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East Sussex: Energising local groups and people to address mental health
A community development fund was set up to develop new schemes and strengthening existing ones. It was a three-year project which then launched to create a movement among local men and empower them to engage others in their health and wellbeing. Public-facing staff in places such as barbers, cafes and tattoo shops have been given mental first aid training.
East Sussex County Council has made men’s mental health a priority in response to high suicide rates in the county and the national focus on men as a high risk group. The rate of male suicide while on a downward trend is still higher than the national average with middle-aged males particularly at risk.
In 2021 the public health team set up a community development fund and in partnership with Mind in Brighton and Hove, worked to support groups in Hastings, one of the most deprived parts of the county, with grants of up to £1,500.
The aim was to develop new projects or strengthen existing ones that were supporting men’s mental health. A total of 20 separate local groups received funding over the two years of the project which they have used to engage with over 250 men.
The activities funded ranged from arts and nature-based to physical activities. But one thing they all had in common is that they were designed to promote the five ways to wellbeing – to connect, be active, learn, give and take notice as well as to build and strengthen men’s confidences and self-efficacy.
‘We follow the energy’
One of the groups that benefited was the Men’s Network, which received two grants and ran 41 different events from photography classes and community gardening to sea swimming. The network worked with men who had been diagnosed with mental health problems as well as those with alcohol problems and others who were unemployed. Some of the participants even went on to actively lead some of the groups themselves.
East Sussex Head of Public Mental Health Jenni Thomas said: “Research shows that men are less likely to engage with traditional mental health services. What’s important is to create opportunities for men to come together, a safe space that is welcoming and to have a shared activity or purpose, which then creates the right environment for men to relax and open up. That’s what we have tried to do with the community development fund.
“We let the groups decide how they were going to run – providing the funding to support them to get going or expand. We’re really pleased with the impact it has had and how local men came up with so many different ideas of activities and groups they wanted to set up. Knowing that the funding was time-limited we wanted to create a sustainable legacy and network of support to the various projects.”
This has been achieved with the support of the Mr Hastings and St Leonards project, a three-year wellbeing project hosted by Hastings Voluntary Action and led by local men which was launched in 2022. A project team has been appointed with the aim of encouraging collaboration and making connections.
Project Manager Teresa Flower said: “Our approach has been to follow the energy. You have to be prepared to be brave listen to what people are saying and suggesting - that way wonderful things can happen. Our role has been to facilitate this. Our project tagline is ‘Join the Conversation’ and we spend a lot of time reaching out into the community, listening and learning.
“Mr Hastings and St Leonards helps bring people together. We have seen taxi drivers, local artists and barbers all get involved in designing the projects branding and developing their ideas to engage men.”
The project now has a core group of around 15 men, but with several hundred others involved in one way or another. “You naturally get some ebb and flow. We see some men engage, take time out and then come back. Engaging with this emerging movement is beneficial to all, the men themselves, their friends, families and communities.”
A host of different projects have now started getting off the ground. A film has been made called ‘Men Don’t Talk?’ and podcasts have been produced. The movement also has a growing social media presence and is just about to launch a mobile men’s room tour, which is a branded sofa on wheels and backdrops designed by a local street artist. Men from Mr Hastings and St Leonards will visit community locations with the aim of engaging men in conversation about their health and wellbeing.
Skilling-up public-facing staff
Separate to this, other projects have also been set up. Mind in Brighton and Hove, in partnership with Grassroots, are running a training programme to equip public facing staff in settings men frequent, such as barbers, tattoo shops, cafes and sports clubs with the skills and knowledge to have supportive conversations with their clients and customers.
The Men in Mind project started in January 2023 and is currently funded until March 2025. So far more than 70 businesses have signed up and almost 300 local workers have engaged with the training offer.
The training is predominantly focussed on increasing participants knowledge and confidence to discuss matters around mental health and suicide prevention, but each is adapted and specifically tailored to meet the needs of the participants and what they consider will be most useful and applicable in their settings.
Ms Thomas said the project has been inspired by existing schemes such as the Lions Barber Collective. She said: “The aim is to create a network of people with skills and knowledge around mental health so they know how to support their customers and clients. At the start of the project a barber shared a story about how one of his customers had expressed how he was having suicidal thoughts. The barber did not know what to do - and said that it has played on his mind ever since. It really illustrated the need for the project.”
The public health team has also recently set up a men’s mental health community of interest group open to voluntary sector groups and organisations across Sussex. “We had a workshop in February with voluntary sector groups and one of the key messages was that they did not know who else was out there. The aim is to create a forum to allow them to meet regularly, to share information, be aware of what is happening elsewhere in the county and potentially to undertake joint bids for funding opportunities,” said Ms Thomas.
“Some of it is also just about collaboration. For example, one group said it was having to close because it was losing its venue and another group said they could help with that.”