After putting it to a company-wide vote, I am delighted to announce that the b4b Charity of the Year for 2022 will be Dorset Mind.
It gives me great pleasure to be leading our charity initiative and I’m really excited to be raising money for such a worthy cause. It quickly became clear during the voting that mental health is a subject that’s close to a lot of people’s hearts.
Mental health is such an important issue, especially during these uncertain and difficult times. That’s why it’s great to support a charity that does such worthwhile work tackling the stigma surrounding mental illness, while providing valuable education and support to those who are struggling.
As a mental health writer who publicly shares their lived experience of OCD, I find it really inspiring that my colleagues are just as eager as I am to support Dorset Mind.
Dorset Mind challenges mental health stigma and encourages recovery by empowering individuals to develop resilience. The charity’s one-to-one and group support includes counselling, mentoring, support groups, active monitoring, and a befriending service. These help people regain social skills and develop confidence. Dorset Mind also delivers educational wellbeing programmes for schools and workplaces, and provides volunteer opportunities across all areas of the organisation.
Dee Swinton, Income Generation and Marketing Manager at Dorset Mind, says she is delighted that Dorset Mind has been chosen as our charity partner.
She adds: “As an independent charity, the support of our community is hugely important to us, and for local people's mental health. b4b's fundraising will help us continue to support adults and young people across Dorset. We're excited to work with an organisation that actively and visibly supports their employees' mental health in numerous ways, and we know that our partnership will enhance their offer.”
How will b4b support Dorset Mind?
During the course of 2022, we will hold monthly fundraising events both internally and with the involvement of clients. In keeping with the theme of mental wellness, some of these will be activities designed to promote mindfulness, such as crafting and yoga sessions.
We are planning a programme of educational content as part of our ongoing commitment to mental health and wellbeing in the workplace. As a qualified Mental Health First Aider, I will also be available to provide support within the team. Other members of staff will be offered the Mental Health First Aid training through Dorset Mind.
Anthony Tilley, Managing Director of b4b says: “We’ve always been a company that cares about its people, and working closely with Dorset Mind will give us new and exciting ideas that help to promote staff wellbeing. This partnership also gives us an opportunity to improve awareness of mental health issues within the community, which is something that is important to us as a business.”
