GUEST COLUMN:
Simon Stephens
Head of Networks (Wales)
Mind Cymru
If you’ve ever had cause to question why engaging in activities that can add social value to the communities around you are important as a business, the time for answers is now.
Alongside our work campaigning for better mental health outcomes for people across Wales, Mind Cymru exists alongside a federation of 16 local Minds that work tirelessly to make our communities healthier, and ultimately more connected, places in which to live.
Alongside the information, services and retail shops operated through Mind nationally, local Minds in Wales have supported around 36,000 people in the last year alone with mental health services tailored to the needs of the communities they serve.
More than 480 volunteers also gave 44,000 hours of their time – worth over £730,000 to the economy – to support their communities through their local Mind within that period, alongside 91 trustees.
For context, this work contributes to an estimated £2.4 billion worth of services the third sector is estimated to be propping up in Wales as a direct result of ongoing challenges faced by the public sector.
And yet, as a federation, Mind’s work in Wales and many other third sector organisations are also having to deal with their own funding pressures, not to mention increased demand for their services, amidst ongoing economic instability too.
This puts all of us – not just in the public and third sectors – in a difficult position. At Mind Cymru, we’re more aware than ever of the mental health challenges facing our communities and the pressures on our health system.
Waiting lists remain a real problem, with 6,000 people on average waiting for specialist psychological therapy each month. Meanwhile, more people are struggling with societal pressures brought about by the cost of living, climate change, global unrest, and more.
This means local Minds are not only working to provide the talking therapies and counselling services you might conventionally associate with a mental health charity, but also working hard to support the two-way links between these societal issues alongside mental health.
In today’s climate, some local Minds also offer housing and tenancy support, provide welfare and benefits advice, support with employment and financial issues, and offer information on rural services. They give self-help and bereavement support, mental health first aid and run community groups shaped to the needs of people locally too.
Their offerings range from running creative activity sessions to providing volunteering opportunities, to operating specialist centres supporting mainstream A&E departments struggling to deal with mental health emergencies at peak crisis times.
They bring young people and their families still struggling to adjust to life after the pandemic together with their peers at local community hubs, and on a national level Mind Cymru works with sporting organisations to promote the benefits of physical activity and with stroke survivors to support their recovery too.
The offer is broad and responsive.
So, what does this have to do with the business community, and how can supporting community initiatives delivered by the third sector benefit private sector organisations?
Mind Cymru wants everyone in Wales to have better mental health, it’s why we exist, but the benefits in supporting communities to become healthier places in which to live and work are there for the taking sector wide.
With more people in Wales working from home on a hybrid or full-time basis, there is a real opportunity for employers looking to attract and retain skills to reach out and embed themselves into the communities many of their staff now operate from in return.
It’s just one of many ways we have moved on from the days when a business would see selecting a chosen charity to support for the year, for example, as a mere ‘tick box exercise’.
This is because, due to modern day economic and societal pressures, achieving better mental health and happier, productive communities isn’t something any of us, in any sector, are capable of achieving alone. And the challenge feels far greater than ever.
In today’s climate, it’s about taking collective responsibility in creating thriving communities around us that are going to be capable and well-placed in helping us all to achieve our goals for the future.
More information on the work Mind does in Wales can also be found in its latest annual impact report ‘No Mind Left Behind’ .
