IF you are struggling with your mental health there are many support services on hand to help.
One of those is local charity Project 14, which was founded by Beth Deakin and Thomas Armitage following the death of their best friend Ashley Salkeld - who took his own life in October 2016 at just 25 years old.
They offer support to residents who are struggling with their mental health in a variety of ways.
A spokesperson for the group said there are three main schemes they host to help local people.
The group told the Chronicle the following schemes are some of they ways they can help.
Project 14 Stories
This is where we use various outlets to help individuals share their own stories of mental ill health and recovery.
We’ve done this through supporting art projects such as the hearing colour seeing sound, through the Lads Not on Tour exhibition and through videos sharing collective experiences.
Project 14 Cares
Under this we refurbish and purchase talking benches across the Dearne and also Darfield area.
We’ve provided donations to support community developments such as a positive affirmation murals for the Dearne IKIC Centre, and donations to help create a memorial for those who have been bereaved through suicide in the Dearne community memorial garden.
Throughout the year we also donate to other amazing support services such as the Salvation Army and we donate to Barnsley SOBs group - which our founder Beth leads.
Another thing we do is random acts of kindness and paying it forward acts especially around Christmas to help boost everyone’s wellbeing.
A final thing under this area is training.
We try to fund and provide opportunities for individuals in the area to increase their understanding of mental health and increase skills of how to support themselves and others around them including suicide intervention training - giving people the confidence to support to connect to safety and ultimately save lives.
Project 14 Active
During the lockdown we funded home workouts for anyone to access and we are currently supporting the development of a new gym in Thurnscoe.
This is also being supported by Grassroots Sports Academy Yorkshire to help increase access to sports, exercise resources and classes to people in the Dearne whilst also providing a space that’s safe and supportive to promote positive mental health.
We also do walk and talks that we run in the summer once a week for six weeks on an evening to promote connection and meaningful activity.
We don’t replace professional support but we hope to help increase knowledge, alertness and skills for people to be able to support each other.
We also try to increase connection as a community, build positive wellbeing and help individuals know where and how they can seek professional or social supports services.
Below is a list of places where you can get mental health support in 2023.
Samaritans: Phone 116 123, 24 hours a day, or email jo@samaritans.org, in confidence
Platform 1 men’s community group: Support for issues including mental health problems and addiction recovery. Visit the website or call 01484 421143.
Andy’s Man Club: info@andysmanclub.co.uk
PAPYRUS: A voluntary organisation supporting suicidal teens and young adults. Phone 0800 068 4141
Mind: A charity offering support and advice for people with mental health problems.
Project 14: A local charity which offers support for people with mental health issues email tom@project-14.co.uk.
Mat’s Charity: A Barnsley charity which offers a listening ear for anyone suffering with their mental health located on 4 Station Road, Wombwell.
Liam Jones Legacy - A mental health support group in Barnsley - email liamslegacy01@gmail.com.
