Vital mental health service in Staffordshire receives financial support

A £2m fund was set aside by NFU Mutual in light of the national emergency to support local frontline charities who have been affected by the impact of Covid19.

The Recovery Hub is a community-based service that supports people in their journey towards mental health recovery. The services believes that everyone has a right to tailored, personalised support and that care and support should fit them, rather than the other way around.

Joseph Birks, Team Leader, was delighted with the news, he said: “Our team are now planning on organising picnic days for people experiencing mental health problems as the restrictions on outdoor mixing begin to loosen and the weather is improving.

“This will be the first time that many people will have been out of the house due to shielding, isolating or anxiety about the pandemic. These activities will run alongside our regular walking groups and will have a big impact on the mental well-being of the people we support at the service.

“We are also looking at hire of rooms for baking and cooking group and will buy what is needed for people to come along to meet others and to learn new skills.”

The team is also exploring hiring a minibus for days out, as they have their sights on a trip to The Roaches. They organised a similar trip two years ago which many of the people taking part believed was a real achievement. The prospect of accomplishing something they haven’t before, helping others to get to somewhere, sharing a laugh and just going outside of the norm is very beneficial.

Fundraising Manager, Bob Towers added: “We were also fortunate enough to secure a grant from the Staffordshire Community Foundation to buy and distribute tablet computers to some of the people we are supporting during the pandemic so they could keep in touch and access online support.

“So this is a major addition to our support provision. I would like to pass on our sincere thanks to Peter Gilbert, the Group Secretary at Lichfield and everyone at NFU Mutual for their generous support.”