Derby College students take action to support mental health

Students at the Derby College Group have been busy raising awareness of mental health issues - while at the same time raising money to support a number of mental health charities.

Over the past few months students across the College sites including in Ilkeston and Morley, have been involved in a number of social action projects that have raised over £800 for charities such as Mind and Man-Up.

Students took overall responsibility for the projects; they were assigned specific roles such as team leader or finance officer, researched the charities they wished to support and organised fundraising events, such as cake sales, card readings, sponge throwing at teachers, leg waxing, singing competitions, sports activities and many more!

With one in four people experiencing a mental health problem, this was a fantastic opportunity for the College’s student community to broaden their understanding around mental health, while taking positive action to support charities that assist people with mental health needs. It also enabled the students to develop and enhance their own skills, such as teamwork, time and project management, and problem solving.

Speaking about the project and the fundraising carried out by students, Owain Richards said: “The social action project is a fantastic way to raise money and awareness for charities that help people greatly. The feeling of helping charities reach as many people as they can whilst having fun raising the money is brilliant.”

Seraya Cliff, Character Education, Employability and Tutorial Manager at the College, commented: “It was a joy to see so many of our students participating in the mental health charity social action project this year. At the Joseph Wright Centre you couldn’t move without seeing an event or poster advertising how students raised money for their chosen charity. The project also raised awareness of mental health and generated discussions with students on how they can look after their own mental health as well as supporting each other.”

Matthew Treliving, A-Level Personal Tutor, said “This has been such a great experience for many of our students and it's been fantastic to see their creativity and freedom come to the forefront of innovative fundraising activities. Seeing the students develop tools to overcome the various hurdles that they faced in the planning and execution of a fundraising event has been a deeply enriching experience for me and I think a very enlightening experience for them!”