Put more mentors in schools for £31
It’s World Mental Health Day today, a cause that’s very important to us.
What we’ve heard
During 2020, we’ve all seen headlines like:
“80% of young people say the coronavirus pandemic has made their mental health worse.”
“Coronavirus social-contact curbs ‘put adolescents’ development at risk.”
“Half of under-25s have been affected by ‘lockdown loneliness’, official data suggests.”
“Young people overeating as they battle lockdown anxiety, says UK study.”
What we know
Before the coronavirus pandemic hit, there was already an epidemic of mental health problems among our young people, with 1 in 5 suffering from depression or anxiety.
Then, young people were asked to stay home, isolated, at a time of their lives when contact with their peers is crucial for their development and wellbeing. Online, they faced a barrage of frightening health information every day.
With exams suddenly cancelled, and the results up for grabs, many faced huge uncertainty about their education, their purpose and their future. And as time passed, there was plenty of pressure from friends who wanted to socialise as normal again and others who thought that wasn’t safe.
Now school is back and there is a drive to make up academically for lost time. More pressure.
Fortunately, the schools we work with in Berkshire understand that their young people’s mental health is on a knife edge and it’s crucial to prioritise their wellbeing right now.
What you can do
Soulscape is making space for young people to process all this by putting mentors in schools.
Each young person meets with their mentor for a personal session once a week. It’s an opportunity to prioritise their mental wellbeing and personal development, process their emotions and talk through whatever’s on their mind before it becomes a bigger problem.
We want to bring mentoring to more primary and secondary schools in the area. It costs £31 per week to have our mentors at one school.
You can help bring all the benefits of mentoring to more young people by making a special Mental Health Day donation, or (even better) by signing up to give regularly.
Why give?
Making space for mental health has never been more important, but school budgets are still incredibly tight. At this crucial time, we want to offer mentoring to our local schools at the lowest cost possible so that young people can access it. To do that, we need your generosity to make up the difference.
The £31 you give today really will have lifelong value. Thank you for protecting young people’s mental health in the year of the pandemic.
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