10 Mental Health Charities Businesses Can Support
Mental Health Awareness Week, 9th to 15th May 2022.
Mental health is an issue that affects 1 in 4 people in the UK from the very youngest to the oldest. This means most of us will come into contact with someone suffering from mental health issues at some point in their life.
Thanks to the incredible UK charities and campaigners mental health is no longer a taboo subject and is high on businesses and the governments agenda, but there is still much more to be done to ensure all those that need support receive it.
Mental health charities in the UK help to ease the burden that public services often struggle to meet.
Whether it’s through counselling, education or campaigning to change policies, charities are crucial to the mental health of children and adults throughout the UK.
How can businesses help mental health charities?
Businesses can help raise awareness of mental health issues and make a social impact by fundraising for a mental health charity through their sales. It's a powerful way to connect with a cause that is important.
Here are 10 UK mental health charities any business can raise funds for through sales.
1) Mental Health Foundation's vision is ‘good mental health for all'. Prevention is at the core of what they do and they use informed research and practical study, to inform policy-makers, as well as campaign for change to address the underlying causes of poor mental health and propose solutions.
Public engagement is key to the work they do and Mental Health Foundation is well known for founding #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek, which takes place in May every year. This years theme is 'loneliness' something most people have felt at some point in their life which according to recent research by The Mental Health Foundation’s has been exacerbated by the pandemic, contributing to higher levels of distress, resulting from people’s sense of isolation.
For millions of people, mental health is now something to be honest about – not ashamed of."
- Mind via Work for Good.
2) Mind has been at the heart of changing societies attitude to mental health. The charity provides advice and support to help anyone experiencing a mental health problem. This includes the Infoline, which offers callers confidential help for the price of a local call whilst their Legal Line provides legal information and general advice on mental health related law.
Mind also campaigns to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding.
There is also a network of 125 local Minds across England and Wales offering specialised care based on the communities needs. Local Mind's include West Kent Mind, Devon Mind and Leeds Mind.
3) Samaritans works across the UK and Ireland providing emotional support to anyone who’s struggling to cope. They ensure there is someone available to talk to 24 hours day, for anyone who is going through a difficult time. By phone, text and in person in branches across the UK, the Samaritans are available to help.
Samaritans' goal is to reduce the number of people who take their own lives.
Tragically, suicide remains the biggest killer of men under 50 and young people aged 16 to 2. Research also shows that those living in more deprived areas are at increased risk.
4) Movember is one of the most well known charities addressing some of the biggest health issues faced by men including mental health and suicide prevention.
The rate of male suicide is alarmingly high: 3 out of 4 suicides in the UK are by men. Although suicide is incredibly complex, the charity aims to improve overall mental health and help men establish better social connections as a way to reduce the risk of suicide.
By uniting experts, funding bold new approaches and embracing fresh perspectives the goal of the charity is to reduce the rate of male suicide by 25% by 2030.
5) Place2Be is a charity dedicated to improving children’s mental health by providing counselling and mental health support and training in UK schools.
A pioneer in early intervention, for over 25 years Place2Be has delivered one-on-one and group counselling to help children cope with wide-ranging and often complex social issues.
They also provide training to teachers and staff.
Place2Be founded Children’s Mental Health Week, which takes place in February every year, with the aim of shining a spotlight on the importance of children and young people’s mental health.
6) Alzheimer’s Society is the UK’s leading dementia charity.
Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer. Someone develops it every three minutes and there’s currently no cure. Dementia affects both the physical and mental health of a person and can lead to depression, anxiety and apathy.
Caring for a person with dementia can also have a big impact on a person's mental and physical health and overall wellbeing.
Alzheimer’s Society provides support, information and advice to carers to help them cope with the challenges they face and improve their own health.
They campaign for change, fund research to find a cure and support people living with dementia today.
Whilst 94% of people think that mental health is just as important as physical health, only 9% of young people with mental health problems find it easy to get support"
7) YoungMinds is a national charity committed to supporting children and young people, up to 25 years old, at risk of and experiencing difficulties with mental and emotional health.
The charity offers advice, training, as well as crucial support for parents who may be worried about a child or young person’s behaviour or mental health. They also run a text service (YoungMinds Crisis Messenger) for young people who are experiencing a mental health crisis.
8) The Laura Hyde Foundation's objective is to ensure that all medical and emergency services personnel who are ‘regularly exposed to stress and trauma as part of their everyday role’ have access to the best mental health support network available. This includes NHS nurses, doctors, care workers, firefighters to police officers.
The charity was set up in 2017 in memory of Laura Hyde, a nurse who took her own life.
Spearheaded by her cousin Liam Barnes, the charity's goal is to implement a number of initiatives to bring about a needed improvement to mental health attitudes and support to ensure the UK’s frontline and healthcare workers are properly cared for.
1 in 5 ex-service personnel experience mental health problems
9) Veterans' Growth is a charity dedicated to helping ex-service personnel (men and women 18+) who are suffering from mental health issues. The charity, set up by Jason Stevens a former Army veteran, provides support through horticultural therapy.
(Source: Veterans Growth website)
In 2016 Jason suffered from a bilateral stroke and was discharged from the army. He was also diagnosed with PTSD. When he was in rehabilitation he found that gardening was the only thing that had any impact on his mental wellness.
The physical and mental health benefits of horticulture have been widely reported and participants in the charity's programmes gain confidence, knowledge and experience and some will go on to find work experience and employment within the industry.
10) Grief Encounter is a childhood bereavement charity, supporting children, young people and their families following the death of a parent or sibling.
Over the last 13 years, Grief Encounter, has established a pioneering ‘Family Programme’ which includes one-to-one counselling, workshops, specialist resources, a bespoke ‘Grief Relief Kit’, residential camps and ‘Family Fun’ days. Although they predominantly work in London, Bristol and Essex, they now offer support to some 400 bereaved children and young people monthly. They also provide a national reach through their helpline ‘grieftalk’.
Children’s Grief Awareness Week (CGAW), which runs every November, was founded by Grief Encounter to raise awareness of bereaved children and young people in the UK.
