NPTC Group of Colleges comes together for World Mental Health Day

NPTC Group of Colleges’ Powys campuses marked World Mental Health Day earlier this month, by helping to spread awareness of issues surrounding mental health.

Driven by the World Federation for Mental Health, this year’s theme was based around ‘young people and mental health in a changing world’, with colleagues from Newtown and Brecon Beacons Colleges running information events at its respective sites.

Several organisations were present on the day, with PAVO, Children & Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), The Powys Teaching Health Board, Small Steps Project, Rekindle and Mid Powys Mind some of those helping to provide information and support relating to mental health.

During the day, Newtown Colleges’ Health & Social Care students gave an on-the-spot donation to Ponthafren with money that had been raised from the lovely cakes which they had provided themselves.

Elsewhere,  Enterprise Officer Newton Brown is running a project with students to help raise funds for a mental health charity.

The information day also allowed college subject tutors the opportunity to network with professionals working in the mental health field, and arrangements have been made for talks to be given by the organisations to specific student groups in the coming weeks.

College counsellors were also able to discuss their work and referral pathways to outside agencies.

Hazel Osborne, part of the College Counselling Service at Newtown College, said: “It was great to see a presence of many local mental health services at this event.

“Our students very much enjoyed the cake and engaged with the mood board. It felt an important chance to continue developing a normalisation of accessing these sorts of services and an opportunity for us to further deepen the students’ awareness of the counselling and support services available on site.”

Rosemary Denham, Student Services Manager at NPTC Group of Colleges, added: “The day was really positive for our students. PAVO had invited the professional organisations, and our own Health and Social Care students decided to be involved as well. Having these young people taking part meant that it was easier for other students to engage in the event and speak with the outside organisations without feeling embarrassed. It was a very good mix.”