A new mental health and wellbeing hub has launched in Wrexham offering free support and activities for local residents aged 11 and over.
Partners and local residents joined together to celebrate the launch. Paul Ford, local resident and member of the Local Conversation in Caia Park's Steering Group, cut the ribbon, together with Mayor of Wrexham, Cllr Ronnie Prince and Sarah Atherton MP.
Food was provided by community caterers, the Happy Hedgehog, live music by Andie Hickie and wellbeing taster sessions included mindful eating, colour therapy, sewing and Indian block printing.
The Hub, based in at the Caia Park Partnership, is run by North East Wales Mind and offers a drop-in service with free tea and coffee for anyone to call in for a chat. There’s also a wellbeing coaching service, Active Monitoring, offering expert 1-2-1 support to help people discover ways to improve their mental health and develop their own wellbeing recovery toolkit.
There are wellbeing walks every Tuesday between 1.30pm and 2.30pm which alternate between Wrexham and Flintshire, with more activities to be announced soon.
Jenny Murphy, Chief Executive of North East Wales Mind, said: “We’re delighted to launch the Caia Park Mental Health and Wellbeing Hub, which will provide a valuable resource for the local community with access to a wide range of free support, from the opportunity to have an informal chat, to more in-depth help. Importantly, no one needs a referral from a GP to access the Hub, so local people can drop in whenever they feel they’d like to.
“The launch of the Hub has been achieved through real partnership working and collaboration, and we’re grateful to our funders for enabling us to bring it to fruition. Early intervention is so important to helping people improve their mental health and wellbeing, which is why making support as accessible and friendly as possible is crucial. I hope as many local people as possible will come along and find out more about the services and activities they can access through the Hub.”
An early intervention service for people with common mental health problems, the Wellbeing Hub is part of the ICAN community hub network, a Betsi Cadwaladr Health Board initiative to offer a chance for people to talk through their problems over a brew, be listened to without judgement and access the services and support they need.
The Hub has been launched in response to the needs of local people and developed into a partnership from the People’s Health Trust funded Local Conversation in Caia Park, supported by Caia Park Partnership. It’s been brought together by Caia Park Partnership, Caia Park Community Council and North East Wales Mind, with funding from Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. People’s Health Trust is committed to being a local people-led funder. The Trust wishes to engage with local communities over the longer term so they can determine how and when the money is spent within their local area, to make it an even better place to grow, live, work and age.
Local Conversations is a flexible funding model which is led by what the local people want, as they know their local communities best. They are aware of what the community does well, what is needed to make things even better, where and when it is needed and how to make changes happen within their communities.
To find out more email: cphub@newmind.org.uk.
