We are a community for people with lived experience of mental health to campaign for change.
Give us the benefit of your experience
Get involved with the South Gloucestershire Wellbeing Network.
Be part of establishing a vocal and influential group that will speak out about mental health support in South Gloucestershire.
The network is a working collaboration between Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership, The Independent Mental Health Network and South Gloucestershire Council to provide a platform for people with lived experience of mental ill health. The group will discuss experiences of local mental health support, and work to influence services provided in the South Gloucestershire area.
The network currently meets on the first and third Thursday of the month between 10:00 – 11:00am.
The poster for the network can be seen below.
August 27, 2020 at 11:10 am
A new immediate emotional and practical support helpline
An NHS, free, confidential 24/7 helpline has launched, provided by Vita Health Group, in partnership with Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust.
The service is called 24/7 Support & Connect. This line is staffed by experienced counsellors, who you can talk to and they will listen. They will offer emotional support and can connect you to organisations available in Bristol, North Somerset, and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG).
The helpline is for people aged 18 and over who are living within BNSSG or are registered with a GP within BNSSG.
For immediate emotional and practical support call 0800 012 6549.
(textphone users dial 18001 followed by 0800 0126549)
If English isn’t your first language we can arrange for a translator to support your call.
If you are 17 or under please call the Children and Young People’s helpline via AWP’s Single Point of Access phoneline on 0300 303 1320.
For more information, please click here to visit the Vita Health Group website.
August 12, 2020 at 9:56 am
Members of the Independent Mental Health Network in North Somerset, South Gloucestershire and Bristol are currently working on a project to improve support and care pathways for those experiencing a mental health crisis in the local area.
In order to investigate how this support can be improved, we have launched a survey asking about peoples’ experiences and views about apps that aim to support and improve mental health and wellbeing.
Mobile phone apps can be used by people experiencing a mental health crisis. Sometimes, information about apps can be shared by mental health professionals.
The survey can be found by clicking the following link: surveymonkey.co.uk/r/MentalHealthApps.
We are encouraging people with all kinds of lived experience of mental health, including people that support those with mental health difficulties, to take visit and take part in the survey.
February 24, 2020 at 2:22 pm
IMHN’s Bristol branch is a key partner of the Time to Change Bristol hub. The hub furthers the work of Time to Change, a growing movement of people dedicated to breaking down mental health stigma.
One of Time to Change’s key initiatives is the Employer Pledge. This is a pledge that employers can sign to show commitment to changing the way we all think and act about mental health in the workplace.
Yesterday, on World Mental Health Day 2019, Bank of Ireland signed up to the Time to Change Employer Pledge at its offices at Temple Quay, Bristol, in the presence of employees, members of the Bank’s leadership team, representatives from the Time to Change Bristol hub, and Bristol City Council.
Bank of Ireland join over 1,200 organisations, collectively employing over 2 million people, who have now signed the Time to Change Employer Pledge nationally. The Bank of Ireland also joins a number of other large employers within Bristol who have signed the pledge within the last twelve months, including Bristol City Council and Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group.
Read more at the press release published to BIMHN’s website.
October 11, 2019 at 2:58 pm
This news item was originally posted in October 2019. Since then, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Shine On campaign and the completion of a number of initiatives funded by the Suicide Prevention Innovation Fund, with more to come in the coming months. To stay up to date, visit the Shine On website!
Content note; please note that this piece contains discussions of suicide and self-harm.
As part of work taking place in the South West to combat early deaths by suicide, the Bristol branch of the Independent Mental Health Network (BIMHN) is supporting the Suicide Prevention Innovation Fund. This will form part of a suicide prevention campaign later this year, taking place Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.
The fund has been launched to support local groups whose work helps to prevent suicide and self-harm across the local area. Events, initiatives and activities in support of this aim can benefit from funding of up to £250 (or £500 if the event takes place across the three areas).
You can read more about the launch of the fund here. Watch out for more updates and information about the upcoming main campaign, coming soon!
More information about BIMHN’s work on Suicide Prevention
This Winter’s campaign, and the Suicide Prevention Innovation Fund discussed here, has been initiated by the Bristol North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (‘BNSSG’) Suicide Prevention Transformation Fund Group. This group has been in operation since May 2018. The group manages an amount of money, allocated by NHS England, to address the issue of a relatively high suicide rate across the local Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP).
The group has already funded campaigning activities and initiatives such as the Hope Project, working to reduce suicide in men.
The Bristol branch of IMHN, BIMHN, sends two representatives to the group meetings, both of whom have lived experience of suicide. Other partners of the group include Bristol City Council, BNSSG Clinical Commissioning Group, Community Access Support Service Bristol, and South Gloucestershire Council.
October 4, 2019 at 12:38 pm