CNWL Signposts to Hope with Chasing the Stigma
The Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL), which provides integrated healthcare to a third of London’s population, Milton Keynes and parts of Surrey, is working in partnership with national charity Chasing the Stigma, to signpost people easily to vital mental health help and support.
CNWL has selected the national mental health charity as its partner for approximately 7,500 staff and its patients, using the charity’s Hub of Hope App to direct them to relevant local support services and groups (no personal or patient data is passed to The Hub by CNWL).
The Hub of Hope App will be embedded on CNWL’s website and its own mental health services will be added to the platform, providing everyone who downloads the App, access to its community and crisis services, substance misuse, perinatal, learning disability support
The Hub of Hope is the only service of its kind that brings NHS, Samaritans, Mind and 2,500+ registered national and local voluntary, grassroots, private and third sector mental health support services together in one place, with the number listed growing daily. It has also been included in the Government’s Covid-19 Mental Health & Wellbeing Recovery Action plan.
The App was established in 2017 by, Chasing the Stigma, a charity set up by Liverpool comedian, Jake Mills, following his own suicide attempt in October 2013. Jake realised when talking through his own personal experience that many people didn’t know where to turn for help with their own mental health issues, so he and his team created the Hub of Hope – an app to bring together all of the mental health support available to someone in any given area.
To date, the Hub of Hope has directed more than 200,000 people to life-changing and even life-saving help. The site has proved particularly popular amongst men aged 25-54, who are often cited as being most likely to die by suicide.
Claire Murdoch, Chief Executive of CNWL, said: “It is so important that everyone can find mental health services when they or their families need them; of course, people can use all routes they are familiar with – their GP, 111, or our 24-hour helpline; but people may want something else. By partnering with Chasing the Stigma’s Hub of Hope means we provide clear signposting so people can find help in the NHS or any other organisation they choose. I really recommend the Hub of Hope so download the App and share it with friends and family.”
Jake commented: “We are extremely excited to be partnering with CNWL, one of the biggest Trusts of its kind, as it means we can help more people across the UK. Our aim is to work with all the NHS Trusts, as we all have the same goal of helping people with both mental health – something we all have – and mental illness.
“With this partnership we are continuing to remove the stigma surrounding mental health and raise awareness of the Hub of Hope to ensure everyone knows there is always hope, no matter what.”
The Hub of Hope can be accessed through the App, which can be downloaded from the App Store (iPhone) or Play Store (Android), the Chasing the Stigma website or www.hubofhope.co.uk. The Hub of Hope also has a ‘Need Help Now?’ button that connects users directly to Samaritans or Crisis Text Line’s messaging service.
As Chasing the Stigma is a charity, it relies heavily on donations from the public and all money goes towards expanding the charity to ensure everyone across the UK has access to mental health support, no matter what age they are and more importantly, whenever they need it.
<- Back to news