Busy Bee

I've a lot on at the moment, which is good in one way as it keeps me healthy and has a positive effect on my well-being. At the moment, I am busy writing a funding application for the support group I help run. Each year, a pot of money is made available for groups that promote mental health and support people who suffer with mental illness. Last year, we were awarded a significant amount of money which paid for arts, crafts and computer based projects. This year, we have decided to focus on outdoor activities and an a new Open Space Garden project at our base in Spalding. The project will provide a working garden and greenhouse enabling our members to grow their own herbs, fruit and vegetables. At the same time, they can learn about raising produce from seed and the the health benefits of eating fruit and vegetables. It is a project likely to go down well with our funders and I'm hoping also that funds will be made available for us to provide a comfortable, welcoming space in which our members can relax and enjoy the garden they have created for themselves. We won't know if we have been successful until September/October, but the application has to be submitted by the end of this month. We have made a start on the project in the hope that we will secure further funding. With the weather so good (at the moment), we're keen to get out there and make a start.
I'm pleased to say that I'm on course for having everything ready for submission on Friday by the 5pm deadline. We (the committee) had a very good meeting yesterday and agreed everything I have done so far. I just need a few lines written about one of the projects we're proposing and for someone to get back to me with one or two prices. Our costs are already over £9,000 and I still need to sort out the insurance for the bus which will cover public liability and when it's on the road and in storage. There's quite a bit yet to do, but I'm quite used to doing these applications now and I have a routine that seems to work for me so that's all good.

Another school half term break is upon us. I really can't remember having this many breaks when I was at school - in fact all I can remember is the long summer holiday. My son will be spending a lot of time with me this coming week and when I'm busy with group, he'll be with his mum at work or with his nanny and granddad.

I normally have to moan about something nowadays. I'm sure it's part of growing older and my wife would happily tell you I've turned it into something of a hobby... At the moment I'm moaning about the lack of service we are receiving from our telephone provider. Since Thursday we have been without a working land line phone. I'm sure it has something to do with the storms we had on Thursday, though although the phone doesn't work, we still have working broadband on the same line. It's all pretty odd. It's now the third day and our service provider has done nothing. It's only when I complain on Facebook or Twitter do I get a response. They don't like it as they don't want the rest of the world to know how bad they are, but should we really have to revert to shaming them? Is that how to get value for money and the service we pay for nowadays? It would seem so. It's certainly the only way to get them to respond and I'm sure they have people whose job it is to monitor social media, for a response can often appear in seconds. If only they could learn to value their customers, now that really would be something... Moan over.

Working Full Time

I've been incredibly busy these three weeks with Blue Skies, the anxiety and depression support group I help run. In fact it's been almost like a full time job, the difference being I don't get paid a penny for my efforts. The role of Secretary has meant that I'm dealing with just about everything including publicity and keeping the website and Facebook page up to date. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind it. I like being busy and having things to keep my mind occupied.

I was in Sleaford on Wednesday this week at an NHS managed Care Network event showcasing groups who have successfully bid for money from the Mental Illness Prevention Fund. The event was very well attended and perhaps a little on the small size for the number of groups present. We didn't have a stand - our opportunity will come at the next event as we are a wave 2 group. I was able to leave some leaflets scattered about the place and some of the new business cards I've had printed. Many of the usual faces were there, such as our friends from SHINE and NHS Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust. There were also representatives of the many groups, similar to ours, dotted around the county, groups such as 'Beyond the Blues' at Sleaford and 'New Life Craft & Social Club' in Spilsby. These fine groups are all doing their bit, helping people with mental illness, providing support and friendship and providing opportunity to acquire new skills and hobbies.
To bring all these groups together and to provide a single voice for mental health in Lincolnshire, we have the SHINE network of which we (Blue Skies) are proud to be ambassadors promoting their good work from our Spalding site. Never before has the focus on and attention given to mental health in Lincolnshire been greater. I get a real sense that people are talking about it more and in so doing, more people are beginning to come forward to seek help and support.

We have already seen an increase in our membership and we are beginning to see more referrals from within our local NHS. This is all great and we are anxious for it to continue.
The money given to Blue Skies and other similar groups is testament to how much the NHS and local authorities value the work we are doing. We are in our small way preventing those in our membership from falling ill and and needing the services of health care professionals.

This last week has been devoted to getting our new website online. We now own the domain blueskieslincs.org.uk - this was the cheapest of the variations on Blue Skies that were on offer. The domain enables us to have a website and to have an unlimited number of mailboxes for our committee and group members. I now have the bare bones published and I am hoping to add more content in the coming weeks. As a group, we are planning to make our own cards and other craft items to sell through our eBay shop and via our website. Much of it will be made to order and I will be developing the means for people to buy online.

We've been told that we need to spend all of the money we receive and I'm pleased to say that as far as the first payment is concerned, we have done just that. £2,500 sounds like a lot of money, but in less than two months, we have managed to spend the lot.  We do have a lot to show for it - a huge amount of arts and crafts material and a projector, screen and sound system enabling us to run our own training sessions, watch films or play Wii games. This installation wopuld alone have cost around £2,000 to complete though through the good will and generosity of a number of people, this has been done for free. All of this is aimed at reducing mental illness and encouraging our members to take an interest in an activity and stay well.

We're not alone in what we are doing. There are groups such as ours all over Lincolnshire. Occasionally, we come together at various NHS run events and it's an opportunity for us to find out what the others are doing and to showcase our project. Success can be judged by the people we are helping, their eagerness to come to each session and their individual testament to how they have benefited from what we are doing. It is this information that will help to build a quarterly report showing how the funding has been used to benefit people who suffer with mental illness. I'm expecting to produce our first report in July and I am looking forward to the opportunity to document our own success stories.

There's only problem with this funding and I have to reflect the good as well as the bad- it's the fact that the money has to be spent on the proposed projects and only the proposed projects. Although the projects are there to prevent mental illness, should any of our members fall ill and are at risk through lack of personal funds, we cannot help them by giving them the money for a meal or to pay a bill. It would seem to me that there are limitations when it comes to preventing mental illness and I have been witness to a case recently whereby we could easily have helped someone from reaching crisis point (an NHS term) and being admitted to Boston's Pilgrim Hospital. We had the money, but we couldn't help. Nothing is ever all that it seems sadly and it is a shame that we cannot help those that this whole thing is designed to do.