Time to Change Wales, the national mental health anti-stigma campaign will now be able to continue to build on its success over the next three years, thanks to new support from Welsh Government and Comic Relief.
Since it was set up in 2012, Time to Change Wales has seen a much more positive attitude and less stigma shown toward people with mental health problems, reaching hundreds of thousands of people through its work. The funding of £960,262 will be used to continue to support the work done by people in every part of the country to share experiences of their own mental health problems and to work with employers, communities and groups to improve awareness and change behaviour.
Lowri Wyn Jones, TTCW Programme Manager said: “This funding represents an important commitment to the continuation of anti-stigma work in Wales in mental health and it will allow us to maintain the momentum of the movement and ensure that the work we have done so far contributes towards even bigger change at individual, local and national levels. This time round, we will be focusing on working with men – who we know find it more difficult to talk about mental health – and in all areas of Wales. We’ll also be able to work more with employers where we know the effects of stigma can be really harmful.”
Phase 3 of Time to Change Wales is anticipated to launch in spring 2018 following a set-up period and continue until end of March 2021.
Gofal withdrawal from delivery of the Time to Change Wales campaign
As a result of a strategic review refocusing the charity’s work, Gofal has made the decision to withdraw from the Time to Change Wales partnership at the end of March 2018. Time to Change Wales has been delivered by three mental health charities in Wales; Gofal, Hafal and Mind Cymru.
Gofal’s Chief Executive, Ewan Hilton said: “As a founding member of the Time to Change campaign in Wales it was a tough decision to withdraw. However, as a result of our strategic review we will be focusing on new areas of work where we believe we can have the greatest positive impact. Stigma and discrimination are still very real for people experiencing mental health problems in Wales and we remain committed to working with others to eradicate them. Myself and Gofal colleagues wish the Time to Change Wales team all the best with their work in the future – and personally, I would like to say an enormous thank you to everyone who has helped us and supported us over the past six years.”
Gofal have been involved in delivering the campaign since its inception in 2012 leading on the Social Marketing strand of Time to Change Wales. Gofal’s valuable investment in social marketing of the programme has enabled a vision for an anti-stigma campaign in Wales to transform into an established brand, successfully profiling the campaign at local and national levels. Mind Cymru will continue to work in partnership with Hafal moving into Time to Change Wales’ third phase.