By james art A Durham mental health charity which uses the arts to support local people’s wellbeing is responding to growing demand with the help of a four-figure grant from the Banks Community Fund.
St Margaret’s Center aims to improve the health and wellbeing of people in County Durham by providing a safe, therapeutic environment for them to regain their confidence, motivation and self-esteem whilst learning new skills and meeting new friends.
Based on Marjory Lane in Durham City, the Center hosts a wide range of therapeutic activities, including carpentry, carpentry, arts and crafts and horticulture, and provides people with a space to learn new skills while being amongst others who may understand what they are going through.
In the past few years, demand has increased by 220 percent, with more than 300 people currently having active referrals for its services, and about a sixth of those people have a diagnosis of autism.
A £2,000 grant from North East employer Banks Group is now helping to cover the cost of materials and training for the Centre’s arts and crafts sessions, which include drawing and painting, calligraphy, fabric crafts, clay modeling and leather making jewelry, and which see between eight and 16 people participating in each.
And they have been so successful that a number of people who initially came to the Support Center have since volunteered to take part in peer-led craft sessions on their own.
Alongside its creative activities, St Margaret’s Center also hosts a community cafe which is open to the public and gives people the opportunity to learn about working in hospitality while developing their confidence and customer service skills in a supportive environment.
Visitors to the Center do not need a formal diagnosis, just a mental health need, meaning it can act as an early intervention point and help prevent symptoms from worsening.
There is a specialist helper to help with a wide variety of issues that can have an impact on mental health, including housing, benefits, debt management, relationship problems and healthy living, while the whole team is trained to provide emotional support according to the needs.
Lisa Harrison, deputy manager at St Margaret’s Centre, says: “We try to keep a maximum of two weeks waiting between someone coming into contact with us and them being able to access sessions, which means we are often this person’s first significant interaction with community support
about their mental health needs and that demand for places on our sessions is always high.
“Being able to learn at their own pace with the support of an in-house art instructor who understands the situations they face can lead to some amazing results and we often see the transformative impact on mental health, wellbeing and quality of life that our workshops can have over time.
“We’ve seen people who previously haven’t left their homes for months or even years rebuild their self-esteem, develop new confidence and discover incredible talents they never knew they had.
“They also often start to feel more comfortable sharing their problems with staff, which allows us to better understand their individual experiences and needs and what additional support and services may be helpful.”
“Maintaining our running costs in the face of such rapidly increasing demand is always a real challenge, so we are extremely grateful for Banks’ support in helping us meet it.”
Kate Culverhouse, Community Relations Manager at Banks Group, added: “The team at St Margaret’s are making a positive difference to the lives of hundreds of people in our home county at a time when they need it most.
“Seeing both the creative and personal results they help achieve shows just how effective their work is and we’re very pleased to be supporting such an impactful charity.”
For further information on the services provided at St Margaret’s Centre, visit www.stmargaretscentre.co.uk or follow @smcdurham on Facebook and Instagram.
Anyone from a community close to a Banks Group project who is interested in applying for Banks Community Fund funding should contact the company via the inquiry form on its website (www.banksgroup.co.uk/contact-us/) , to find out if their group or project qualifies.