Since 2004, it’s been known that 10% of children aged 5-15 have a diagnosable mental disorder. That’s about 3 in every class.
During periods of change such as moving from primary to secondary school, children are very vulnerable to mental health problems to a much greater extent than at other times in their lives, and the Mental Health Foundation wants to help make this easier, and target issues before they become real problems that could affect a young person’s life forever.
The Mental Health Foundation is a national charity working to promote good mental health and to improve the lives of everyone, including children and young people, affected by mental health problems.
Global’s Make Some Noise 2016 appeal wants to help raise awareness of the important work of the Mental Health Foundation and raise money to contribute to their ‘Peer Support Project’.
The Peer Support Project works to train students in year 12, to talk to and support year 7 pupils just starting out in secondary school. Young people can engage more easily with each other as they ‘speak the same language’ and the year 12’s can get through to their year-7 counter parts in a way that adults can’t to talk openly and honestly about mental health problems, how to stop them and what to do.
This project will help increase awareness of mental health issues for the young people involved, give them the knowledge to know when to seek help for themselves or on behalf of a friend and reduce the stigma and fear young people have surrounding mental health issues.
The Mental Health Foundation are dedicated to finding new ways to support children and young people living with or at risk of developing mental health problems.
Their aim is to develop new interventions which can offer an alternative to medication, to offer options to people who choose not to visit their GP or don’t have a diagnosis and treatment, and to help people prevent and recover from mental health problems.
They underpin these projects with national work in providing information, raising awareness, investing in practical research and campaigning for improved services, funding, understanding and support.
Find out more about the Mental Health Foundation here.
