News: Students start a conversation about mental health

As part of Mental Health Awareness Week (14^th – 20^th May), staff and students from Nottingham College are embarking on a 17-mile charity ‘walk and talk’ on Friday 18^th May, to raise awareness and challenge stigma around mental health.

Organised by the College’s Wellbeing team, in collaboration with Nottingham self-harm support charity Harmless and The Tomorrow Project, the fundraising walk will cover all ten of Nottingham College’s campuses, starting at Stapleford at 8.30am and finishing at Basford Hall campus at around 4.30pm. Staff and students will also stop by at Harmless’ Head Quarters in Basford.

Harmless is a user-led organisation that provides a range of services about mental health and suicide prevention including support, information, training and consultancy to people who are struggling with their mental health, those at risk of suicide and supporting the families, friends and professional bereaved through suicide. Harmless has worked with the College for a number of years, providing support to students as well as invaluable training to staff.



Level 3 Health and Social Care student, Leah Wallace, 18, is taking part in the walk. She said: “Alongside my course I work for Acer Court Care Home in Nuthall as the Activities and Wellbeing Assistant, working with people with depression and anxiety disorders, so this is already a subject really close to my heart. I think it is so important to get people talking about mental health issues and I think this walk and talk is a great way to do this. I’m hoping we can raise as much money as possible for this amazing charity.”

Penny Johnson, who lost her son to suicide, says: “The Tomorrow Project is so vital in so many ways. My family have been in turmoil ever since; each of us needing help in our own way, and The Tomorrow Project has been there for us. I don’t know how we would have survived without them.”

Caroline Harroe, Harmless CEO, says: “The Tomorrow Project is a vital service that sees hundreds of requests for support from those who are desperate and cannot access help anywhere else, often getting turned away from NHS services. We have no statutory funding for this work and in order to save lives we need this money otherwise the vital life-saving services are under threat and we can’t sit by and watch people die.”

The fundraiser has already raised more than £1000, but there’s still time to make a donation, no matter how small. Email the team at wellbeing@nottinghamcollege.ac.uk to find out how.