 |
| Artwork by Debbie Roberts engagevisually.co.uk |
In March 2019 we lived in a very different world and I attended, in person, the launch of Mid & North Powys Mind’s latest project – Side by Side Cymru. MNPM was one of four local Mind groups in Wales, led by Mind Cymru, to provide this peer support project funded by the Welsh Government.
Here at PAVO we have followed the local project closely and with much interest, as we truly believe peer support to be crucial in the promotion of improved emotional wellbeing for people in Powys. I was, therefore, delighted to be able to attend the virtual celebration of the Mind Cymru project recently to find out more about how this approach had been received across Wales.
What is peer support?
“Peer support is about people using their own experiences to help others. It can happen in a group, on a 1:1 basis and also online as well but for this project we will focus on peer support that takes place face to face in a group situation. It’s about people taking a lead and taking control very much on an equal basis. So it’s a different model from more traditional health and wellbeing models. Through peer support we can feel valued, more connected to others, and more able to take control of our lives.” Mind Cymru, March 2019
“The connection to someone who is interested in similar things to you, or someone who has been through similar experiences, is a connection of equals and really invaluable. It is insightful and totally authentic.” Mid & North Powys Mind, March 2019
Sara Moseley – Chief Executive Officer, Mind Cymru
Peer support is needed more than ever because of what has been happening to us during this pandemic. There’s a huge amount of evidence now about the mental health impact of Covid. Many, many people have been behind closed doors, really feeling low, anxious and lonely. Peer support is about the power of unlocking that through the power of our own experience, kindness and compassion. In its simplest form it’s about using our own expertise and knowledge to support each other emotionally, practically and realise that there are positive, hopeful ways through mental health difficulties.
Covid has also put some of our networks and communities under considerable strain. Younger people in particular are feeling very isolated – being cut off from usual networks has a real detrimental effect on your mental health. As well as the human stories from over the past 3 years of the project we are now in a place to come out of the pandemic stronger than we were before. We have some very practical things that we have to say to decision makers about how we build back stronger and in a way very rooted in communities, and empowering to us as individuals.
Liam Pywell – Senior Peer Support Officer, Mind
Peer support based in the community and led by people with lived experience of mental health issues can be life-changing, and that’s why we believe it should be available to people across Wales.
The project worked with 318 peer support leaders across Wales who in turn supported 3800 people in their communities. We provided over £50,000 in grants to over 221 organisations and groups. We delivered over 100 activities, including training, networking and shared learning.
The hubs facilitated physical and virtual spaces to bring people together to connect, share learning and access some much-needed resources. We wanted the peer leaders to feel more confident, knowledgeable and able to provide peer support to their community and to build on the resources such as our peer support toolkit.
Mind Cymru’s independent evaluator – MEL Research - concluded in their final report that the Side by Side Cymru hub model is an effective way to supportive community based organisations and peer leaders, and that there is a real need for these types of programmes.
The local hub offer centred around three things:
- Training & shared learning.
- Funding.
- Networking opportunities.
We also found that peer support can reduce health care costs as people who use less mental health services are often involved in peer support. But peer support is not free – we do need financial resource to support those community groups. Finally, a range of peer support options should be available to support people from all different backgrounds and makes peer support available to all.
Lorna Jones – Peer Support Hub Worker, Mid & North Powys Mind
In a short video Lorna (bottom centre) was joined by one of her volunteers – Lynda (top right), and Bethanie (top left) a peer support leader. Bethanie attended a course with Mind after experiencing post-natal depression and went on to lead a peer support group for parents of children with additional needs. The Side by Side training helped her to be professional, and to learn about specific areas such as safeguarding. She found the toolkit really helpful to refer to for guidance at any time.
Bethanie also said that the training was particularly useful as she made connections with people who could also help her. “It was like peer support for a peer support leader.” We were working with young children but others were in peer support groups for older people who were lonely and vulnerable. We could mix together and create further networks too.
It has also been a lifeline for Bethanie’s own mental health. “It’s something to look forward to, even now with Covid we can still communicate online and it helps us feel less isolated.” The funding paid for the cost of venues.
Lynda helped Lorna massively with the training. She recalled how members of her own family had been dealt with on a very clinical basis in the past, so she felt privileged to be involved with the project which supported people at a community level. “It was great to see the range of people that attended the training – from young Mums, through the age ranges, and a lot of men including a male voice choir.” Lynda realised that they took what they had learnt to all spheres of their life, not just the areas they were representing.
Lorna said that when she read the evaluation report the one thing that really hit her was the huge area that the project had covered in Powys – right from Machynlleth in the north west to the Herefordshire border in the south-east of the county. They worked with 75 groups in total.
“People have said they would be lost without these groups to go to. Our inspiring peer support leaders gave up their time to hold these groups for no other reward other than helping others. They are the unsung heroes in our communities across Britain.”
Bethanie: “Side by Side grew me and my group. It was like the seed we needed.”
Panel discussion
Julian John, CEO of Cwm Taf Mind, chaired the panel discussion with Fateha Ahmed of EYST (Ethnic Minorities & Youth Support team Wales), Zoe King of Diverse Cymru and William Evans – the Young People’s Participation Lead at Mind Cymru. There is only space for very brief sound bites here but they give a flavour of the conversation.
Q1: What does an excellent peer support project look like (and how do you know)?
“It would include a diverse group of people with lived experience who are able to support each other and have empathy. You will see the improved progress in young people if the project is successful.” Fateha Ahmed
“Empathy has to be at the heart of a good peer support project, also coproduction. It’s all about lived experience and shared experience. To know how we did we can consider the distance travelled – how people are before joining the group and how they are since. Have they achieved life goals in certain areas?” Zoe King
“It might look different to different people from different communities / ages. The type of resources and training required will be dependent on someone’s age. It needs to be flexible and accessible, safe and rewarding for a younger person.” William Evans
Q2: What can traditional mental health services learn from community led peer support?
“Lived experience needs to be at the heart of the services they deliver.” Zoe King
“Peer support has a strong bond of friendship. A counselling service may last for 6 – 8 weeks only but friendship may last life long.” Fateha Ahmed
“Traditional mental health experiences are often too rigid and don’t treat people as individuals – young people want the emphasis to be on meaningful connections and a lot less on checklists and criteria.” William Evans
Q3: What roles do organisations like ours have in developing peer support services for the future?
“Many children and young people are fairly creative and innovative in their use of social media to create their own peer support networks. Organisations need to allow them support and resources to enable them to do that safely.” William Evans
“Organisations could connect grassroots’ groups to wider networks with similar aims and goals. Larger organisations could communicate opportunities as well and also provide training.” Zoe King
“EYST has been inviting our volunteers to share their lived experience – how they actually dealt with their anxiety and depression. The young people always say they learn better hearing other people’s stories.” Fateha Ahmed
Q4: How do we connect to the networks of community groups across Wales?
“Doing with and not for. Going into those communities and engaging with people in coproduction and finding out what solutions they have.” William Evans
“We have a community infrastructure (with village halls / groups etc) we also have a County Voluntary Council infrastructure that is supporting those groups across Wales. Is there something we need to do with our CVC partners in reaching community groups?” Julian John
“Yes, absolutely. We work with diverse groups to gain those lived experiences that we then feed back into consultations. CVCs are already well placed to do a lot of this networking.” Zoe King
“We need to find key individuals who are trusted in the community and work with them to provide the best possible service for our young people.” Fateha Ahmed
Angie Darlington, West Wales Action for Mental Health, added – “it is broader than CVCs, mental health development agencies are available across Wales to share out our peer support experiences and reach out into the communities.”
Side by Side resources
Side by Side toolkit and further information
For further information about the Side by Side Cymru Peer Support project email peersupport@mind.org.uk
You can also watch a video about the Side by Side Cymru Peer Support project.
No comments:
Post a Comment