Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust charity awarded £109,400 funding as part of NHS Charities Together’s Innovation Challenge fund
Black Country Brighter Lives, the charity of Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, is one of three NHS charities across the UK to receive funding from NHS Charities Together’s Innovation Challenge Fund. The Fund sees £923,100 initial investment in innovative and transformational projects tackling health and healthcare inequalities for children and young people aged 0-18 over the next three years. Over the next 10 years, NHS Charities Together aims to invest £40million in the Innovation Challenge to help build a healthier future for all.
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Black Country Brighter Lives, the charity of Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, has been awarded £109,400 for its vital work in reducing mental health inequalities for young people living in Sandwell.
The funding will be used to develop youth-led mental health and wellbeing communications that talk directly to young people in the diverse communities of Sandwell, to address the health inequalities they are facing.
Working with mental health professionals, young people will produce engaging communications such as podcasts, campaigns and events to generate ongoing conversations about mental health and wellbeing with children and young people.
There will be opportunities for young people to train as community health researchers and ambassadors, and they will also help to train NHS staff in communicating effectively with children and young people.
Sandwell is a proudly diverse community; over half of the borough come from ethnically and culturally diverse communities. However, 60% of all neighbourhoods are considered among the most deprived in the UK and young people in Sandwell are facing significant challenges. This impacts how many of them achieve their aspirations, live a fulfilling life and cope with their mental health and wellbeing.
Olivia Horgan, Health Inequalities Strategy Lead at Black Country Healthcare said:
“In the Black Country, we know that there is inequality in access to mental health support and services for children and young people from diverse backgrounds. This means that we may see more people from diverse backgrounds in some adult mental health services later in their life.
“Children and young people in the Black Country have already come up with some great ideas to engage their peers in conversations about mental health and wellbeing. This includes creating online content with them, building relationships and trust in the support that is available.
“We are so pleased to be awarded this funding which will help us to connect with more children and young people and learn how to reduce inequalities for them now and in the future.”
Kuli Kaur-Wilson, Chief Strategy and Partnerships Officer/Deputy Chief Executive Officer at Black Country Healthcare said: “Health and healthcare inequality can have a major impact on health, affecting quality of life and placing extra pressures on health and care services. For example, the Health Foundation’s Young People’s Future Health Enquiry found that people aged 10-14 living in the most deprived areas will live 18 more years in ill health than their peers in the least deprived areas. Our health during childhood can define health in later life, and access to quality healthcare for children and young people is essential to ensuring all young people have the opportunity to thrive.
“Working with our communities to provide early and proactive support is one of our organisation’s top priorities. We know that there are creative, talented young people in Sandwell from different cultures and backgrounds who can help us to tell their stories to benefit others.”
The benefits from this innovative programme will include:
- Youth-designed campaigns and events that connect communities and reduce stigma
- Youth-designed online mental health resources that help people access support
- Young people having an improved understanding of their health inequality and literacy
- Young people who are trained as community researchers, trainers and advocates
- More accessible mental health support and services
- Better mental health and wellbeing for all
Jon Goodwin, Head of Grants at NHS Charities Together, said: “We’re delighted to award Black Country Brighter Lives £109,400 to support projects over the next three years. We know that sadly where someone is born can affect their long-term health, and this and other projects across the UK are aimed at tackling unfair health inequalities and giving every young person the support they need.”
Learning from the project will help shape child and adolescent mental health services across the Black Country, improving the experience of the children and young people supported by them.
