This month, as part of our Spotlight on Loneliness campaign, we will be focussing on the issue of loneliness in business.
Spotlight on Loneliness
This week we are launching Spotlight on Loneliness, our initiative for 2017. Despite Britain being the Loneliness Capital of Europe, many people in the UK are still unaware of the extent of the problem or the huge variety of people affected. While most discussions on this topic tend to focus on the elderly we know that old age isn’t the only thing that makes people lonely. Through our Spotlight campaign we want to highlight the many ways that this issue can affect people of all ages and from all walks of life.
Our Athens Marathon Hero
Six months ago we received an email from Amy Trakos, who found our website online and was inspired to get in touch. Amy was planning to run the Athens Marathon in November and asked if she could do so on our behalf. Of course there is only really one answer to that question, so in November – after smashing her fundraising target – Amy put on her running shoes and headed to Greece.
Here is her story in her own words:
A toast to you this Christmas
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! The WaveLength tree is up and the big day is nearly upon us. And with all of the festive cheer going around, we wanted to share a little of our own.
Help Amira’s Christmas Wish Come True
For years, Amira and her family have all made the same Christmas wish: a safe new home away from the war, the bombs and the refugee camps. In 2016 that wish finally came true. This will be their first Christmas in their new home in the UK, and the first time in years that they are all wishing for different things.
Refugees, Resettlement and Radio
As the wars continue in the Middle East millions of people have been forced to flee their homes, risking and too often losing their lives as they seek refuge in the West. In the face of so much unrest, we are proud to have been able to offer help to an increasing number of refugees settling in the UK through the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Programme. The VPR Programme is a Government scheme to resettle in the UK some of the most vulnerable refugees who have made their way to camps in Lebanon, Turkey and Pakistan.
Solihull Life Opportunities
We provided a Smart TV to Solihull Life Opportunities, or SoLO. SoLo is a charity in Solihull that provides social and leisure activities to people of all ages who have learning disabilities. Our CEO Tim went to visit SoLO to see how their new Smart TV was making a difference.
WaveLength and CLIC Sargent
Receiving treatment for cancer can be a very lonely experience – particularly for those who receive treatment in cities far from home or need to be in hospital for a long time. For young people, being away from friends and family like this can be especially isolating. That’s why we are proud to announce that this November we will begin working with CLIC Sargent to help alleviate loneliness and social isolation among young people with cancer.
Continue reading WaveLength and CLIC Sargent
6 key signs that loneliness is looming
Loneliness is a hard thing to talk about. We all experience break ups, bereavement, illnesses and changes in work or hometown during our lives, and these things can sometimes leave us feeling alone or isolated. And while no one wants to think of themselves as being lonely, it can be hard to bounce back from without the realisation that something is wrong.
If you think that you or a friend are suffering from loneliness, look out for these 6 key signs. If they sound familiar, it might be time to try and tackle the loneliness head-on.
Health Impacts of Loneliness
For some, being alone is a luxury. Taking the time to recharge, focus on personal projects or catch up with a favourite TV show can be a welcome break from a tiring job or busy personal life. But for many being alone all day every day is a fact of life.
According to the Campaign to End Loneliness, over a million older people in the UK are chronically lonely. But this problem doesn’t just impact the elderly – 53% of 18-34 year olds also struggle with loneliness. Human beings are social creatures, and recent research has shown that feeling alone is not just upsetting – it’s actually bad for our health.
Disabled people are at increasing risk of loneliness
Over the past few years, the benefits available to disabled people in the UK have been changing. And these changes risk making disabled people more lonely and isolated.
Continue reading Disabled people are at increasing risk of loneliness
How 1 TV transformed a Psychiatric ICU
WaveLength recently gave some equipment to a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit in London. Michael Mendones tells us about how the technology has helped his patients.
Miss Universe GB Finals
As you might already know, we are fortunate to have Kirsty Heslewood as our celebrity ambassador here at WaveLength. Kirsty was Miss England and Miss UK in 2013 and 2014, and at the moment she is busy preparing for the finals of Miss Universe GB, which is taking place next weekend in Cardiff.
Kirsty is deeply committed to helping overcome loneliness and social isolation. She has met many people across the country who have received technology from WaveLength, and has heard directly from them the many ways in which technology can improve the lives of people who are isolated from their communities. Continue reading Miss Universe GB Finals
WaveLength’s Research Findings
This March we launched the findings of a major new piece of research conducted in association with the University of York. We wanted to explore the social, economic and health impacts that our work has had on our beneficiaries.
Small gifts, big thanks
We always love hearing from the people that we help, and seeing how our work has made a difference to their lives.
WaveLength works with charities and individuals across the country. The people that we help are all very different, but they all have one thing in common. They all suffer from loneliness and social isolation. By giving them something as simple as a radio, television, or tablet we can help them to overcome their loneliness and improve their lives.
The people we help come from all walks of life and include ill and disabled people, elderly people, homeless and ex-homeless, refugees and survivors of domestic violence to name a few. Here’s how our small gifts have affected some of those people.
Fighting loneliness with:
WaveLength and Rotary Club work together to fight loneliness
This week we are announcing the addition of a new member to our Board of Trustees: Mr Barry Theobald-Hicks.
As well as being our latest trustee Barry is President of the Rotary Club of St Pancras, which shares our values of reducing loneliness by facilitating friendships and community. The Rotary Club hosts a weekly lunch in Central London where members can meet, get to know each other and make new friends in the city.
With regards to the announcement, Tim said “We are delighted that Barry is joining WaveLength as one of our Trustees. It’s great to have him on board, and fantastic that he is getting involved by visiting the projects we work with to get a flavour of the needs that are out there and the positive impacts of our work.”
Continue reading WaveLength and Rotary Club work together to fight loneliness
Tim’s visit to Leicester
In April 2016, Tim visited Leicester with our Ambassador Kirsty Rose. They went to meet some community members at the Adhar Project, who we recently gave 10 tablet computers and 2 smart TVs, and to unveil 16 brand new 32″ TVs at Leicester Royal Infirmary. Here’s how they got on!
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Feedback from our beneficiaries
We have been receiving lots of lovely feedback from our beneficiaries recently, and we wanted to share some of it with you!
The Big Connect: how media alleviates loneliness
Media technology can help people who are isolated connect to the outside world in ways that can be life-changing. A change in environment, the breakdown of a relationship, poverty or mental health problems can all lead to social isolation or loneliness that can be difficult to resolve, or sometimes even to talk about. New research shows that providing people with radios, televisions or tablet computers can help them to re-engage with the world and overcome their loneliness.
Continue reading The Big Connect: how media alleviates loneliness
Merry Christmas from WaveLength!
We’re touched and inspired by the stories of beneficiaries whose lives we’ve helped change this year. Please lift a glass, grab a mince pie, and read about what your support has done this Christmas!
Ambassador Welcome Gallery
Recently, the WaveLength board and staff were extremely happy to be able to welcome one of our celebrity ambassadors, Miss UK Kirsty-Rose Heslewood, at a trustee reception.
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Ambassador Welcome at Trustee Reception
Recently, the WaveLength board and staff were extremely happy to be able to welcome one of our celebrity ambassadors, Miss UK Kirsty-Rose Heslewood, at a trustee reception.
Trustee Tony Judd was able to book the Flyfishers Club in central London to greet Kirsty and let her find out more about our work. The event was also a great time to give our trustees a run-down on our research project with the University of York, finding out more about the needs of WaveLength’s current and future beneficiaries.
Many Faces of Homelessness
Many WaveLength beneficiaries are homeless or in insecure housing. These people have very complex needs, as homelessness is usually a stopping point on a very difficult journey. We hope that the TVs, radios and tablets we supply will make the next stop a much happier one.
Recently, we donated a TV and radio to a lady of 82 in a women’s aid centre in Southend. Tragically, her husband’s violence had forced her from her home – a stark reminder that abuse can affect anyone, at any time of life.
Untold Stories: Our Beneficiaries
Untold Stories is a short film about WaveLength. It was made for us by the director Frank Madone. Frank met some of our beneficiaries and asked them about how WaveLength’s support has affected them.
Radio Academy Podcast
You can now listen to the first WaveLength Radio Academy podcast. The 15 minute podcast is a great introduction to WaveLength’s work and priorities, with Radio Academy’s Paul Robinson interviewing our CEO Tim Leech. Paul and Tim are joined by Michael Ferguson and Ken, who told us how technology improves the lives of homeless people in London. Michael is a representative of London homelessness charity Passage, and Ken is a floating mental health support worker working with the homeless in Westminster. They have both referred lots of homeless people to us for our support.
Women’s Aid Lanarkshire
It can be hard to explain why women fleeing domestic violence need our services. Everybody knows they’re traumatised, scared and vulnerable. But not many people realise just how isolated and lonely these women and their children are.
In South Lanarkshire, women are rehoused in individual flats to give them independence, space and time to recover from their experiences. However, as they are still in danger and their new addresses are confidential, they can only have one, named, female visitor.
Adhar Project
Tim recently made a visit to an inspirational group of people in Leicester. The Adhar Project provides support for Asian-heritage people who are struggling with poor mental health or have learning difficulties, and their families. “Adhar” means “support” in the Sanskrit language.
The Adhar project is a great example of an organisation stepping up to do what’s needed for the most vulnerable people in their communities. It’s been going since 1989 and their lovely service co-ordinators and volunteers work closely with social workers to deliver emotional support, family intervention, education, day trips and keep fit classes in Asian languages.
When WaveLength staff paid them a visit, we were thrilled to see the women’s group enjoying the smart TV we provided. The TV’s digital capability was really important to them, letting them access local news in their own languages, Asian films and YouTube beauty tutorials, which they wouldn’t have with traditional TVs.
Adhar Project Gallery
WaveLength staff recently made a visit to an inspirational group of people in Leicester. The Adhar Project provides support for Asian-heritage people who are struggling with poor mental health or have learning difficulties, and their families. “Adhar” means “support” in the Sanskrit language. [envira-gallery id=”1718″]
Orchid Friendship Group Gallery
The Orchid Friendship Group in Nottinghamshire brings together over-50s suffering from loneliness in rural communities. We donated a big TV for them to watch films on when they get together, and several tablet computers to individuals to help them keep in touch with family living far off.[envira-gallery id=”1721″]
Staying Strong After Leaving Care
Hard to believe it’s March already! But we’re celebrating a new month’s worth of feedback from the lonely people we help up and down the country.
Young people aged 16-21 have all the world ahead of them. But without the family structures most people this age still rely on, care-leavers are at risk of dangerous loneliness and isolation just when they should be starting exciting adult lives.
Tim’s Blog: One Piece of Equipment, Diverse Opportunities
“Sometimes people ask us why our focus remains on providing TVs. This year we have also started providing tablet computers, but especially in our work with small organisations, we’ve appreciated more than ever the diverse uses TVs have for people at risk of isolation.
“Daylight Project in Solihull received a brand-new internet-enabled digital TV from us a while ago. They run a drop-in centre for adults with learning difficulties. So far, these adults have used the TV to:
Continue reading Tim’s Blog: One Piece of Equipment, Diverse Opportunities
Tim’s Blog: 2014 Newsletter
“Happy New Year!
“It’s been a great day at the office, as we receive a very generous amount of kind donations from our friendly supporters. Myself and the other WaveLength staff would like to thank you from the bottoms of our hearts for helping us reach out to lonely people, over the holiday period and for the rest of the new year.
“It’s been an exciting year. We’ve:
- expanded into providing tablet computers for isolated people to connect them to the digital world,
- brought celebrity Ambassadors on board
- created a podcast with Radio Academy
- been featured in the BBC’s ‘A Life Less Lonely’ programming campaign about the loneliness epidemic in modern Britain
“To see a full roundup of WaveLength’s work in 2014, take a look at our Christmas newsletter (PDF)
“And all the best for 2015!”
Tim’s Blog: Mums and Children Need Homes
Recently I was very touched to hear from a Cambridge Women’s Aid staff member.
Women’s Aid Refuges were the first organisations we partnered with, giving TVs and radios that help many people passing in and out of the refuges. Families who’ve suffered domestic abuse are terribly lonely and isolated, through no fault of their own. As Annie at Cambridge Women’s Aid says, “All of the families living in refuge have had to leave their support networks to come far away to be safe, and start again in a new part of the country where they do not know a single person.
“While in refuge our families are at a terrible disadvantage. Due to safety reasons, the children cannot invite new friends over from school or tell them the truth about their living situation. Mums tend not to make friends outside of the refuge as it is too difficult to share their “back story”. These factors isolate our families.” Continue reading Tim’s Blog: Mums and Children Need Homes
Tim’s Blog: Thank You
At the festive season, it’s easy to forget that lonely people don’t get a ‘day off’ from their isolation on Christmas Day to go and see loving family. Their situations are just as tough as ever. I hope that this Christmas, our beneficiaries get some comfort and companionship from their TVs and radios.
And over the last few months we’ve had some really lovely messages of thanks.
We’re hearing from many partners, from homelessness shelters to mental health drop-in centres, who are really glad to help their clients with a TV. Continue reading Tim’s Blog: Thank You
Tim’s Blog: Visit to Herring House
Recently, Janet and I visited Herring House, an inspirational homelessness centre in Great Yarmouth. We were visiting to donate four small TVs and a communal radio to the High Support Unit attached to the main hostel.
Herring House is a charity set up by CAB volunteers in 1991 to help people in the Great Yarmouth area who are dealing with homelessness. We were greeted on arrival by the beautiful mosaic of a herring created during an art project some 15 years before, and still serving as a sign of support and welcome to the area’s community.
The hostel has 27 people in residence, all with different health and often substance abuse needs. Centre worker Sue told us that, although drug and alcohol use are not permitted within the hostel, people wanting to detox completely found it difficult to do while living in an environment with people who were not abstinent. However, they didn’t want to lose connections which were often their only form of supportive social network. Continue reading Tim’s Blog: Visit to Herring House
Welcome, Ambassadors!
We Have News!
We at Wavelength have some really exciting news to share today.
To mark our
75th anniversary, we’ve welcomed four celebrity Ambassadors to the fold: YES keyboard legend Rick Wakeman, Miss UK Kirsty Rose Heslewood, and much-loved comedians Miki Travis and Freddie ‘Parrot Face’ Davies.
Our Ambassadors will help to spread the word about WaveLength, act as inspiration for our beneficiaries and supporters, and amplify the voices of our beneficiaries – both among people who need WaveLength’s help but haven’t heard of us yet, and among potential donors. Continue reading Welcome, Ambassadors!
WaveLength and Passage: Hudl Training Session
Helping formerly homeless people to get to grips with their new Hudl tablet computers, in our latest partnership with Passage in Westminster. We’re proud to support Passage’s ‘Home for Good’ scheme, which helps formerly homeless people settle into their new homes and tackle the isolation of changing circumstances.
Continue reading WaveLength and Passage: Hudl Training Session
Friends Save Lives: TV and a cup of tea
Orchid Friendship Group in North Nottinghamshire brings people together through befriending and a day centre. We gave them a big smart TV, a DVD player and four Hudl tablets! Since we’ve been running more projects in partnership with other charities and organisations, WaveLength’s equipment helps a huge and diverse variety of people. Our CEO Tim likes to get out to see the effects our equipment is having, and meet our partners and beneficiaries face to face.
Orchid Friendship Group & St Anne’s Hostel
Companionship for older people in rural Nottinghamshire and for older homeless men in St Anne’s, Birmingham – the only Midlands hostel to accept dogs!
Recently we’ve heard some lovely things about the equipment we provide, and we’d like to share it with our supporters.
The Orchid Friendship Group in Ollerton, Nottinghamshire, represents a range of isolated people from ex-mining villages. For many the weekly group is the only time they get out of the house for the social contact they desperately need for health and wellbeing.
WaveLength Ambassadors Speak Out Against Loneliness
Our lovely Ambassadors are hard at work representing WaveLength to the public. Here, they tell you why they chose us.
“Working in radio, I realise how many people rely on their radio for company, Radio presenters all over the world receive thousands of letters every day from people stating that fact. I am proud to be an ambassador for Wavelength.’ – Rick Wakeman, YES keyboardist, “Grumpy Old Man” and radio presenter
‘I decided to become an Ambassador for Wavelength because in this day and age, we can forget that some people still do not have the TVs and radios that most of us take for granted. After reading some letters of thanks from the people helped by Wavelength, I know that without their TVs and radios some are housebound in silence which is not a healthy way to live. Loneliness is cruel and can lead to depression, and bringing TV and radio into homes helps massively with loneliness and mental health. When I was suffering myself with Selective Mutism as a child, I could be in a crowded classroom but still felt lonely. The need to get home to speak was extremely important to me. People should feel most comfortable and happy in their own homes. Wavelength strives to bring that comfort and peace of mind to everyone.’ – Kirsty Rose Heslewood, Reigning Miss UK Continue reading WaveLength Ambassadors Speak Out Against Loneliness
Tim’s Blog: Our First Tablet Project
“Last week, we paid a very special visit to Westminster. Deirdre, Colette and I were there to help eight former Passage clients get to grips with their brand new Hudl tablets. The clients, who are all formerly homeless and setting into new tenancies across London, received the tablets as part of our first ever project designed to provide computer technology rather than TVs and radios.
“Passage’s Employment, Training and Welfare Rights Manager, Richard Wealleans, led the new tablet users through the process of setting up and using the Android tablets. He covered everything from creating an email address to finding good free apps and widgets. The attendees had amazingly diverse experience – some new to computers, others already using smartphones, while one young man planned to use complex IT skills to ‘jailbreak’ his tablet as soon as he got home! Continue reading Tim’s Blog: Our First Tablet Project
Passage Training Session
Members of the Passage’s Sunday Lunch club learn how to use their new WaveLength-provided Hudls. [envira-gallery id=”1726″]
Lighting up lonely lives in St Anne’s Hostel
We were chuffed today to receive a lovely picture of Simon at St Anne’s hostel, enjoying his new radio. St Anne’s provides accommodation and support for homeless men over 25 – a neglected demographic – and is the only homelessness hostel in Birmingham which accepts dogs!
We sent them a 32 inch TV for a communal area back in April, and in June sent along five radios for individuals’ rooms as well.
Here is a pic of Simon enjoying his new radio. As you can see, he doesn’t have a lot of possessions. It can be tough to make a hostel room feel like home, so we’re really glad that the new radio is helping Simon to settle in and feel less lonely. Mark from St Anne’s says Simon has ‘benefited greatly from his radio’.
Want to help people like Simon turn new pages in their lives? Find out more…
Radio Academy Podcast Gallery
Tim talked with Radio Academy’s Paul Robinson, and two homelessness outreach workers who give out WaveLength radios, about the difference this equipment can make to people struggling to make changes in their lives. [envira-gallery id=”1731″]
Feedback: Step Up and Home for Good
One of the great things about our organisational projects is the way that they give us a glimpse into the schemes being carried out up and down the country to bring comfort and companionship to lonely people.
WaveLength helps such diverse groups of people, it’s hard to keep track of them all. But often, other organisations send us reminders of the difference that our TVs and radios make.
Step Up, run by ASCEND in Hertfordshire, helps people with poor mental health to avoid the poverty trap. We gave them 5 TVs and 6 radios. Christine, Project Director, says:
“I’ve had the radios delivered this afternoon and I’ve already given one away.
“The person I gave it to is from Kosovo and they had to flee to this country at the time of the crisis. They have worked so hard since coming to this country, husband working, eldest son going to university but life still tends to kick them in the teeth. The husband recently lost his job due to ill health and they are now back living on benefits with very little money. She is over the moon with the radio.
“Thank you so much for coming to us with this amazing project.” Continue reading Feedback: Step Up and Home for Good
Feedback: Orchid Friendship Group and St Anne’s Hostel
Companionship for older people in rural Nottinghamshire and for older homeless men in St Anne’s, Birmingham – the only Midlands hostel to accept dogs!
Recently we’ve heard some lovely things about the equipment we provide, and we’d like to share it with out supporters.
The Orchid Friendship Group in Ollerton, Nottinghamshire, represents a range of isolated people from ex-mining villages. For many the weekly group is the only time they get out of the house for the social contact they desperately need for health and wellbeing.
Lis Lawrence, Director of Care + Comfort which runs the group, says, ‘The group are delighted that they will be able to watch television and some of their favourite films and DVD. This means so much to them.”
Meanwhile, St Anne’s Hostel in Birmingham let us know that our TV has provided a social hub for older residents of their single men’s homelessness refuge. These men enjoy having a place to socialise while watching programmes that don’t necessarily appeal to ‘youngsters.’
“Particularly the soaps!”
St Anne’s workers say the WaveLength TV “has brought a number of residents out of their rooms and enabled more communal cohesion between residents.”
The hostel supports men moving on to their own tenancies in the future. So they know how important it is, when changing a chaotic life, to engage with other people and move away from self-isolation.
We’d like to say to all WaveLength supporters – thank you so much, for helping us to help more people every day.
Feedback: “The difference this has made to my life is unbelievable”
We’ve recently received some very touching feedback. Two letters in particular we’d really like to share with you.
Cambridge Women’s Aid has provided a moving update on the families supported by our TVs and radios when they move from the refuge into their own accommodation, with very little to call their own.
Meanwhile, a gentleman who’s brought himself out of homelessness with the help of Together Working for Wellbeing got in touch to tell us what a difference our donors’ help has made.
Angie from Cambridge Women’s Aid says:
“Since we received your kind donation of several televisions, we have had two families resettle in our local area from the refuge who have benefited from this donation. Family number one is a mum and three children and family number two is a mum and four children.
“Family One had been in refuge for just over eight months, and Family Two fir six and a half months. Neither family had any possessions of their own and were very grateful to be supported by a television from WaveLength. They have both managed the transition from refuge to living in their own homes well.
“Now that Community Care Grants have gone, our families can only receive three household goods from the Local Authority when moving into their own home. Many of our families have nothing to set up home with so rely greatly on donations to add to these three items to have any hope in moving on in their lives. We are unable to pass on second-hand televisions so this donation is very much appreciated. Thank you for the support!
“Since then the televisions have continued to support families restarting their lives after being so unsettled due to violence and abuse. Four televisions have gone on to support four more families who were reliant on donations for their new homes. One family comprised a mother and a teenager who had been in refuge for four months. Another comprised a mother and two young children and had been in refuge for eleven months. The third comprised a mother and a young child who had been in refuge for four months, and family four comprised of a mother and two children and had been in refuge for nine months.
“The televisions were a source of great support to all of the families. To date, the six televisions have helped six adults and thirteen children.”
These TVs are on long-term loan so that WaveLength can pass them on in the future. However, Angie told us,
“The majority of our families are destitute when they arrive at refuge and we are seeing more and more families dealing with significant debt issues. Although we continue to support families to be independent when they have left refuge, they continue to deal with a number of pressures, which mean they are still in need of the support given by Wavelength. We have many more families who would truly benefit from this support when they leave refuge.”
We’re so incredibly proud to be part of these families’ journeys into independence. As you can see, there is still a great need for support, particularly with cuts to community care grants. Anything you can give could help us to make a difference to the lives of people suffering from isolation – just donate online or by cheque.
We also received a letter from a Together Working for Wellbeing service user:
“I would like to thank your charity for helping me in my time of great need. I suffer with Mental Health difficulties and have been homeless and bankrupt. I have received fantastic support from my Project Co-ordinator and now have a safe secure roof over my head. My biggest problem in settling in and trying to rebuild my life was feeling lonely and to make my new residence feel like home. With your help, I now have a television and radio, the difference this has made to my life is unbelievable. Knowing that people are willing to help and give me a chance to get back on my feet is also a positive start on the way back to health and happiness.”
We know that the impact of our help on beneficiaries, alongside the benefits from the actual TV and radios, includes the emotional support of knowing that people – WaveLength’s supporters and donors – care about them and think they deserve more. As we crowded around this letter in the office, we were really moved that this beneficiary decided to reach out.
Feedback from Nugent Care and Endike Community Care
Some really touching feedback landed in the WaveLength inbox today from two amazing organisations that we’ve supplied with TVs and radios. One case history, and some lovely photos, that inspired us and moved us.
Endike Community Care runs a day centre in Hull that aims to stop loneliness for elderly people. Social stimulation and regular contact can help to slow dementia and makes an enormous amount of difference to older people’s health and happiness.
WaveLength provided them with a TV for day centre visitors to watch, and they sent us some lovely pictures of their users enjoying their new set!
Meanwhile, Rachel Moran from Nugent Care, which supports over 5,000 people across the North West, got in touch to let us know that ‘the TVs and radios have been a huge success’. WaveLength’s donations help them to help vulnerable adults through their Supported Living scheme in Liverpool.
Rachel told us about one man who our equipment really made a difference to…
“Mr X has a 25 year history of mental health issues, has been street homeless on a number of occasions and sectioned under the Mental Health Act in various locations across the country. Mr X had a breakdown in his early 20’s after leaving a cult.
“Mr X came to us through the Community Mental Health team in Liverpool, in July 13, on discharge from hospital. When he first moved into the scheme, Mr X was very withdrawn, anxious and found it difficult to communicate. He also had trust issues. Over the first few weeks we supported Mr X to settle into his accommodation and put routine and structure into his days whilst learning to trust myself, Rachel Moran and my colleague Peter Boylan.
“Mr X had not watched television or listened to a radio for a number of years as he believed that he was receiving messages through them, which would in turn effect his mental health and cause it to deteriorate and trigger a psychotic episode.
“After being in our project for a few weeks, Mr X reported that he felt settled and well enough to try to use a television and radio. When he received the radio and television from Wavelength, it took him a little time to adjust but eventually he got used to watching selected programmes and listing to the radio. He has actually started to find it both a distraction and a therapy for his mental health, and his psychiatrist has reported that he is the most stable he has been for a number of years and is engaging really well with his support.
“We were able to use the equipment you gifted us to help us engage with one of our most difficult and complex clients.”
Perth Association for Mental Health and Pictures from WaveLength’s History
Lovely Feedback from PAMH
We were really proud today to get some lovely feedback from a Scottish mental health association that we’ve supplied with a TV for its Recovery College. PAMH helps people with mental ill-health, their carers, families, friends and potential employers to learn how to manage and control their illness so that they can get the most out of their lives, relationships etc.
Jillian tells us, “We have already run several pilot courses where we have used the television for display purposes and this has been most beneficial to both participants and course deliverers. Staff are also using the television to practice delivery and view materials appropriate for use in sessions with clients. As we go forward, the television will be fully utilized in our work.
“This equipment has been monumental in helping us to develop and deliver courses within our service.”
It’s fantastic to know that just one piece of our equipment can make such a difference. Our new model of partnering with organisations means that our supporters’ donations are really maximized, bringing real support and progress to the most isolated people in our society.
Janet speaks to St Nicholas’ Ladies Club
Recently our Project Worker Janet gave a talk about WaveLength’s history and activities to St Nicholas’ Ladies Club, a church club near our Hornchurch offices. She told them all about WaveLength’s 75 years of fighting loneliness, and our self-funded model, which means that we depend on donations rather than support from the government or councils.
She also passed around some photos we found in the back of the office cupboards, which really touched a lot of people! A couple of these are below – for more, take a look at our Facebook page or Pinterest board.
Herring House – Domestic Violence Against Men
In 2010, 40% of domestic abuse victims were men. But there are very few refuges in the UK for male survivors of abuse. Instead, many male survivors end up homeless, either living on the streets or moving between hostels.
Herring House
Herring House homelessness centre is one shelter that cares for men who have escaped abuse. We gave them some TVs and radios for the men to enjoy. In this video, staff at Herring House tell us how domestic abuse drives men into homelessness.
Continue reading Herring House – Domestic Violence Against Men