Mayor Maureen Tennant-King and Simon Lightwood MP among 1,123 guests at Wakefield Mental Health Day

With this year’s theme being, ‘Access to services - mental health in catastrophes and emergencies’, the event brought together 50 organisations from across the Wakefield District to raise awareness on mental health and share information for wellbeing support.

Among those who had a stall at the Wakefield Exchange were Age UK, Mindful Movers, PRIDE, Disability Sport Yorkshire, Prince of Wales Hospice, Autism Plus, Carers Wakefield, Samaritans, Yorkshire Smokefree, and Spectrum.

The event was packed with activities which included an interactive panel session, led by therapists from Talking Therapies Wakefield, that gave audience members the chance to ask questions on accessing and receiving therapy.

The Wakefield Whirlwinds Wheelchair Basketball Team highlighted the importance of physical wellbeing when talking about mental health and vice-versa. Members of the public and volunteers from the different organisations had the opportunity to try out the sports chairs and get involved in drills.

Turning Point launched its Speaking Without Stigma - A guide to reducing stigma around mental health through the language we use.

Muhammad Khan, who has been supported by Turning Point and now chairs the organisation’s mental health lived experience involvement group Horizons, spoke about the guidance which intends to help people think about the language used around mental health and consider small changes to help reduce stigma people experience.

The guidance was co-produced by Turning Point staff and people with lived experience.

Steve Phillip kicked off proceedings with an enlightening and emotional talk on suicide prevention.

Steve created The Jordan Legacy in memory of his son who took his own life almost six years ago. The organisation’s aim is to provide hope to people who are feeling suicidal by engaging in suicide prevention activities and strategies.

He is also the co-founder of the Baton of Hope campaign that concluded in London on Friday. The initiative saw 1,300 people carry the baton across 20 towns and cities across Great Britain and Northern Ireland to raise awareness of suicide prevention.

Steve announced that he has been asked to be part of the National Suicide Prevention Network that was launched on World Mental Health Day by the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales.

"Following The Jordan Legacy's invitation to work in partnership with The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales as part of its new National Suicide Prevention Network, the Turning Point Wakefield Mental Health Day was the perfect setting to be able to announce this news to such a diverse mix of physical and mental health stand holders and delegates,” said Steve.

“To reduce the stigma associated with mental health and suicide, it's important that we treat physical and mental health with equally parity and priority. One of the key elements of the National Suicide Prevention Network's mission is providing accessible support for everyone which was very much the theme for this well-organised Turning Point event.”

Wakefield Mayor Maureen Tennant-King said: “It is very important to have awareness days to breakdown the stigma around mental health and encourage people to speak out and seek support.

“I was really touched to hear about The Jordan Legacy. I found it tough to listen to his dad’s speech, I couldn’t have done it – all credit to him. It gave us a lot of food for thought. You can look happy and smiley, but you don’t know what’s going on deep inside.

“Mental health is nothing to be ashamed of - it can be a hidden health issue that you can’t always see or spot. I have members of my own family that suffer with mental health issues. I urge everyone to talk to people and don’t be frightened to ask for help.”

Simon Lightwood MP for Wakefield and Rothwell said: “It was a real privilege for my team to join the wonderful event at Wakefield Exchange to mark World Mental Health Day. Huge thanks to Turning Point Talking Therapies for hosting and bringing our community together – highlighting the vital mental health services support and services available to my constituents.”

Clare Wdowczyk, Clinical Lead at Turning Point Talking Therapies Wakefield, said: “This World Mental Health Day, we brought together services and our community to open up conversations, reduce stigma, and highlight the range of support available.

“We’re passionate about recognising that everyone’s needs are unique, and support should reflect that. I’m excited to be part of raising awareness and building strong relationships across services to ensure there’s a ‘no wrong door’ approach.” Sam Astbury, Senior Operations Manager at Turning Point Talking Therapies Wakefield, said:

“Wakefield Mental Health Day was a celebration of what we can achieve if we work together as a community. It was a chance to celebrate wellbeing, reduce stigma and show that support is available to everyone.”