Thrive awards stars support Children’s Mental Health Week
Published: Monday 04 Feb 2019
Work by Thrive West Midlands Mental Health Award winners highlights the message of Children's Mental Health Week 2019, launched today, said the awards founder.
West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) wellbeing implementation director Sean Russell said the winners were wonderful ambassadors for pioneering work with children - and the awards had been a great platform for their achievements.
Bedazzle won the Black Country Mental Health Star team award for work in schools and community groups across the region.
(Thumbnail l-r) Comic Barbara Nice, Dudley Cllr Gaye Partridge, Ben Cole of Bedazzle and host Adrian Goldberg at the Thrive Mental Health Commission Awards. (Main pic l-r) Thrive Mental Health Star award winners Sarah Ward, Nazneen Bagdadi and Philippa Liversidge of Acocks Green Primary School Wellbeing Hub.
They have been working for three years - without core funding - offering mental health first aid to all organisations who engage with them.
Many of the team are highly skilled professionals but work on a voluntary basis for the charity as they believe so strongly in the need.
Their ethos is to be never judgmental, always supportive and to go to whatever lengths necessary to support people.
Acocks Green Primary School won the Mental Health Star award in the Non-Mental Health Organisation, region-wide category, in recognition of the Wellbeing Hub it has developed for children, staff and the community.
They have dedicated staff members that can identify if a child is anxious and also a mental health change team.
Their ambassadors are children who are encouraged to say: It's ok to talk
Deputy headteacher Philippa Liversidge said: That is the most important message I would give to any child - just talk to someone, but the important thing we do is create an environment that makes it easier for them to find that person to talk to
The second annual Thrive Mental Health Commission Awards took place on Thursday 31 January.
This year's focus was to look at how well nominees listened to what is important to people who experience mental illness and involved them in decisions, where they went above and beyond what would usually be expected and how they made a difference to individuals or communities.
Place2Be launched the first ever Children's Mental Health Week in 2015 to shine a spotlight on the importance of children and young people's mental health.
Now in its fifth year, the aim is to encourage more people than ever to get involved and spread the word.