MentalHealthNews

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October 2013

Welcome to our Annual World Mental Health week newsletter. We hope that you are enjoying what tends to be the busiest week of the year for mental health services throughout RCT and Merthyr. It is with great honour that New Horizons host and take part in events that aims to educate people on mental health and wellbeing, reduce stigma and focus on recovery. Through this newsletter we intend to highlight these themes by advertising the week’s events, illustrate the ongoing support available from New Horizons, myth busting and hearing members and volunteers’ individual journeys on their pathway to acceptance and recovery.

RCT World Mental Health Week World Mental Health Day falls on the 10th of October 2013 and this year focuses on “Mental health and older adults”. Initiated by the World Health Organisation, but very much reliant upon grass route initiatives to take forward and raise the profile of Mental Health.This year RCT will be holding a number of events in the area from 4th to 11th October 2013.

‘THE MAIN EVENT RCT’A range of information and

attractionsComplementary therapies

Refreshments ~ Food tastersInformation stands

Venue: RHONDDA SPORTS CENTRE, YSTRAD.

Date: 4th October 2013Time:10.30am - 3.00pm

New Horizons Celebration of World Mental Health Day Open Day

Find out about our work in promoting good mental health.Venue: New Horizons, Aberdare.

Date: 8th OctoberTime: 1pm until 4pm

‘THE MAIN EVENT Merthyr Tydfil’A range of information and

attractionsComplementary therapies

Refreshments ~ EntertainmentInformation stands

Venue: Merthyr Tydfil Leisure Centre, Rhydycar

Date: 9th October 2013Time:10.30am - 3.00pm

Quiz NightNew Horizons are hosting a quiz

night.Venue: Ton Pentre football club

Date: 9th OctoberTime: from 7.30pm

Art & Music Exhibition enjoy music, arts and interactive fun. Venue: Atrium/reception at Ysbyty Cwm Cynon, Mountain Ash

Date: 10th OctoberTime: 10am until 3pm

New Horizons Celebration of World Mental Health Day Open Day

Find out about our work in promoting good mental health.

Venue: New Horizons, Apple Tree Stores, Dinas, Porth CF40 1JH

Date: 10th OctoberTime: 1pm until 4pm

A WALK FOR HEALTH & WELL-BEING“A Walk for Health & Well-being”.

refreshments availableVenue: Meet at Pontypridd Park

main entrance - at the day centreDate: Friday 11th OctoberTime: 10.30am - 12.30pm

WelcomeNew Horizons - Mental Health

Courses @ New HorizonsArts WorkshopNew Horizons has teamed up with artiscommunity to deliver an 8 month free art workshop in both the Rhondda and Aberdare resource Centres. The course runs every Thursday 10am to 12pm at Aberdare and 1.00pm and 3.00pm at Apple Tree Stores Dinas.

Participants in the workshop will also have the opportunity to gain OCN qualifications and will learn from a variety of art and craft activities including pottery, print making, mosaics and jewellery. Also within this project people will learn how to sell online and as part of a group. To attend the group you must be 18+ and unemployed but NOT on a work programme or be receiving JSA.

If you wish to participate please come along to the session in your area. For more information please contact Louise Shenstone on (01443) 490395 or email: louises@artiscommunity.org.uk or contact Kristy at New Horizons on (01685) 881113.

RCT MENTAL HEALTH PARTNER

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RCT MENTAL HEALTH PARTNER

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BIG THANK YOUThanks to Pamela Connelly of the Bonclyff Pub in Cwmaman for organising a fundraising walk and social event in honour of Leah Evans and Rhys Ellis on May 25th 2013.New Horizons is pleased to confirm that the charity was presented with £539.32 from this fundraising event on 16th August 2013. This money will be used by New Horizons to expand the services on offer to young people in the Cynon Valley who have mental health issues.

Gill Malpas, Chair of New Horizons said “We want to thank everyone involved for taking part in this event- it will help New Horizons to continue to support local young people”.

Young People and Mental HealthABERDARENew Horizons Youth Project Success Following the success of the youth project in the Cynon Valley the youth project now meets every Monday in Aberdare between 4 and 8pm.

Youth Project CoursesMental Health First Aid (Journeys) - Monday 21st/28th October 4pm Venue: Aberdare Confidence Building - Monday 4th November 4pm Venue: AberdareGetting to know yourself - Monday 11th November 4pm Venue: Aberdare.A big thank you to Barclays for facilitating the courses.

RHONDDA - Apple Tree Stores (ATS)New Horizons will also be developing a youth project in the Rhondda. The launch date for the youth project in Apple Tree Store (Dinas) is Thursday 16th January. As part of this service Gofal will be offering a Routes to Recovery course at ATS. If you are 18-25 and suffer from mental health problems or an organisation that wants to work in partnership please contact the centre on 01443 681881.

Youth Depression BustingRecently Journeys offered a Depression Busting course at New Horizons in Aberdare as part of the youth project. “We enjoyed the course, especially using the alphabet to write words associated with depression. We all agrees one improvement for the course is that we would have liked more sessions. Two useful tips we got from this course were the useful coping techniques such as relaxation and meditation and not using self medication. We also watched the “black dog” film even though it was a sad film, it was a good way of portraying what depression is. Overall, the Depression Busting was extremely useful and if anyone was thinking of going on the depression busting course to help themselves or others around them we would highly recommend it. “ GL, RT, JD, TD, LL (Service Users)

Check it out...To view the black dog video on youtube visit the following link www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiCrniLQGYc- a simple explanation to explaining and understanding depression.

APPsolutely Fantastic Following on from the success of Journeys adapting their award winning Depression Course to suit the needs of the young people Gofal is to tailor their Routes to Recovery course and launch it alongside the opening of the New Horizons Rhondda Youth Project in January 2014. If you are 18-25 and suffer with mental health problems and would like input into tailoring of the R2R course for fellow young sufferers please come along to the Aberdare youth project Monday 14th October at 4:30pm. Alongside this both organisations are working in partnership with New Horizons youth project to create apps for both courses.

Combating Mental Health Members of the youth project visited the Dare Valley Park to take part in the Combat Zone Live everyone had a really good time and enjoyed the physical exercise and the benefits to their mental health through physical activity, following on from this the youth project along with other service users are going to up their physical activity by using pedometers given to us by the small health awards and also continue to use the centre wii.

“It was awesome and funny even if I did sting my bum on stingy nettles-Really mood uplifting” JD“I don’t think i’ve ever done so much exercise” RT

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Rhondda Housing AssociationCOMMUNITY EVENTS

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Confidence Building Skills at AberdareStarting Friday 18th October from10-12:30 - this is a 2 week course facilitated by the WEA with OCN accreditation. To book your place please call the centre.

TooGoodTooWasteRecently New Horizons and TooGoodToWaste have come together to run bimonthly wellbeing sessions in their Ynyshir centre for all Team members, enabling Team members to gain an understanding about mental health so that they can be more supportive and empathetic, also awareness raising of the many mental health organisations within the Rhondda community and RCT as a whole.

Youth ProjectFollowing the success of the youth project in Cynon that meet every Monday night between 4pm and 8pm New Horizons will be developing a youth project at the Rhondda.

Confidence BuildingMonday 4th November 4pm -8pm, Aberdare.

Getting to know yourselfMonday 11th November 4pm - 8pm, Aberdare.

Mental Health First Aid Monday 21st and 28th October 4pm Youth Mental Health First Aid for 18-25 year olds suffering from mental health problems

Rhondda Housing Association Tenants Fayre at Ystrad Sports Centre was held on 25th July . The AGM was held during the fayre and the guest speaker was Boyd Clack (Patron of New Horizons). At the event New Horizons and other organisations held information stalls. Many tenants came to ask New Horizons for information and advice on mental health issues. The Fayre is co-organised by staff and tenants each year, with the tenants deciding what activities will be on offer for everyone. Their involvement and dedication to this is fantastic and inspirational. There were plenty of activities taking place for young and old to be involved in and a busy and enjoyable day was had by all.

RCT Homes Fun DayRCT Homes Fun Day at Michael Sobell Sports CentreFriday 26th July saw a busy day for staff and stall holders at the annual fun day for tenants. RCT Homes held their AGM and launched their ‘Together with RCT Homes’ membership scheme (in partnership with the Cooperative) where tenants can earn points for keeping appointments with maintenance workers etc. Points are then converted into money and tenants can choose whether to receive all the money themselves or share part of it or all of it with the Cooperative Community Fund which will go back to supporting good causes locally. There was plenty to keep children entertained with bouncy castles, farm animals and much more which made the day fun for all.

Health AwarenessNew Horizons will be attending a Health Awareness Day being run by the Welsh Ambulance Service on Saturday 5th October from 10-4 at the Michael Sobell centre in Aberdare

BeatIs an eating disorder affecting you or someone you care about?During World Mental Health Awareness Week the Rhondda Cynon Taff Eating Disorder Self Help and Support Group will be launching at New Horizons. The group is part of the Beat network of self help groups and will be run by 2 beat registered and trained group facilitators.Whether you are a sufferer of an eating disorder yourself or a concerned family member or friend, we would love to help in a pro-recovery environment where you are free to share experiences and support or simply listen if you prefer.

The group will meet on the 1st Monday of the month for sufferers and the 3rd Monday of the month for carers, family and friends starting from the 7th of October 2013 6.30pm – 8.00pm at New Horizons in Aberdare. Whether this is your first step to talking about your eating disorder or somewhere for you to meet other people and family members in a similar situation, you will be made so welcome. For more information on the group please email aberdarebeatgroup@hotmail.com or South Wales Project Officer Adriana at a.copland@b-eat.co.uk.

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NH2 offers a professional Web Development and Graphic Design service including-

• Logo Design• Stationery Design• Corporate branding• Promotional Flyers• Poster Design• Brochures• Annual Reports• Newsletters• Advertising• Start up packages for business (website and

corporate branding)• Web Design• Web Management• Web Development• Website Rebranding

NH2 Services

NH2 Creative DesignNH2 is an innovative social enterprise established by New Horizons.Building on the success of New Horizons in the local community and wider area, NH2 is here to offer a range of creative design services to other Third Sector organisations as well as small to medium size businesses.

NH2 has a commitment to and experience of service user engagement as an integral part of ensuring that all marketing materials (both web and graphic design) send out the correct message for an organisation. NH2 staff have experience of engaging with service users to create marketing materials and through this help create more involvement and engagement in projects.

NH2 also engages people who have experienced mental health issues as volunteers and through this they gain experience and skills to help increase their confidence and to prepare for a return to the workplace.

BusinessesOur team of experienced designers know how important it is to have a strong brand identity in todays challenging and competitive market.We offer our clients a professional creative design service. We offer cost effective solutions to your business or organisation.

Third Sector OrganisationsExperienced & SupportiveOur presence as a mental health charity enables us to provide expert knowledge and understanding of the Third Sector and partnership working.Engagement & ParticipationThis enables us to support our customers in a very unique way. We are experienced in engaging with Service Users in the design of marketing materials, web design and development.

We offer a range of creative design services and value for money. Call us today for a competitive quote on 01685 881113

If you are interested in volunteering on the project please call Claire on 01685 881113 or email: info@nh2creativedesigns.co.uk

All profits from NH2 go directly to New Horizons, we care about our community

and our customers and want to support our volunteers to have a better future.

“We asked New Horizons to design some marketing material for our project and we were very pleased with the result. Claire was really helpful and was happy to provide various possible examples of designs and modified our chosen one on several occasions following feedback from service users.”

Rachel WyattMental Health Service User Involvement Development OfficerInterlink

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New Horizons are supporting STOPtober and encouraging service users to give up cigarettes for October.

STOPtober

NH2 Services

Case StudySarah Davies - Mental health support Assistant“A few years back my confidence was low from not being able to keep a job because of high stress and anxiety levels.I had a lot help, support and training as a volunteer at New at New Horizons, sharing and learning new skills via the groups I was involved in.When I felt ready for work I applied, successfully for the Project Assistant job on the Mental Health Support Website which is informative and helpful. I have responsibilities as part of a team who are friendly and understanding. This all helps to improve my mental health.”

Research into mental health problemsAre you interested in the research Cardiff University are doing on Mental health disorders and/or possibly interested in taking part?

Come along to an Information session by Leyanne Tiles(assistant psychology) at New Horizons Thursday 31st October at 1pm.

The research investigates and understand why some people experience problems with their mental health, investigate how genes and other factors (such as stressful life events) interact and make some people more likely than others to become ill and facilitates the development of diagnosis, treatments and possible prevention of disorders.

Mental Health Support is a partnership project between New Horizons Mental Health and Emotional Well-being Resource Centre, LHB and Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council. Mental Health Support aims to provide accessible advice and information about mental health issues and services to people with mental health problems, their carers, health professionals and anyone else with an interest in mental illness. We are always looking for Volunteers or even Virtual Volunteers. If you are looking for work experience or training, a boost in confidence and self-esteem, the opportunity to support others or to ‘give something back’, or just have some spare time...then come and help us! If you have time to spare and want to do something useful please get in touch and find out what Volunteering Opportunities are available. Join the websites Focus Group every Tuesday at 3pm in AberdareIf you haven’t already done so check it out at www.mentalhealthsupport.co.uk

Mental Health Support

“I enjoyed going to the MHS Focus Group because it allows me to interact with others in the group. If I did not attend the group I would be working at home feeling isolated”SB - www.rhondda-woodcraft.co.uk

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E-bookAre you interested in contributing to Mental Health Supports E-book? We are putting together an E-book. If you have suffered or are suffering from mental health issues would you like to write about it? The book will be a collection of stories, poems, peoples mental health journeys and letters.

New Horizons Creative Writing Group can help Every Tuesday at 10am you can come and join the group. There is also support for those who need it.For further information contact: Claire/Kristy on 01685 881113

BIG THANK YOUBig thank you to Ryan Trow and Corey Thomas for taking part in the Cardiff Marathon in honour of Rhys Ellis

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CYNON16 Dean Street, AberdareOpen on Monday, Tuesday

Thursday and FridayCheck our website for opening times

RHONDDAApple Tree Stores, Dinas

10am - 4pmEvery Tuesday,

Thursday & Friday Wednesday 10am - 1pm

HIRWAUNVolunteer led

peer support group Fridays 1pm - 4pmSt.Lleurwg’s Church

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NEW HORIZONSMENTAL HEALTHPatron Boyd Clack

New Horizons Mental Health-CIOThe New Horizons Management Committee is pleased to announce that as of October 1st 2013 New Horizons Mental Health and Well Being Resource Centre has become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation known as New Horizons Mental Health.

The status know as CIO was created by the Charity Commission in 2012 in response to requests from charities for a new structure which could provide some of the benefits of being a company, but without some of the burdens. The status is suitable for small to medium charities that employ staff and enter into contracts. The CIO structure has several benefits over unincorporated structures, such as:

• the members and trustees are usually personally safeguarded from the financial liabilities the charity incurs, which is not normally the case for unincorporated charities

• the charity has a legal personality of its own, enabling it to conduct business in its own name, rather than the name of the trustees

A Charitable Incorporated Organisation, or CIO, is a new legal form for a charity. A CIO:

• is an incorporated form of charity which is not a company

• only has to register with the Charity Commission and not Companies House

• is only created once it is registered by the Commission

• can enter into contracts in its own right and its trustees will normally have limited or no liability for the debts of the CIO

Find out more information at www.charitycommission.gov.uk

New Horizons is now a CIO Health at WorkNew Horizons is pleased to announce that they have recently been awarded the bronze level of the Welsh Governments Small Workplace Health Award - a national mark of quality for health and well-being in the work place.

Ebay ProjectVolunteers have re-established the Ebay Social enterprise and are selling the beautiful items made by New Horizons Art & Craft Group and unwanted items that people have donated to the centre.

When asked about the Ebay project volunteers who work on the project said “The benefit we gain are learning new computer skills, we contribute to the centre and help to purchase materials for the art & craft group that we enjoy.”

We are also looking for good quality clothing items to sell. However we have limited storage space so please do not donate bags of items. Should you wish to donate please bring them to the centre on a Tuesday 11am - 1pm.

New Horizons 16A Dean Street, Aberdare CF44 7BNTel: 01685 881113Email: info@newhorizons-mentalhealth.co.ukwww.newhorizons-mentalhealth.co.uk

New Horizons Apple Tree Stores, Apple Tree Avenue, Dinas, Porth, CF40 1JHTel: 01443 681881

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