On Friday 19th April, our Young People’s team held the first school and college pop-up village at King Edwards College in Stourbridge. Read our full report...
Thanks to a team of volunteers, members of staff, and enthusiastic pupils, the event was a great success. The village aims to encourage young people to tackle stigmatising attitudes and behaviour by using various creative activities. Each area of the village represents that of any town, but with a twist; all activity is centred on mental health.
The Kind Edwards Village featured a youth club with our new PS3 mental health game, a post office with information about Time to Change, and a cinema playing the Stand up Kid film (and free popcorn, which proved to be a hit with the students!) 205 students attended the cinema.
The local community also showed their support, with services such as Mind holding a stall, local comedian Keano presenting the ‘village green’ performance space, and local community radio station Bridge Radio covering the event live.
Five trained Time to Change volunteers aged 18-25 with personal experience of mental health problems took part in the village to share their story with pupils visiting the space. There were an amazing 304 meaningful conversations between the volunteers and the students on the subject of mental health. Students of King Edwards College also helped with the logistics of the event, helping Time to Change staff manage the stalls and engage people in conversation.
The ‘pledge wall’ attracted a good amount of interest, where students and staff could commit to doing something to end mental health stigma and discrimination. 120 pledges were made. In addition to the individual pledges, King Edwards College showed their commitment to the cause by signing as an organisation that works with young people.
Feedback from the event was overwhelmingly positive, with many pupils commenting on the inclusive atmosphere and the range of activities . The friendliness and knowledge of staff and volunteers was also praised. And perhaps most importantly of all, the event had a real impact on those pupils who had personal experience of mental illness:
“As someone with a mental health problem, it is great to feel so ‘normal’”