Thousands of people across Wales will be able to access extra support for their mental health thanks to new funding from Welsh Government and the Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA) made available in response to the impact of Covid 19, Mind Cymru has announced.

The funding, worth £500,000, will allow Mind Cymru to deliver over-the-phone support across the country, in partnership with 17 local Minds.

The programme, known as Active Monitoring, is a way of getting help to people with mild to moderate mental health problems, including anxiety, depression, low self-esteem and stress. Individuals will be able to refer themselves, rather than via their GP, and will not have to wait more than a week to be assessed. All people have to do to get an appointment is to visit the Mind website: www.mind.org.uk/AMWales

Sara Moseley, Director of Mind Cymru, said:

“We’re absolutely delighted to have been awarded this funding to help people with their mental health in communities across Wales.

“This is such a difficult time for people and we know that lockdown is having a real impact on people’s mental wellbeing. Timely support is vital to make sure moderate mental health problems don’t get worse.

“We have been running Active Monitoring in some places in Wales and we know it works. Hundreds of people have already reported a huge improvement in their mental wellbeing. This new funding will allow us to roll it out across all Health Board areas in Wales.”  

Active Monitoring practitioners will hold initial assessments with people, to ensure the service is appropriate before assigning them to one of seven pathways:
- Anxiety
- Anger Management
- Depression
- Feeling Alone
- Grief and Loss
- Self Esteem
- Stress

They will then receive five telephone sessions with their Active Monitoring practitioner over six weeks, and complete self-directed workbooks.

Zoe, from Brecon, has anxiety and used the Active Monitoring service in 2018. She said:

“Active Monitoring was hugely positive for me. I was given a range of tools to help me manage my anxiety, some of which I still use now.

“I’ve had help through many different services over the years, including counselling, but this has definitely been the most beneficial to me. It taught me not to be too hard on myself, which is something I really struggled with. I’d recommend Active Monitoring to anyone who feels like they need help.”

Ruth Marks, CEO of WCVA, added:

“We know that the Covid-19 crisis has had a huge impact on many people’s mental health but because of the crisis, the delivery of traditional services is not possible. Therefore it is vital that those who need support are able to access help safely from their homes.

“We are delighted that funding from the Voluntary Services Emergency Fund will now help Mind Cymru to deliver the Active Monitoring programme on a larger scale across Wales.”

• Public Mental Health