- Area:
- North East England
- Programme:
- Awards for All England
- Release date:
- 21 8 2012
A music festival in Middlesbrough that aims to raise awareness of mental health issues among young people has received more than £4,000 from the Big Lottery Fund (BIG)
The free Rock Your Mind festival aims to challenge the stigma and dispel myths surrounding mental illness which can prevent young people from seeking help.
The £4,021 grant for the festival, organised by Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust, Teesside University and Nouvelle Musique, is just one of 44 awards across the North East today from BIG’s most popular grants scheme - Awards For All. Awards For All gives small grants of up to £10,000 to projects that can make a big difference to people’s lives including disability groups, training for young people, school wildlife projects, keep fit activities for older people and community hall renovations.
The Rock Your Mind festival on 7th October already has four confirmed acts - Chris Helme of the Seahorses, Mark Morriss of the Bluetones, Redwire and The British IBM.
Suzanne Jenkins, Operational manager of the Early Intervention Psychosis Service at the Trust, said: “This will be the third Rock Your Mind festival, showcasing the best local bands and more well-known acts. We already have 1,500 friends on Facebook so and this year it will be bigger than ever.
“Young people are less likely to seek help for mental health problems and music is a brilliant way to engage, educate and inform this hard-to-reach group by raising awareness and addressing issues around stigma and discrimination. We are trying to encourage people to seek help sooner as we know that earlier treatment improves outcomes, recovery and life chances.
“It’s great news that we have this grant from The Big Lottery Fund. The Awards For All application process was easy and we urge other local good causes in our area to apply for funding.”
A project in Durham has received £9,980 to set up a support group for isolated men to reduce the number of suicides in the city. RT Community Projects will offer practical activities and skills to increase their sense of purpose and improve their mental health.
The Newcastle East End Junior Football Club receives £6,950 to deliver a programme of training to local young people focusing on leadership, IT skills, events planning, coaching, first aid, health and other skills enabling them to organise a community Olympics event.
In Sunderland the A690 Youth Initiative receives £8,382 for its Buzz Box project, converting a trailer into a mobile unit with music production equipment that will visit areas of deprivation to engage with young people, encourage them off the streets and to take part in creative activities.
Allendale Creative Artists Community Interest Company, in Northumberland, receives £8,900 to deliver workshops around multimedia, sound, film, design and setting up and running a business for young people. This will provide young people with the skills and experience to set up their own company or gain employment in a number of fields.
James Turner, Big Lottery Fund head of the North East Region, said: “It’s great to make so many awards to such varied projects and activities. We want to hear fro more community groups in the North East who might have an idea of how they could make a big difference to their community with an Awards For All grant.”
See a full list of today’s grants
- 409KB
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