realised we’d never been talked to about mental health in that way before. I think it helps to know that other people - no matter their status or stage in life - go through a lot of similar issues, it’s just not discussed enough.”
“...it made me feel proud to say that I studied here as it’s an example of how the [School] is beginning to change perceptions and actually listen to student needs.”
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